Janet Peters has drawn from her troubled youth to become a successful, award-winning psychologist. Photo/John Borren
Janet Peters has drawn from her troubled youth to become a successful, award-winning psychologist. Photo/John Borren
By any yardstick Mount Maunganui psychologist Janet Peters is a truly remarkable person.
Not only has she won national and international acclaim for her work in mental health but she has defied the odds to get to where she is today.
Her parents both had mental health problems when she was a child, while she, herself, drifted into a world of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll before turning her life around and going on to university.
The 60-year-old is extraordinarily candid about her turbulent past, perhaps keen to let others like her know there is light at the end of the tunnel. Her story will also resonate with parents of wayward or out of control teenagers who are at their wits' end trying to rein them in.
When she opened her heart to the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend it was hard to believe that just a few weeks ago she was the joint winner of an award for exceptional contribution to mental health service delivery in Australia and New Zealand.
This came three years after she received the Public Interest Award from the New Zealand Psychological Society for her work in changing public attitudes to people with mental health problems.
Both awards reflect the outstanding work she has performed as a psychologist over the last 30 years, mostly in the mental health arena, but what they don't recognise is how she clawed her way back from a life that was spiralling out of control.
Back in the day she lived in Hamilton with her parents and older brother Jeff.
"We were very different as children," she remembers. "He was into all things mechanical and I was into books and learning and trying to be very grown up.
"I was eight going on 18!"
Peters describes her parents as being "very traditional" with both of them being keen gardeners although her mother also wrote children's stories.
In many respects she had a conventional upbringing but there were other issues lurking just below the surface that would have a profound and lasting impression on her.
"Both Mum and Dad had mental health issues," she says. "Dad was anxious and a bit obsessive about certain things which meant he could be grumpy.
"Mum would get very distressed and a bit paranoid and was hospitalised a few times in what was then called the loony bin."
Peters says her mother was diagnosed as having a nervous breakdown but today it would be called a mild schizoaffective disorder.
As a child these experiences often left her distressed but she says she never stopped loving her parents and, for their part, they never stopped loving her when she went off the rails as a teenager.
"I loved school and did extremely well until I hit 14 and then I turned into the worst teenager ever!"
"Friends, boys, clothes, music, drugs and alcohol were all that was important. It was self-destructive and self-obsessive and I couldn't stand my parents, relatives, school or anyone who wasn't into what I was doing."
By the time she was 16, Peters was living with her boyfriend and eight musicians in a large house in Hamilton.
"Got pregnant, had a termination, did office work for a few years and lived for partying on weekends.
"I can honestly say there was nothing I didn't do as a teenager but my parents always stood by me.
"We used to laugh about it later in life but it was not fun for them."
My experiences led me to a passion for helping people understand more about mental health problems
At the age of 25, Peters managed to shake off what she describes as her "rock 'n' roll lifestyle" and enrolled at Waikato University where she spent seven years studying psychology.
Given her background the decision to study the human mind and how it functions was, if you'll excuse the pun, a no-brainer.
"My experiences led me to a passion for helping people understand more about mental health problems," she says.
"As a child I would have liked information about my parents' problems, someone to confide in that I trusted, and ongoing support for my overall health and wellbeing."
Which is why Peters has written an illustrated book called Jemma's Journey for children aged 5 to 10 who have a parent with mental health problems.
"We know that mental health problems are increasing, particularly depression and anxiety, so it's more likely that children need information and support.
"Today there are national agencies working on strategies for children of parents with mental health illness, which is great."
In her quest to broaden New Zealanders understanding of mental health issues, Peters has played a leading role with the Ministry of Health's national public health programme, Like Minds Like Mine, which was designed to reduce the stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness.
She was also part of the Ministry's National Depression Initiative, which was designed to raise awareness of depression and encourage people to seek help sooner rather than later.
The one fact we know is that the most powerful way to change attitudes towards people with mental illness is to have contact with a person who has had a mental health problem and recovered
A campaign featuring TV ads fronted by ex-All Black John Kirwan proved successful with more than 90 per cent of people surveyed recalling them, and the majority giving them the thumbs-up.
"Many people have helped with this initiative," says Peters, "but I do think that having JK front the campaign has been very helpful.
