Tompkins Weekly, 3/10/08

by Shannon Haskins

Last May a new non-profit organization began operating an alternative day program for adults learning to live with a mental illness. Compos Mentis: Working Toward Wellness Inc. leases farmland from the Cayuga Nature Center to offer individuals the healing benefits of fresh air, physical activity, caring for plants and animals and participating in discussions about mental illness.

Compos Mentis (Latin for "to be in control of your mind") is an adjunct to mental health treatment, rather than a treatment program itself. It offers a place for adults ages 18 and older to learn to live with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, shizoaffective disorder, major depression, anxiety disorders, Aspberger's syndrome and other diagnoses. Participants are called "apprentices," rather than clients or patients, as there are no psychiatrists or licensed mental health professionals on staff. However, apprentices do participate in treatment programs with local psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses and therapists.

What is meant by "sustainable mental health?" It often takes a long time, sometimes months or years, for an individual to adjust to a mental health diagnosis. The demands of work, school, parenting and other aspects of our fast-paced society can make it difficult for a person with a mental illness to take the time needed to achieve a sense of well-being. As a result, a person may experience repeated episodes of life-halting symptoms that result in psychiatric hospitalization or simply make it difficult to participate in daily life.

Compos Mentis provides a place for someone with a mental illness to be with other people in an environment that promotes healing and encourages self-knowledge. The goal is to allow apprentices the time to recover and help prevent further mental health crises and hospitalizations, thereby sustaining their mental well-being.

The program at Compos Mentis runs Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and provides a variety of activities to aid apprentices in the healing process. Mornings are typically spent working in the organic vegetable garden, the perennial flower and herb garden or the hoophouse. Apprentices share the responsibilities of daily chores, such as watering plants, feeding the rabbits and chickens and gathering eggs. Afternoons are spent engaged in wellness or recreational activities such as arts and craft projects, nature walks, cooking, meditation or discussions about topics related to mental health. Every day features a communal lunch, using ingredients from the garden, which apprentices help prepare. It is a time for informal discussion among apprentices, staff and volunteers.

The program strongly emphasizes the importance of community. Since Compos Mentis is a day program, it allows participants to continue living in their own homes in their own community, rather than requiring them to relocate to a residential program in a distant town or state.

Family and friends are encouraged to be a part of the program by participating in daily activities and evening events. A growing network of volunteers supports the work of Compos Mentis and helps to make everything happen at the farm. Evening work parties and picnics are scheduled throughout the growing season to provide an opportunity for the larger Compos Mentis community to come together.