BM
This is a West Wimmera Health Service podcast. Presented by me Brigitte Muir.
This series focuses around stories and issues related to health and wellbeing. Some of the people we hear from are sharing their stories, hoping that their experiences will help us with our own health and wellbeing. Please be aware that some of their life experiences may touch on issues that are sensitive to some. Please listen with care. You will find information on seeking help if you need it in the notes attached to each episode.
When do you know when you have a problem with alcohol? When is too much, really, too much? Former Horsham man, Aaron Schultz, now from Agnes Water, Queensland, tells me about his relationship with drinking, and his life growing up in the Wimmera.
AS
I'll tell you what, it was pretty awesome… in many ways, to be honest. Very …well back in the 70s, very simple life, football and cricket, that was it. You know, there wasn't much else to do then. As a young fella, I had some challenges because I had a brain tumour removed when I was 3, so I had a…
BM
Really.
AS
Well…yeah, I'd… I'd spend a lot of time in the Alfred hospital, in Melbourne came out on my 4th birthday… and just took it… took a while to adjust. I think… my coordination wasn't that good, but I don't think there was any compassion from the Horsham North Primary School, they made me do everything else, the other kids had to do so… I had to struggle through all that. My family are farmers from out at Kalkee on…on my mum's side. My grandfather farmed there, years ago, started in the 20s. My cousins are still farming the land now, so it's been 100 years pretty much… since that land has been worked by the Thomas family.
BM
That's amazing. The reason that we're talking to each other, you are in… Queensland and I'm in Victoria, is that… you were happy to talk to me about alcohol… the culture of alcohol, I suppose, as people grow up in the country.
AS
When I was a young fellow, that was all that really… like the whole… the whole social scene everything sort of revolved around that. I wouldn't say I was an exception, because there was lots of young fellas like me, but alcohol is always around my childhood, you know, and… I remember getting into my teens and thinking I didn't want to do it. But there was not much choice, you had to follow that pathway or you didn't connect with your friends or connect with sport, or any of that sort of stuff. There wasn't much else back then. There wasn't social media, there wasn't mobile phones, any of that sort of stuff, so you had to drink to be sociable, I suppose… and we started drinking early like… more 14, and then started drinking heavily at 15 on weekends, and that sort of progressed from there. So, I knew at a young age, even when I was drinking, that I didn't want to, but at the same time, I basically had to… well, I had a… I developed a problem because of just the… the the consistency and the regularity of… of of drinking and took me a long time, and in, in my adult years until I actually like, was able to take control of it…I suppose.
BM
OK, so how did that happen?
AS
It was a struggle for a long time to be honest, because our work was dominating and took a lot of stress and… pressure, and the only way I could sort of relax was to…have a few beers and that affected sleep… affected all sorts of things, but I just kept pushing myself to try and… perform one day when I was about 37, I really hit… burn out, my body… sort of saying, you know, I can't cope anymore. We…we ignore these signs. I… I I certainly did for a long time. I went to a doctor… the doctor said to me that I had anxiety…and there's two things I could do… I could either take tablets or exercise, and I said, “well, I'm not taking tablets”. I chose to start exercising and over a period of months, it actually made me realise that I didn't really need… to drink. You know, I… I'd swap the alcohol for exercise… and that gave me, you know, something else to self-regulate with, rather than alcohol, and… and really all I'd known was alcoholism. I’m sure a lot of the people in… in regional areas do.
BM
Giving up alcohol and discovering exercise really took you somewhere else in your life, didn't it?
AS
It took me into a…a different mindset, and the mindset I actually had when I was that young 14-15 year old boy, that that clarity sort of came back again, about in what it is, and what my purpose actually is… in this lifetime. You know… I just thought I had to… consistently earn six figures and I had to consistently… have a status with my… my role, but actually my… my purpose is really around… trying to… create change and trying to and … or trying to basically be a leader in… in in the health space, you know, because I've been sort of been through the unhealthy period, I really want to do what I could to… to try and change some, some culture. And try and shift our… our awareness away from this because, let's, let's face it, it's not our fault the alcohol industry has been dominant for a long time, and you know… they're working very hard to try and get people hooked on alcohol, but I actually started to feel a lot better without it, and other people that, that I know that have been on the same journey, feel so much better without it, as well. Our… our liver and kidney can only take so much, and when we start to give that a break then we actually become clearer above the shoulders…and that, that took me into a very high level of self-awareness… through exercise, I actually was able to achieve some, some pretty, pretty amazing things. Then I started to realise that all I was trying to do… was give my… mind a break and actually feel like calm and content. So that took me into learning… meditation, and meditation has been probably the best thing that I've done… been able to discover… because it actually gives our mind a rest and really I needed to give my mind a rest more than… more than anything.
BM
And that also opened another door for you because… from what I know about you… male mental health has become a focus in the last few years of your life, hasn't it?
