Today on World Kindness Day, the Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association of Australia (VMHPAA) highlights the profound impact kindness has on mental wellbeing, community cohesion, and emotional resilience.

The Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association of Australia (VMHPAA) marks International Stress Awareness Day by urging Australians to pause, reflect, and prioritise their mental wellbeing, and by calling on governments to strengthen early-intervention supports across communities.

The Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association Australia (VMHPAA) welcomes and supports the recent findings from Victorian researchers highlighting the mental health benefits of surf therapy for young people. As detailed in recent Deakin University studies, programs that connect young Australians to the ocean are demonstrating measurable outcomes in reducing distress, improving emotional regulation, and supporting re-engagement in daily life.

Recent commentary from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has reignited debate on the growing trend of using AI chatbots for therapeutic support. Surveys suggest that nearly half of people experiencing mental health challenges who also use AI are turning to large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT for help. While these tools are attractive, always available, cost-free, and accessible, serious concerns remain about privacy, safety, and efficacy.

Over the past 25 years, mental health awareness has transformed from silence to visibility. Campaigns, school programs, and social media have played an important role in breaking stigma and encouraging help-seeking. Yet as Professor Patrick McGorry highlights, blanket awareness programs in schools may be creating unintended harms including increased distress, misdiagnosis, and misplaced confidence in “awareness” as a substitute for real care.

The Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association Australia (VMHPAA) welcomes and affirms the findings of The Lancet Psychiatry global report on youth mental health...