Great response to Winter Fuel Fund and Schizophrenia - counselling and medication side effects.

Over £10,000 has been donated to the Winter Fuel Fund, held by CCF, which offers help to small voluntary groups in Cambridgeshire working with vulnerable, elderly people! This is a great response which included a donation from Lord Sainsbury, the newly elected Chancellor of Cambridge University.

Now, we are seeking applications from local groups helping local vulnerable people who are struggling due to fuel poverty, poor living conditions or social isolation. To apply for up to £900 please use the online application form. Next month I’ll be looking at how these groups are helping our elderly neighbours survive this Winter. It’s still not too late to donate to the Fund at through the online giving website localgiving.com, http://localgiving.com/communityfoundation/cambridgeshire.

Purely by coincidence I have been talking to two groups who are both receiving grants from CCF to help address problems as a result of schizophrenia. Firstly, the Peterborough and Fenland Rethink Carers Group provides support and advice for carers of those with mental ill health. The Group offers a range of activities including one-to-one support, 24/7 telephone support line, representing carers at local mental health committees and producing a regular newsletter. Schizophrenia is a mental illness which occurs when the parts of the brain responsible for emotion and sensation stop working properly. The illness can develop slowly and a person may stop living their normal life, withdrawing from people, losing interest in things and possibly having angry outbursts. Schizophrenia develops in about 1 in 100 people. The most common ages for it first to develop are 15-25 in men and 25-35 in women. Genetic factors are thought to be important. For example, a close family member (child, brother, sister, parent) of someone with schizophrenia has a 1 in 10 chance of also developing the condition. This is 10 times the normal chance. Clearly then, many families are coping with, and caring for, adults with schizophrenia or related conditions such as bipolar disorder. Peterborough and Fenland Rethink Carers Group aims to help everyone affected by severe mental illness recover a better quality of life.

Obtaining suitable medication is a key issue for those affected, which brings me to the second Group, Cambridge Pringle Group. Antipsychotic drugs are used to treat schizophrenia by altering the balance of neurotransmitters but can have significant side effects which include weight gain.

This may increase the risk of developing diabetes and heart problems in the longer term. The stigma of this disabling condition with associated episodes of paranoia, hallucinations and delusions reduces the ability of a sufferer to engage in main stream resources, such as health clubs or gyms. So, Cambridge Pringle have set up to assist those with weight gain, reduced motivation and self esteem which are associated with the side effects of the drugs used to control schizophrenia.

The idea is to “cycle your weight and worries away". The Group provides static and real cycles to enable those affected to lose weight, starting in the gym and then graduating to the roads as a life style change. Street view and real video footage will make the exercise more real. Hopefully, I’ll plan a visit to Pringle soon to perhaps shed a few of my extra Christmas pounds!