AS
Yeah, definitely. I started up what's called the Outback Mind Foundation, when I was back in Victoria, Murtoa I …I I had this idea and sort of started it up and... last year, it became a… a full health promotion charity to try and encourage men to, I suppose, take a proactive approach to their, well, well-being rather than wait till something's wrong and… and then go and seek help, you know. I think we've all got the ability to prevent illness, we need to be able to empower ourselves and more people to… to be healthy and, and actually live our lives more functionally, rather than being disempowered and… and, you know, put on pharmaceuticals, I just don't believe you know, that needs to be the, the focus anymore. We’re… we're certainly capable of, of healing… illness within ourselves we've got a tremendous body that's always looking to heal, but at the same time, we're getting in the road by putting alcohol into our bodies or unhealthy food into our bodies and our bodies gotta work hard to deal with that. So, we can actually learn how to work with the, the chemistry of our body well, then, all of a sudden we start to feel better physically and mentally, and that is a huge effect on not just us, but also everyone else around us.
BM
I noticed on your Facebook page the Outback Mind that you have man circles. Now, here in Natimuk, a friend of mine who's a man, has tried to start a male circle to talk about… issues, I suppose that may affect people's lives. No success, whatsoever. So, what's the secret to get people? Males? To talk about what affects them?
AS
When I was back in Horsham, I started one… and it was going… quite… OK. I… we used to get some, some good participation… mind you… there was some nights where it was just me, I was the only person there. But hey, I just kept coming back and eventually people started to come. People used to park their car two kilometres away, so no one would see them as they walk in there. Now that’s ridiculous, you know. That…that's the mindset that I had when I was a young fella too. Look, we've been able to develop a really succ.. successful model with regards to this, and actually getting interest and uptake. We have about 70 guys that come through the local one here… and… from all walks of life, from… from 75–80-year-old men that are ex-farmers, and through to, you know, guys that have been quite successful and retired. They come to these circles because it actually gives some… the ability to be able to learn and… and build capacity without actually drinking. So, they're circles we’re running are really capacity buildings…they're actually like educating men on how to manage their nervous system more and more, and then every second circle will do a sharing circle, everyone gets a chance to talk about what's going on in their life. They're very safe, they're very secure. What gets spoken about doesn't go outside the room, and …my vision is is to be able to develop these circles throughout Australia moving forward. So, I'd be very keen to, to have a chat to the community back in the Wimmera or any other communities throughout Australia about getting one of these up and running. That's the other thing, I'm doing on the… I'm doing work on the prevention side. I think the more we can do to prevent things, then the less episodes… we're going to have of male suicide, but also the better …aware men in general are going to be in regional areas around their emotional well-being and being able to become emotionally mature. So, emotionally mature enough to be able to see where they're at. I picked up something in myself this morning, which I've never discovered before, and that sort of self-growth within myself is, is always evolving. I'm never going to say that I… I know everything because… I always seem to be able to pick things up and, and develop and evolve. A lot of the stuff… thinking is… has been ingrained there for a long time… and I think it's very common with people in regional areas and …and farmers and that, that in general because we've just done what dad's done, and what Grandpa did, and so forth and maybe we need to shift our… our mindset a little bit now. So, these… these circles actually help us, you know, change that… to be able to develop …healthy ways to manage our, our, our emotions and our nervous system …and be able to self-regulate functionally… without looking outside ourselves for that.
BM
That certainly sounds like a good idea to spread the model that you have created, and I am so thankful for you …and your passion and your purpose in life. I'm sure that you are already helping lots of people and there will be more and more who benefit from your experience. And your willingness to volunteer.
AS
Yeah. Appreciate it. It certainly… If there is anyone out there that, that that needs… a hand or… would like to have a look at what we're doing just jump on the Outback Mind Foundation website and reach out. I really, really would encourage you to, to have a serious think about setting up a circle in your area, and we'll certainly support that. If… we can get …some funding to do so I'll come there and, and help start run them, and then we train a facilitator or facilitators on how to actually do it functionally, and then have the support of us… overarching that, which I think is really key, because…. I think it's crazy… just to be working in silos rather actually than work as a, as a collaboration, and in the group to be able to help ourselves, but also to help others out there I think is really important.
BM
Absolutely …and thank you so much for volunteering your time to talk to me today and for… helping other people…other man in the Wimmera… your home ground, I guess.
AS
Ohh look… I… miss it. It’s been a couple of years since I've been because of COVID and other things, but I'm really looking forward to getting back there, cause I love it and that's where I was brought up and it's always gonna be in my home, that's for sure.
BM
You take care, Aaron. And once again, thank you for your time.
AS
Yeah. Thank you.
BM
That was Aaron Schultz former Wimmera man, now living in Agnes Water, Queensland. Did you enjoy listening to Aaron? You can hear more from him on his podcast, The Outback Mind.
You will find us always contact numbers and details in the notes attached to this episode. And while you're at it, please give us a star rating. We'd also love to hear your comments and suggestions. Our Facebook and Twitter details are in the notes. Until next have a healthy life won’t you.
Transcribed by Word online edited by WWHS Health Promotion Team.