g a t e w a y

Arts and c rafts with TI M

Just look at this picture. What do you see? I see a

lot of people together around a very colourful

table, and everyone concentrating in a very

relaxing way, as they create something colourful

and wonderful.

Tim has decided to put themes on each months art

classes and the theme for the month of May will

be landscape painting. So feel free to join Tim

every Thursday this month in the back room and

learn how to become another Van Gogh or

another Monet. I jest you not..

Unit 1, 2 Parker Hill, Rathmines Road, D 6. E-mail : thegatewaynewsletter@gmail.com

MAY

N e ws l e t t e r

2014

Welcome

At las t the evenings are beginning to s tretch out ahead of us again. The grass is beginning to grow and the leaves are s tart ing to bud once again. Even though this happens every year, we always go “ooooh” or “aaagh” every t ime we see this br i l l iant miracle of Spr ingtime. So get out and walk and look around at al l that is taking place around you. And I don’t mean al l the fest ivals and shows, I mean the wonderfu l wor ld

o f nature and l i fe .

NOW is the time to sign up for the WELL-BEING course you’ve always wanted to do! Starts on Friday 23rd of May for

ten weeks, 12 till 3pm, get your name down fast! Contact 01-4965558 or maryb@rpcp.ie

MINDFUL BREATHING

Mindful breathing is simply focusing your mind on the

breath. Breathing in and breathing out. As one breath

ends, another one begins. It may help you to focus on

the breath more easily if you place your right hand on

your stomach, and feel the rise and fall of the belly with

each full breath.

You may notice that in these first few moments of

concentrating on your breath that your mind has begun

to wander. This is what the mind does all the time. Be

gentle and patient with yourself, every time you notice

this wandering of the mind, very gently come back to

the breath.

You may wish to see the breath as an anchor holding us

steady whenever the mind begins to wander. This is

what the mind does all the time.

You can practise mindful breathing for 5-10 minutes

each day and little by

It’s good for you

And it’s free

LOSING MORE THAN MY SLEEP

There are two indisputable things in life which make a

happy man or woman. That is nice food and a good

night's sleep! Simple things really, and in my life's

experience and observance they are both pretty

essential!

Someone special

Meeting that someone special or the birth of a baby and

new life, now those kind of stuff kind of make me

ecstatic and are the icing on the cake to what is already

a nice recipe.

I have never had problems with food essentially, except

for a tricky first year away in college, and love chicken

Kiev's and peppered mackerels as good as anyone else,

my staple. Bring me to a new restaurant to try new

cuisine and I am simply in culinary Heaven!

On the other hand, because of my illness and rather wild

imagination, which causes my sleep to suffer

sometimes, or through lack of sleep which most

definitely brings on bouts of the illness, a real catch-22

situation, I haven't had the best sleeping patterns in the

world ever by any means. I remember in college my

sleep was of poor quality. Away from home for the first

time, finding my independence, tentatively making new

friends, found me in a whirl of new experiences.

Around exam time I surprised myself that I could get by

on three or four hours sleep, I was so pumped up on

caffeine and adrenaline.

Unfortunately when I moved to Dublin, my control of it,

and my life balance slipped somewhat with the stresses

and strains of modern life, and I slide slowly off the

parapet into a grimy world of anxieties and perplexities

of what life was really about. On a few points my grasp

of reality, understandably, failed me, after a few nights

of very broken and dreamless sleep. The world became

a very dark and daunting world.

My confidence and outlook and mind were shattered. I

reluctantly seeked medical attention for my bi-polar

illness.

after a little coaxing

This time I was pumped up on anti-psychotic drugs

which I swallowed one by one unwillingly and

reluctantly, but after a little coaxing. I re-found my calm

and slept for days. -Ann Marie

How Thyroid illness can affect mental health.

A surprisingly large number of people who

experience mental health problems such as

insomnia, depression, anxiety or even

hallucinations may have undiagnosed thyroid

disease and could make a full recovery if they

are correctly diagnosed and treated. The web-

site www.thyromind.info was set up in 2003 to

try to make people aware of a whole range of

complex links between thyroid illness and

mental health symptoms. Many people still do

not realise just how much thyroid illness can

impact mental health.. Some drugs used to treat

mental health problems can actually make a

thyroid illness worse. This should not be

happening in the 21st Century. Thyroid

treatment is a big good news story waiting to

happen for possibly a great number of people.

Reminde r

Oliver D is still meeting members in Toast Café Rathmines every Wed at

1pm. All are welcome!

My Mind in Ranelagh is offering discounted

counselling services. Vouchers are available to

Gateway members at e10 per session for 5 sessions.

Contact Mary Barnes on 01-4965558.

