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A SHIFT from Maleny’s rolling hills has sparked an increase in professionals entering rehabilitation on the Sunshine Coast.

The Health Retreat, which had two facilities in Maleny, has moved into one central facility in Kiels Mountain.

The major relocation earlier this year sparked a flurry of high-profile professionals seeking treatment at the facility.

Owner Francis McLaughlan said the shift to a “more central location” had led to more professionals coming to the centre.

He said being closer to the airport had also made a difference, as people flew in from interstate and overseas.

“Within 10 minutes (of landing) they’re in a room,” Mr McLaughlan said.

With the new semi-rural setting Mr McLaughlan said it enabled people to go for early-morning beach walks three to four times a week.

“The accommodation is brilliant now too,” he said.

The new facility, according to Core Logic property data, boasts 11 bedrooms and 12 bathrooms and was an old bed and breakfast, complete with commercial kitchen, fireplace, cabins and pool spread over 5.9ha.

Mr McLaughlan said they’d spent “a few hundred thousand” on the facility during the transition and they were currently building four new cabins, which were due to be finished by the end of the year.

The new facility has a doctor and psychologist on staff and Mr McLaughlan said they were now delving deeper into the physiological side through blood testing and other analysis to help patients.

Depression and anxiety are the two main issues the retreat deals with, as well as the self-medication of alcohol, drugs and prescription medicine associated with the two disorders.

Mr McLaughlan said patients ranged in age from late teens to recent attendees, women aged 65-70, who had spent decades in the mental health system.

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FRANCIS Mclaughlan first turned to the bottle to “dumb out” the memories of a 17-year-old boy who died in his arms after a drag race gone wrong.

It was 2004 when a teenage driver slammed into Mr Mclaughlan’s car at 150km/h, splitting him in two.

Tragically the young driver died and the incident has had a lasting impact.

“I was never a drinker, but it made me drink. I thought he was trying to talk to me and I wanted to dumb it out,” Mr Mclaughlan said.

“He hit me head-on and died in my arms. I had post-traumatic stress disorder every day.”

Deciding to seek help, Mr Mclaughlan ended up founding The Health Retreat, which helps tackle mental health disorders.

He says young men are “dying like flies” and are unable to take the first steps to turn their lives around.

“Men are wired differently, we supposedly cope better and keep it bottled up inside, but you’re no good dead.”

Over the next month, Mr Mclaughlan will try to raise $50,000 for mental health and prostate cancer by taking part in the Distinguished Gentlemen’s Ride in Noosa on September 30.

He’s already raised more than $1600 and while the $50,000 goal might seem lofty, he doesn’t “do things by halves”.

To help, go to www.gentle mansride.com/fundraiser/FrancisFounderofTheHealthRetreat.

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FRANCIS Mclaughlan first turned to the bottle to “dumb out” the memories of a 17-year-old boy who died in his arms after a drag race gone wrong.

It was in 2004 when Mr Mclaughlan became caught up in a crash out of his control.

The teenage driver was severely injured after speeding at 150km/h and slamming into Mr Mclaughlan’s vehicle.

It tragically left one dead and a lasting impact on Mr Mclaughlan.

“I was never a drinker, but it made me drink. I thought he was trying to talk to me and I wanted to dumb it out,” Mr Mclaughlan candidly told the Daily.

“He hit me head-on and died in my arms. I had post traumatic stress disorder every day.”

Seeking help led to Mr Mclaughlan founding The Health Retreat where he began a passion for helping tackle mental health disorders.

He says young men are “dying like flies” unable to take the first steps to turn their lives around.

“Men are wired differently, we supposedly cope better, and keep it bottled up inside, but you’re no good dead,” he said.

“We are losing generations and it’s scary.

“Everyone has their own reasons why, being bullied, beaten up, in the wrong crowd, so many pressures.

“Most blokes haven’t got the support they need.”

Over the next month, Mr Mclaughlan will attempt to raise both $50,000 and awareness of the highest killers of men – mental health and prostate cancer.

Part of the Movember campaign, Mr Mclaughlan will take part in the Distinguished Gentlemen’s Ride in Noosa on September 30.

He’s already raised more than $1600 and while the $50,000 goal might seem lofty, he doesn’t “do things by halves”.

“I want to become the top in Australia, then the rest of the world,” he said.

“I plan to send out thousands of emails and follow up calls to get people to donate. Every bit helps.”

Follow this link to his fundraiser.

The Movember Foundation has already funded more than 1200 men’s health projects with a unique focus on global collaboration.

The money from this year’s ride will be split between prostate cancer clinical research, prostate cancer health services and men’s mental health and suicide prevention projects.

The goals are to reduce suicide rates by 25 per cent and half the number of men dying from prostate cancer and halve the number of men experiencing serious ongoing mental and physical side effects of prostate cancer treatment.

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