Hawke’s Bay: Mental health fallout from Cyclone Gabrielle to be felt for years

The mental health toll for those trying to rebuild their lives and move on from Cyclone Gabrielle will be felt for years to come, as new research suggests building a strong sense of community remains vital for people’s long-term recovery.

NZ Mental Health Foundation chief executive Shaun Robinson, who splits his time between Te Awanga and Auckland, said it could be a “long process” to recover from a natural disaster in every way, including the mental and emotional fallout.

He said building a strong sense of community was “most important” for people’s mental health once the “hero phase” was long gone, and it was supported by new research into the cyclone recovery.

“In the initial stages of a natural disaster, people’s mental health often improves significantly,” Robinson said.

“That may seem counterintuitive, but when you think about it, people are working together, they are trying to address the immediate problems, there is a strong sense of community — we certainly saw this all over Hawke’s Bay.

“So even though there are distressing [situations], people kind of feel part of something and they feel supported by the community.

“That is what is termed the hero phase of a natural disaster.”

Robinson said it was months or even a year or two later that people were “left with the reality of the impact” and things can “get really tricky”.

“What is most important is to keep that strong sense of community.

“To keep feeding that sense of we are all supporting each other — we are all in this together,” he said.

“We have got some preliminary results from some research we are doing into how different communities are affected and feeling a year on [from the cyclone], and that is exactly what they are saying.”

He said that could be as simple as dropping in to have a cup of tea or a chat with someone isolated who may have been affected by the floods.

“Just remember to be there for people. Go and have that cup of tea. Send that text.

Shaun Robinson, chief executive of the NZ Mental Health Foundation, says he believes gGovernment funding for wellbeing support could have been better spent. Photo / Supplied

“If there is a community organisation [you are part of], encourage it to be putting on more activities that bring people together and connect.”

He said some great was work being done on building connections, including by the likes of Rural Support.

However, he said he was disappointed to see up to $2 million in government funding being allocated to free counselling in Hawke’s Bay in recent weeks, rather than towards building community.

“To put most of the money in there is a mistake,” he said, of it being too individually focused.

“They would have been far better to maybe put half of that into individual support and another half into [initiatives] that build community.”

Te Whatu Ora Hawke’s Bay rolled out its $2 million wellbeing support package at the end of January that includes seven free counselling sessions for people affected by the cyclone.

Health Hawke’s Bay clinical director Brendon Duck said alongside that package, 75 community groups had also been given grants worth almost $1 million combined “for community events and initiatives across the rohe”.

“We agree with the Mental Health Foundation that community and connection are important areas to support people’s mental wellbeing as they recover from the cyclone,” he said of the grants.

“However, that doesn’t diminish the need for counselling as part of the recovery, which allows people to access tools they may not have to support them navigate life’s challenges.”

Gary Hamilton-Irvine is a Hawke’s Bay-based reporter who covers a range of news topics including business, councils, breaking news and cyclone recovery. He formerly worked at News Corp Australia.