Simon Moir is a valued member of our Board of Governors and Director of HR business Hitobito.
His passion for men’s health and mental health in particular have driven his involvement with Spinnaker (now The Hospital Research Foundation Group). As he’s learnt, mental health is “best shared than concealed”.
Simon graciously shares his story with us:
How long have you been involved with us?
I first got involved a year ago when I attended a Mother’s Day Luncheon hosted by Damian and Jody Fewster, whose son Dash was raising funds for the “Fire Up for Men’s Mental Health” campaign. Dash spoke about the initiative and it immediately resonated with me.
I then attended the launch of Men Healthier Together and I knew that this was something that spoke to me on a very personal level and that I wanted to be a part of.
What interested you most about what we do?
It comes down to the diversity of projects, research and initiatives. Seeing and hearing from the doctors and researchers about how our initiatives have (or will) change the lives of the people within our community is inspirational.
The VIP tour through the Fiona Stanley ICU and Neonatal ICU was eye opening to say the least, especially when hearing from Dr Ed Litton and Dr Shailender Mehta about the outcomes they’ve achieved with our
funding. I’d encourage anyone to get along to one of these tours if they’re invited.
You’re vocal about mental health in particular?
During my adulthood I’ve had an ongoing mental health journey, something I’ve learned is best shared than concealed. This is why Men Healthier Together was something I could connect to.
I have also found that my mental health has a direct connection to my physical health, and conversely how important trying to align the two is to improving your overall wellbeing. So, to see an initiative that takes a holistic approach, whilst tackling the issue of breaking down the ‘manly’ communication wall that exists, is fantastic.
Men really do need a ‘push’, don’t they?
Correct, and I am a good example of this. In November 2022, I had an instance of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) where my heart got ‘stuck’ at around 256 beats per minute and wouldn’t settle.
Now, I did the dumb thing and ignored everything from almost fainting, tightening around my chest and neck, profuse sweating and struggling to get a decent breath… When my wife Jodie asked me if I was okay, I answered “yep, think I just have some heart burn”, but she levitated out of bed and turned our light on. Shortly after I was in the Emergency Department where I was cardio averted.
This has resulted in two ablations and hopefully on the path now to the problem being resolved, but it could have been far different. It now makes me realise how important it is for males to pay more attention to what is going on in their bodies and then (most importantly) do something about it!