"Research has shown that people's attitudes have shifted and I know myself that if I mention I work on this people immediately tell me about their own problem, or that of their brother, mother, friend etc who has experienced depression.
"The one fact we know is that the most powerful way to change attitudes towards people with mental illness is to have contact with a person who has had a mental health problem and recovered.
"So the more people speak up or step forward, as the campaign now says, the better it is!"
Peters, herself, has had to grapple with her own demons, mostly relating to anxiety.
"I have had lots of therapy in my time. In fact, I have had more therapy than you have had hot dinners!" she says.
"I also had a life-threatening situation once that led to post traumatic stress disorder, which required more therapy and support."
Last year Peters flew around rural New Zealand with Kirwan talking to farmers who've experienced depression.
Severe weather events, reduced payouts and mounting compliance costs are putting many under considerable pressure, resulting in a significantly higher suicide rate in rural areas than in urban areas.
The most recent suicide rate for people living in rural areas is 12.5 per 100,000 people compared to 10.6 for every 100,000 people living in urban areas.
Peters says the situation could get worse with the current dairy downturn.
Her latest personal project is a hard-hitting TV commercial aimed at highlighting the harmful effects of drinking while pregnant.
The self-funded 30-second commercial, which she made in conjunction with Tauranga film and video producer Cathryn Earwaker, screened in prime time on TV One to coincide with International Foetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder Awareness Day.
It's estimated the disorder affects about 3000 babies born in New Zealand every year. "Research shows that babies born with the disorder don't outgrow the health problems," Peters says.
"In fact, their difficulties grow with them, affecting their mental health and education.
"This has flow-on effects for society, impacting on police and the courts through crime. Everyone is touched by this disorder and the sad thing is, it's entirely preventable."
Peters says the main problem is that foetal alcohol syndrome disorder is not well-recognised and there are no funded services or national plan for it, although the Ministry of Health is working on one.
"Canada has done fantastic work in this area and New Zealand needs to learn from their experience."
So, looking at the big picture how does Peters view the state of mental health services in New Zealand?
"I have seen huge, positive changes since the times of the big psychiatric hospitals."
In her opinion what we are doing better is:
* More community services with staff doing whatever it takes to help a person's recovery
* A more "person-centred" approach, as we are all different
* Unified physical and mental health services so people get the best all-round care possible.
"I often say we will know we have made it when every person gets the same help for mental health problems as an All Black might get if he has a mental health problem.
"I know I'm being flippant here, but really that could be the gold standard."
We are one of the first cities to have a focus on older people which is great, but I wonder if we need to strengthen stuff for young people and teenagers.
Away from the workplace Peters is a person of many interests who likes to have fun. "Critical to my well-being is having fun.
"I love having a laugh, as my friends will tell you, and if I do say so myself, I can be very funny."
This may explain why she lists comedy and script-writing among her many interests, which include short story writing, music, movies, art, gardening, architecture, design, books, clothes and travel.
She also confesses to being "an avid reader of many women's magazines as Jane at Paper Plus at the Mount will attest".
"It's my guilty pleasure!"
And if that's not enough she still has aspirations to become a Tauranga city councillor after failing to win the Mount Maunganui/Papamoa byelection this year.
She says she is driven by a desire to make Tauranga "a city that caters for all people over their lifespan".
"We are one of the first cities to have a focus on older people which is great, but I wonder if we need to strengthen stuff for young people and teenagers.
"The teen years are such an important time in a kid's life, where they can go well or go off the rails."
Clearly this is an issue close to her heart given her own turbulent teenage years, and there's no doubt she has much to offer the city in this regard.
Her peers, for one, are full of praise for what she has achieved and what she has to offer.
Judi Clements, the chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation, told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend that Peters has been tireless in the face of obstacles and deserves recognition.
Judi Clements, chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation
"She is hard-working, reliable, speedy, knowledgeable, humble and compassionate and has quietly got on with changing and improving the world she's in."
Dr Barbara Disley, chief executive of mental health provider Emerge Aotearoa, says Peters' greatest contribution has been "the fabulous work she has done behind the scenes for the anti-discrimination programme".
