Veteran comedian and radio star Lawrence Mooney along with documentary maker and mental health advocate Gus Worland and the Triple M Sydney breakfast team are coming to Dubbo on Tuesday to throw their weight behind drought-stricken locals.
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The team will be meeting with businesses in Dubbo and the region on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The highlight of the visit for many will be at South Dubbo Tavern from 7:30pm on Wednesday when Mr Worland conducts a mental health workshop, and Mooney performs a comedy routine to get everyone laughing.
Mr Worland said men often need to talk about the mental strains they are going through. His talk will provide some handy hints to go beyond "blokey small talk".
"We want to spread a bit of cheer amongst locals with the Moonman (Mooney) telling a few jokes, but what I want to do is share a few coping mechanisms with locals who might have some stuff going on their head," he said.
"We keep hearing in the city how bad it is out there with the drought, and I have some experience with these types of talks in the city, but the numbers when it comes to suicide are much worse in the bush.
"The number one way to lose your life if you are a 15 to 44-year-old male in this country is suicide, and when I heard that stat, I couldn't believe it.
"We want to let our listeners in Sydney know how bad things are in rural and regional areas and hopefully they'll give as much money as possible to help those that are drought-affected and doing it tough."
Comedian Lawrence Mooney said he wanted to make a difference to drought-stricken Dubbo by providing a bit of fun.
"For us city slickers that can go to work regardless of the weather just to be reliant on rain and for it to never come must be grindingly depressing," Mr Mooney said.
"Gus' presentation is so compelling, but me, I am just a clown so what I bring to the table is some laughter, which is amongst the top five things you can do for your brain."
Mr Worland said he is on a personal quest to better understand mental health.
"A good friend of mine took his own life, and it was a shock to us all because he seemed like he was happy," he said.
"I have concluded that perhaps a lot of Aussie blokes don't have the emotional muscle to have the conversation when it comes to what is worrying us.
"So I let blokes know that it is okay not to be okay and hopefully we can spread that message that if you are not okay to at least share your problems with someone because I think if you talk about your problems you might have a better chance of getting through them."
Triple M Sydney has partnered with Coles who have teamed up with the Country Women's Association (CWA). The CWA distribute grants to drought-affected farming families across Australia to help cover household expenses such as food, medical, electricity.
Worland and Mooney hope their visit and the stories his crew will tell to its listeners will inspire them to head into a Coles supermarket or Liquorland store and make a donation at the checkout.
If you need immediate assistance or support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Mensline Australia on 1300 789 978 or talk to your GP, local health professional or someone you trust.
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