The Elephant in the Room – Partnership

The Irish Men’s Sheds Association are very happy to announce a new partnership with The Elephant in the Room Movement. IMSA has decided to join forces with Elephant in the Room in recognition of the fact that both organisations share the key priority of encouraging and supporting more people to have conversations about their Mental Health – especially those ‘Elephants’ we all have stored away in our heads and hearts.

We know from experience that inside Sheds, Men can talk about things they might not otherwise talk about ‘shoulder to shoulder’ and that the Shed is an especially unique setting to share thoughts and worries on some of the great ‘Unmentionable’ topics like loss, anxiety, depression or shame. Not only are you likely to come across someone who supports you with empathy and kindness, but you may well come across someone who has walked a similar path and has shared experience or understanding.

A large majority of Shedders report barriers and challenges to opening up about emotions or feelings (sometimes even the word ‘mental’ can have hugely negative connotations because of the social, cultural conditions and circumstances they grew up in). That’s part of why Sheds are so magic – because Men who felt they had to be ‘silent’ for fear of judgement or punishment can be open, honest and feel like they can be their true selves in the ‘company of Men’.

‘It should be as normal to discuss our mental health as it is to discuss our physical health’. Thus says ex Rugby player Brent Pope who established the Elephant in the Room movement as a symbol of recovery and hope following his own mental health challenges.

How Elephant in the Room works is they provide ‘Nellies’ (fibre glass elephants in plain white) on plinths to schools, organisations and corporations who are invited to discuss their own ‘Elephants’ which an artist interprets and then draws on the blank Elephant for permanent display on the plinth in a visible location. It states that the organisation is a place which welcomes and supports conversations about Mental Health. The partnership is a ‘win win’ for all concerned as the profile for individual Sheds and IMSA to a wider audience is immense. As we know, asking someone how they are doing is never ever a wasted conversation.

Participating sheds create plinths which the ‘Nellies’ will sit on (the Men’s Shed Elephants will be distributed to secondary schools to encourage students to start talking about their mental health).

Whilst working on the plinth’s and as part of the collaboration we are encouraging the Shed members to take the opportunity to think about your own ‘Elephants’ (it’s hard not too!) and perhaps organise a chat over a tea break to talk about the project. There might be someone beside you in the Shed who would welcome the chance to open up or have a conversation.

Remember ‘It’s not weak to speak’!