Benalla men's wellbeing event fosters unexpected friendships and connections

Wellways’ Tim Batton, part of that committee, said it was a successful night.

“One of our intentions going into this was hoping that men would use the opportunity to explore the mateship that we were promoting,” he said.

“And we saw things that we didn't expect would organically happen.

“That was, men who saw each other and were part of clubs came and met each other, but then also introduced each other to their friendship networks.

“So there was this kind of organic introducing and third-party friendships that were there, which met one of our goals for the event.”

Fellow organising committee member and Waminda Community House board member Brendan Smith, said those organic connections meant there was a great atmosphere in the room, even before the event officially started.

“These things can start off a bit awkwardly, but that didn’t happen,” he said.

Mr Smith said when the event sold out quickly, the organising committee hoped that was a sign it would be a success, but the reality of it outshone all expectations.

“Leanne (Bullard) from Waminda had to put a ‘sold out’ post on social media,” he said.

“We had space for 80 at the Benalla Bowls Club and it was a full house.

“The highlight and the major draw card was our speaker Dr Brownstein. He was exceptionally good.

“He gave a talk on men's health and he said he could go into all details about forms of cancer and all that stuff.

“But, basically, in 25 minutes, he gave us four main things to take home.

“See your doctor once a year. Develop a positive mental outlook. Have a good diet and exercise.”

Mr Battson said Dr Brownstein also took part in a Q and A.

“The questions came thick and fast,” he said.

“We actually had to stop them as we ran out of time and Dr Brownstein needed the chance to eat his meal.

“I think a lot of people were very pleased that they came.

“It’s sometimes difficult to drag blokes out for something like this, particularly mid-week.

“But we had a few different groups there; the Baddaginnie Fire Brigade, for example, and the men’s walking group.

“So it was a good mix of people.”

On the subject of exercise, Mr Smith said a local thing men could take part in was the Man Walk.

It has weekly walks all over Victoria and one of its groups is Benalla based,

They meet every Friday at 7am outside Benalla Library.

This friendly and inclusive group encourages men of all ages to come together for a healthy walk, fostering physical fitness, social connection and community engagement.

“They are a great example of how exercising five times a week can be a very achievable target and ideally matched with a social opportunity,” Mr Smith said.

“So they're socialising, they're talking and they're exercising together.

“And we all know the connection between exercise and good mental health.”

To find out more, visit @The Man Walk - Benalla on Facebook.

Another thing that local men are encouraged to take part in is the Men’s Table.

It’s a safe place to share and be heard in a confidential and non-judgemental environment, creating a greater sense of belonging, camaraderie and connection.

Mr Batson said it’s a men's meeting group, that connects on a monthly basis, which is funded by the Murray PHN.

“It’s another opportunity for men to meet together to improve men's wellbeing.”

You can find out more about that via themenstable.org/

Mr Batson said Wellways also offered a Psychosocial Recovery Service, in Benalla.

That assists individuals with mental health issues to achieve their recovery goals.

It provides one-on-one support for men to talk about what recovery means for them. It aims to work with people to:

Find out more about that via www.wellways.org/our-services/psychosocial-recovery-service/