This year has taken its toll on all of us. Our mental health has been impacted in one way or another. As the forced jollity of the festive season looms, David Ozi Borg – known for his upbeat radio shows during his DJ days – tells Adriana Bishop how we can help people with mental health issues overcome their feelings of shame and isolation during this peculiar Christmas at the end of a most challenging year. 

David Ozi Borg is running late for the interview. The brakes on his car have just failed but he had somehow managed to “crawl” to the nearest mechanic without causing an accident. When we eventually “meet” virtually over Skype later that same afternoon I am concerned he may not be in the right frame of mind for an interview after such an ordeal. But David is a different man these days. He leans back in his chair, shrugs his shoulders, smiles and philosophically points out “it’s only a car”.

It’s a measure of how far he has come in the “maintenance” of his mental health issues over recent years that he can simply shrug off such an incident. “I could make it into something so much bigger than it really is,” he admits when I point out that he was being quite zen about it all.

More known for his upbeat radio shows, which he gave up only a few months ago after 25 years, the jolly Maltese giant from Down Under shocked his fan base two years ago by revealing his darkest secret: behind the affable facade he was in turmoil fighting a long and tortuous battle with depression and anxiety.

This confession on his Oz Uncut blog was, by his own admission, “possibly the hardest article I will ever have to write” but the overwhelmingly positive response proved how much people appreciated him starting such a delicate conversation.

And it is a conversation that must continue now more than ever before. This unforgettable year that we all want to forget has taken its toll on our mental health. With some luck, some of us will pick ourselves up and move on but others may struggle hopelessly, often alone and in silence.

The forced jollity of christmas - the commercial one with the small “c” rather than the Christian capital “C” which is meant to be the definition of compassion and love, sadly often forgotten in an ocean of tinsel and fripperies - can have the opposite effect on people with mental health issues, exacerbating anxiety, depression and feelings of loneliness and helplessness.

The COVID-19 pandemic with the ensuing social distancing, restrictions and disruptions on daily life have led to heightened feelings of isolation and worry.

David’s candour is refreshing and eye-opening. Speaking out is the biggest hurdle for people with mental health issues as this implies they first have to accept they have a problem.

It had taken David years of therapy before he had the courage to reveal his struggle with mental health and now he is “happy to speak non-stop for a week about it if it means I can help at least one person”.

“Not a lot of people have a voice when it comes to mental health. Not everyone chooses to have a voice. People think it is their fault when it couldn’t be further from the truth. Never worry about what others think. And don’t be ashamed,” he insisted.

Shame is, David pointed out, the biggest barrier of all and in fact he even suggested this article could simply consist of the phrase “there is no shame” repeated over and over again to drive the message home. So here it is. Repeat out loud:  there is no shame - there is no shame - there is no shame - there is no shame - there is no shame.

Read the full interview with David here: http://sundaycircle.tom-mag.com/30/index.html#issue/15