Sam Lim (Tangney, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

How often this week have we done something enjoyable, gone to bed and woken up at a regular time, or had a meaningful conversation? For many of us, not often enough. One Tangney local and his team are trying to change that.

Earlier this year, Professor Nick Titov was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for his significant service to digital mental health and wellness. Nick founded MindSpot, which supports Australian adults with free, confidential psychological assessments, treatments and access to qualified therapies. MindSpot has worked with more than 250,000 Australians.

Nick has also started the Big 5—five types of actions that are strongly linked to mental health. Most people do not know what they can do each day to look after their mental health or how often they should do these things. Nick's research shows that doing these five activities at least three or four times a week makes you mentally healthier and more resilient. His research also shows that, if people stop doing these activities, their mental health worsens. When Nick told me about the Big 5, I did a self-check and found I wasn't doing all these healthy activities often enough.

Here are the Big 5. The first is meaningful activities to give us a sense of accomplishment, satisfaction or joy. This can be as simple as listening to your favourite song. The second is healthy thinking. This is about having realistic thoughts about self, the world and the future. The third is having goals and plans, which helps us to stay focused and motivated. The fourth is healthy routines like our sleep routine, eating well and staying active. These are critical. The fifth is social connections. Being in touch regularly with people who we love and respect gives us a sense of belonging. Over the last two weeks, I have put these Big 5 into practice, and I strongly recommend everyone give it a go.

Why do I like the Big 5? Because it is very practical and it is free. There is a journal to help us to reflect, and there are daily text messages to prompt us. As Nick says, do more and you'll feel better; do less and it gets harder. Thank you, Nick.