From Crisis to Connection: Lessons from Running for Resilience’s Mental Health Forum

On a brisk winter evening by Lake Burley Griffin, people gathered not just to run but to stand together in a movement far greater than fitness. Running for Resilience, a community-driven not-for-profit dedicated to improving mental health through movement and connection, hosted its latest Wednesday walk, jog, and run followed by an honest, powerful forum inside The Dock.

Moderated by Thomas Emerson MLA, the event brought together leaders in mental health support and lived experience: Ben Alexander, Co-Founder of Running for Resilience; Carrie-Ann Leeson, CEO of Lifeline Canberra; Ben Gathercole, CEO of Menslink; and guest speaker Lili Mooney, who shared her story of finding strength through community.

What unfolded was a conversation about hope, stigma, courage, and the simple but profound truth that no one heals alone.

Movement is Medicine, but Connection Heals

Ben Alexander, former professional rugby player and Co-Founder of Running for Resilience, spoke about losing a teammate to suicide, a man with a wife, children, and impressive academic achievements. “That was a real wake-up call for me while I was still playing,” he shared. “Because I wasn’t feeling great even when I was playing.”

Like many athletes, Ben thought he was prepared for retirement. He studied sleep, nutrition, and exercise. Yet years after leaving the game, he found himself deeply depressed despite doing “all the right things.” What he realised was missing wasn’t physical health but social connection.

“Our nervous system and neurochemicals rely on community.” Ben explained. “I remember I rostered myself down at the pub just to hang out with people, to be around community.”

That evening, his words resonated around the room as nods of recognition rippled through the audience. For many, the walk and run beforehand wasn’t just exercise, it was a lifeline back to their nervous system’s need for safety and belonging.

The Courage to Ask for Help

Carrie-Ann Leeson, CEO of Lifeline Canberra, expanded on this, describing the courage it takes for someone to pick up the phone and ask for help.

“People talk about the courage it takes to be on the crisis support end, but it takes immense courage to call,” she said. Often, those who finally reach out to Lifeline will say they’re not sure if they’re “bad enough” to call. They minimise their own pain, convinced others must be suffering more.

“Until people see the value in themselves as worth saving, worth doing the work for, they might not reach out,” Carrie-Ann explained. Lifeline has introduced self-compassion workshops to help people build this inner foundation. “Self-compassion leads to self-awareness, and that leads to the courage to seek help.”

She shared that stigma, both societal and self-imposed, is one of the greatest barriers to help-seeking. This stigma is even stronger for young men, something Menslink CEO Ben Gathercole sees daily.

Peer-Led Solutions for Young People

Menslink has begun implementing anonymous help pathways using QR codes handed out at workshops, giving young men an easy, private way to access support services. Ben Gathercole explained how the organisation has shifted from adult-led directives to peer-led, facilitated programs such as The Tribe Program. This initiative sees students running their own check-in circles at lunch and before school.

“Just telling someone what to do doesn’t work,” he said. “But in a peer-led yarn circle environment, where young people come up with the answers themselves, it does.”

Teachers in the audience raised concerns about a gap between students feeling safe to share at school versus at home, often because parents are struggling too. Organisations like Mental Illness Education ACT (MIEACT) were highlighted for bridging this gap by delivering lived-experience education to both students and parents, fostering understanding and communication. [We also recently wrote an Essential Guide for parents on Mind Map ACT here]

Canberra’s Challenges And Opportunities

The conversation turned hyper local. Canberra, with its highly educated, transient population, has the highest reported loneliness rates in Australia, 40% of people, particularly young adults, report experiencing loneliness. “It’s physically cold and sometimes socially cold,” one panellist noted, “but once you break through, people here are incredibly supportive.”

That high level of education also comes with a tendency to seek data and solutions rather than wisdom and community connection. During COVID, panel members noted, Canberrans turned to statistics for certainty, but what many really needed was wisdom, reassurance, and human connection.

Another local issue discussed was policy settings that unintentionally create barriers, such as newly proposed volunteer fees for working with vulnerable people. Yet Canberra was also recognised for its achievements, including a suicide hotspot intervention that has already saved lives, with no incidents since signage and supports were installed.

Investing Upstream: Prevention Over Crisis

A powerful metaphor shared by an audience member was the “funnel of crisis.” At the bottom are those needing acute hospitalisation or crisis intervention. The middle includes those who, with psychological support, can recover before reaching crisis point. At the top are people who, through regular connection and movement, can avoid falling down the funnel altogether.

Yet as the panel acknowledged, most investment remains at the crisis end because it is measurable and politically visible. Preventative community programs, those at the top of the funnel, are harder to quantify but save lives and money long term.

Victoria’s early intervention investment framework and Wales’ Wellbeing of Future Generations Act were cited as examples of policy courage. These models shift funding towards what communities want most: wellbeing, prevention, and hope.

How can we find this same courage in Canberra? While recent budget announcements increased or secured funding for mental health services there is seemingly a disconnect between people and integrated, timely and appropriate access.

The Role of Running for Resilience

Running for Resilience’s mission is to make Canberra suicide free by 2033. This bold goal stems from a deep belief that creating spaces where people feel safe to be themselves is life-changing.

“When you’re not doing that well, that’s normal,” Ben Alexander said. “We’re here to help. But the reason we can help is because we’re looking after ourselves too.”

The group partners with services like Medicare Mental Health Services Centres to ensure participants can be referred directly to appropriate professional support. This triage model ensures no one falls through the cracks due to the overwhelm of navigating services alone.

Normalising Mental Health First Aid

Carrie-Ann also urged the community to treat mental health as they do physical health. “Who’s done first aid?” the audience was asked. Nearly everyone raised a hand. “Now who’s done mental health first aid?” Uniquely many hands still remained and this showed the passion of the audience members.

“You’re far more likely to encounter someone needing mental health first aid than a snake bite treatment,” they emphasised. Normalising mental health injuries and training everyone to respond was seen as a crucial next step for Canberra.

Taking Action – Today

As the evening closed, attendees were asked how they could get involved. The answers were simple:

• Menslink needs volunteer mentors to support young men through life’s challenges.

• Lifeline Canberra seeks volunteers for crisis support, fundraising, and behind-the-scenes roles such as sorting donations at book fairs.

• Running for Resilience invites everyone to join their weekly events and bring a friend, or send someone struggling a link to the Medicare Mental Health Service Centre to encourage help-seeking.

Ben Alexander left the room with a rallying call:

“Canberra is the most beautiful city in the world. We should have the happiest, healthiest people to match. We can’t wait for the wheels of government. We’ve got to get going with what we have.”

What We Learned

This forum taught us that mental health is not just about services or strategy. It is about the simple, human truth that connection saves lives. Movement brings people together. Vulnerability takes courage. And no one should ever feel they are “not bad enough” to ask for help.

If we are to make Canberra suicide free by 2033, it will not be through policy alone. It will be by building a community where everyone feels seen, valued, and welcome. A community where people know it is okay to say, “I’m struggling,” and have someone ready to say, “Me too. Let’s walk this together.”