PEARSE MUSEUM

VISIT

On the 27th of March 2014, some

members of the Gateway Project

went to The Pearse Museum which

is situated in St. Enda’s Park,

Rathfarnham, Dublin 14.

The trip was tied in with the weekly

Arts & Crafts Class, which takes

place every Thursday between

2.30pm-4.30pm.

We met at Parker Hill and travelled

to the venue on the local Garda

minibus. There were 14 people in

attendance on the day.

We ate in the coffee shop at the

museum on arrival. The museum is

located within St. Enda’s Park,

which is near Marlay Park. The park

has a nice wooded area, a pond, a

stream and various small

monuments.

Firstly we watched a 20 minute

video giving a background to the

museum. The “Hermitage”, as the

house was originally known, was

built 250 years ago and was

opened as a boarding school by

the Pearse brothers in 1910. Their

ethos was to focus on Irish Culture

and the Irish Language.

At the same time the brothers

were active in politics and in the

organisation towards the 1916 rising,

after which both were executed. The

school continued until the late

1930’s when it closed. The state took

over ownership of the building in the

late 1960’s and “Pearse Museum”

was opened to the public.

The building contains furniture, art

works, documents and a

reconstruction of a sleeping dorm

where students slept. The tour guide

was very knowledgeable and helpful

in answering questions posed by

many members of our group. The

museum is well kept, informative

and located in a nice environment. It

is a hidden gem as it is away from

the main tourist areas.

I enjoyed the visit and we managed

to take a few photos in the gardens

afterwards.

Thanks to Gateway, the two Gardaí

who transported us to and from the

venue and to all Gateway members

who attended.

-Richard.

CheCk out the harold’s Cross

Festival. Starts Friday the 9th of

May and ends with a grand finale

on Sunday evening the 11th. This is

their 5th year to organise it and

it just keeps getting better and

better each year, Check out the

details on

Haroldscross fe st ival .com

Whatever the race ... If you are thinking of running or walking any races in the coming months and would like to support the work of Mental Health Reform, get in touch! We can support you with a fundraising toolkit, MHR t-shirt and support on social media. Just contact Lara, lkelly@mentalhealthreform.ie. Your support will go a long way!

If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.

11 Wynnefield Road Dublin 6. Ph. 01-4965558 www.projectgateway.blogspot.com

Views expressed in this newsletter are only views of the contributors and not views of the

Gateway Project.

These are a few of my favourite

things by Richard.

Colour: Blue

Season: Summer

Sound: The Breath

Music: Ambient/Drone

Memory: New Zealand (1998)

Film: Memento

T.V Series: The Wire

Hero: David Attenborough

Other things I like: Collecting music/The Ocean/My bed/Maps/Nature/

Swimming and Quietness

POOL COMPETITION AT

GATEWAY (APRIL 2014)

The April Gateway Pool

Competition took place on

Thursday 24th. It was hotly

contested amongst the ten eager

participants. There was great

interest amongst the members

who cheered wildly to

encourage the players.

After several close and tense

matches, two excellent finalists

came through and pitted their

skills against each other in a

thrilling final.

Ciaran C and Oliver R came

head to head in the final and

Oliver R won the Competition

for the fourth time.

Congratulations to Oliver and

commiserations to Ciaran on his

valiant effort.

In the end it was an enjoyable

day for all involved in the

completion.

The next Pool Competition

will take place on Thursday

the 29th of May 2014

between 2pm-4pm.

I a sked God for a bike , but I know God doesn ’t work

that way . So I s to le a bike and asked for forgiveness .

GATEWAY ART DAY TRIP:

This month the art group are

heading to the National

Gallery at Merrion Square.

Come and register your

interest in Gateway. The date

is Thursday the 22nd of May.

We will be meeting at 1

o’clock in Parker Hill.

Darkness Into Light,

proudly supported by

Electric Ireland, is the

absolute highlight of

the Pieta House

calendar!

Starting at 4.15am (in

Phoenix Park), and

crossing the line just as

dawn is breaking, the phenomenon that is

Darkness Into Light, our annual 5km walk/run,

will celebrate its sixth year on Saturday, May

10th 2014, with nearly 40 venues across Ireland

and beyond lined up.

See Change, the National Stigma Reduction Partnership

and their 90 partner organisations are rolling out a month

long national Green Ribbon Campaign to get people

talking openly about mental health problems in May 2014.

Pick up your Green Ribbon at one of the various

community events and at major Irish Rail stations and at

every Citizen's Information Centre and MABS office

nationwide.

LOCAL CRAFT FAIR: St. Agnes Community Centre

for Music and the Arts are organising a Craft Fair

behind St. Agnes School, Armagh Road on 15th

May. All stall holders are local and this event will

give them a chance to show and sell their craft while

also providing much needed advertising for the

Community Centre for Music and the Arts.