Sanjiv’s life changed dramatically in 2019 when he began to experience serious mental health challenges. They led to him being hospitalised and left him unable to work.
Sanjiv (name changed for privacy reasons), 43, is a highly skilled professional chef who was working at top restaurants and hotels, in Melbourne and internationally for 15 years until he became unwell.
Diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, Sanjiv was unable to leave his home for a long time. He was unable to shop or do many of the things in everyday life that we take for granted. It has been, he says, a terrible time for him.
“My wife tried to be supportive and to help me get outside but it was too hard,” Sanjiv said.
Sanjiv’s clinical support service referred him to Mind’s Early Intervention Psychosocial Support Response (EIPSR) service, to help him with his quality of life and his recovery goals. The EIPSR service helps people with mental health challenges who are having difficulty managing everyday tasks. This 12-month program of individualised support helps clients to live independently and safely in the community.
Sanjiv said his practitioner James made him feel comfortable straight away.
“He was very friendly and kind and I just clicked with him,” he said.
James is a Lead Practitioner at EIPSR and an experienced counsellor. He works with a Cognitive Behaviour Therapy framework to help people who have challenging maladaptive thoughts.
“When we first started together, Sanjiv had a low mood, heightened anxiety and he was very depressed,” James said. “His key goal was to be able to leave his house and that was a very tough challenge for him.”
Mind’s support staff often use the metaphor of ‘walking alongside’ someone on their recovery journey. In this case, it is something that James has done literally with Sanjiv – being by his side as he goes outside and rebuilds his sense of safety and confidence in the world.
“James has helped me with strategies to stay calm, things like breathing and mentally preparing myself to be able to go outside,” Sanjiv said.
Going to Chadstone shopping centre with James has been his biggest achievement so far. He was also driving to a weekly cooking group where people dealing with similar experiences can feel safe and comfortable with socialising again.
EIPSR is designed to provide support for people who are not on the NDIS scheme. James supported Sanjiv to get an NDIS plan so he would have ongoing support when his EIPSR support ended. He also recommended an NDIS support worker he thought would be a good fit for Sanjiv.
“When EIPSR was finishing, James said ‘you will not be alone’”, Sanjiv said. “He introduced me to Jono, (his NDIS support worker) and we all met two or three times, so the transition was very smooth.”
Now that Sanjiv has an NDIS package, that means he has secure, ongoing support to continue working on improving his daily life and setting and achieving goals. Sanjiv and Jono are continuing the work Sanjiv did with James, to build Sanjiv’s confidence and motivation to go outside.
“Some days it’s easy to go out and other days I get very depressed and it’s very hard for me. I have to remind myself it is small steps but I have seen progression over time,” Sanjiv says.
Being able to work again is a key goal he is working on with Jono.
Jono organised a six-month work experience placement for Sanjiv as a cleaner through an employment scheme. The work is a long way from the skill and creativity that Sanjiv practiced as a chef – and the loss of that is painful for him - but it has been an important step forward to be able to experience a workplace again and get comfortable in it.
“I was cleaning in offices in the daytime with people around me. It was a challenge at first – I was very anxious as it wasn’t familiar - but gradually it became normal. It felt good to at least be doing something and building that confidence.”
“My big hope is to get a job. It’s a big challenge to build that momentum. My illness is so complicated, but a job and a routine will help me build a life again.”
Jono also takes Sanjiv on overnight respite retreats, which give Sanjiv’s wife some space and a break from her carer role.
Sanjiv has been inspired by the support he has received from James and Jono and has thoughts about becoming a peer worker one day, to help others the way he has been helped.
“I am very grateful to them, he said; “I really appreciate all that help they have given me.”
Mind has EIPSR services in Victoria servicing the following local government areas: Wyndham/Maribyrnong, Hume/Moreland, Darebin/Whittlesea, Banyule/Nillumbik, Yarra/Boroondara, and in Bendigo, Gippsland, and Albury-Wodonga.
If this article raises concerns for you, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14. Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islanders can also call 13 YARN (13 92 76) a 24/7 national crisis support telephone service staffed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
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“We need more places that support mental health and housing, and we need to keep the NDIS. The NDIS has changed my life; every day I wake up happy, I’ve got a very good support worker and my life is going well now.”
This is Andrea’s message for Homelessness Week 2025 – a time to raise awareness of the impact of homelessness and the solutions needed to end homelessness.
