Troubled Mind

Troubled Mind Project develops forms of support for families whose
young or grown-up family member with an intellectual disability has
challenging behaviour or needs mental health related support.

The project is organised by The Finnish Association for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (Kehitysvammaisten Tukiliitto ry) in 2005 to 2008 and funded by the Finnish Slot Machine Association.

There are family meetings and rehabilitation courses for those
participating in the project and their families. The objectives of
the courses are to develop course models for supporting mental
health with the help of peer support and functionality. Parents
receive peer support and understandable information on the
questions related to their own specific situation in the family
meetings.

Support person training is organised in cooperation with the
Finnish Association for Mental Health in the towns involved in the
project. A support person helps a person with an intellectual
disability both to find new interests or personal relationships as
well as reinforces the person’s independent coping skills.

Cooperating professional groups, that is to say, all circles of
support, develop together models which help persons with
intellectual disabilities to find the necessarymental health
services. Professionals learn to reconise these persons’ need
for mental health related support and to support them in mental
health related matters.

The survey finds out experiences and opinions of the project and
the support provided by the service system among persons with
intellectual disabilities. As a part of the survey, the interviewees
take photographs which they use to tell about their lives.