Health And Hope: The Kiwi Support Response To The Psycological Toll Of Covid

Wellingtonian Maria * knows that simply receiving comfort and support from other people during hard times can drastically improve the state of someone’s wellbeing.

The single mother found herself struggling over lockdown – caring for her sick father and two children, with no access to professional counselling or support services.

However the 47-year-old was introduced to community-based platform GoodMooty and found herself equipped to better help herself and others through the challenging times.

GoodMooty Founder Andre Illemann describes the current climate as a ‘pandemic-devastated mental health crisis’, so the entrepreneur set out to create a community-based response to help others feel valued and heard.

“It comes as no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic has devastated mental health across the globe,” he says.

“People are facing illness or fear of illness, social isolation, economic insecurity and disruption of routine which are all known risk factors for depression and anxiety.”

Illemann’s digital community-based platform GoodMooty was created to help people regain their sense of purpose and hope during extremely challenging times.

“There is no universal remedy for mental illness and distress – but there are a lot of people hurting right now - and I wanted a way to bring hope and support into these people’s lives,” he says.

GoodMooty is designed to help people overcome the personal fear of openness in a public setting. Providing a safe, open experience where sufferers of a wide range of mental and physical afflictions can be given the opportunity to feel heard.

“I’m not one for sharing my problems – however being around people everyday who know and care about you, whether it’s family or workmates, presents the opportunity for them to check in with you and have chat. Having this taken away over lockdown meant I found myself struggling – but using GoodMooty meant I still received the support and listening ear that I needed to help get me through,” says Maria.

“Even as we moved into more ‘normality’ I found GoodMooty a fantastic way to support my mental wellbeing and those of others.”

GoodMooty presents an opportunity for people who have had similar experiences, to help others going through trials in their life. Members actively helping, as well as being helped by, each other. Illemann says this is the unique vision of his platform.

“I’ve faced many challenges and a lot of trauma that I have personally overcome in my lifetime – so I feel although I have a lot to share with others. I genuinely like to help people - so anything I can shed light on that may bring comfort or healing to another is well worth my time”, says Maria.

GoodMooty is advertisement free, and intentionally protects a person’s most asset online – their privacy – by providing complete anonymity of members on the platform. This creates a safe environment of openness, honesty and sharing.

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