Towards A Poetics Of The Mental Health Play

This study traces key developments in theatre’s engagement with mental health since the 1970s. It introduces and applies the concept of the ‘mental health play’ as accurate and timely in addressing the way mental distress and mental illness have been brought to the stage. The study argues that the theatre is a central calibrator for reflecting developments and tensions in, as well as attitudes towards, mental health care, and thus opens up a domain that still has stereotypes and myths attached to it. Theatre’s representations of mental distress inform and shape cultural production and vice versa. Mental health plays are central in encouraging and fostering conversations about mental health, and they thus intervene in ongoing debates. Due to its interdisciplinary approach, this study contributes to and extends existing research in multiple fields, including theatre and science, performance studies, and the medical humanities.

This study traces key developments in theatre's engagement with mental health since the 1970s. It introduces and applies the concept of the 'mental health play' as accurate and timely in addressing the way mental distress and mental illness have been brought to the stage. The study argues that the theatre is a central calibrator for reflecting developments and tensions in, as well as attitudes towards, mental health care, and thus opens up a domain that still has stereotypes and myths attached to it. Theatre's representations of mental distress inform and shape cultural production and vice versa. Mental health plays are central in encouraging and fostering conversations about mental health, and they thus intervene in ongoing debates. Due to its interdisciplinary approach, this study contributes to and extends existing research in multiple fields, including theatre and science, performance studies, and the medical humanities.

Honorable Mention, 2008 PROSE Award for Best Book in Psychology. Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division of the Association of American Publishers. Poets on Prozac shatters the notion that madness fuels creativity by giving voice to contemporary poets who have battled myriad psychiatric disorders, including depression, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse. The sixteen essays collected here address many provocative questions: Does emotional distress inspire great work? Is artistry enhanced or diminished by mental illness? What effect does substance abuse have on esthetic vision? Do psychoactive medications impinge on ingenuity? Can treatment enhance inherent talents, or does relieving emotional pain shut off the creative process? Featuring examples of each contributor’s poetry before, during, and after treatment, this original and thoughtful collection finally puts to rest the idea that a tortured soul is one’s finest muse.

Specifically designed to meet professional practice needs, Introduction to Mental Health for Child and Youth Care encourages practitioners to participate fully in integrated mental health teams; knowledgeably advocate for accessible and quality care; and understand mental health from different perspectives, including Indigenous wellness, attachment theory, resilience, trauma-informed care, and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The first half examines the practitioner’s role in mental health care, Indigenous perspectives on wellness and cultural safety, the epidemiology of mental disorders, the brain and its functions, the ascertainment of diagnoses, and suicide intervention. The second half explores symptoms and interventions of various disorders common in child and adolescent populations, including mood disorders, anxiety disorders, feeding and eating disorders, psychotic disorders, and autism spectrum disorders. Additionally, the text features links to additional readings and online videos, questions for reflection, and activities. Recognizing the importance of mental health literacy in the child and youth care field, this pedagogically rich and practical resource is essential for students and practitioners in child and youth care as well as human services and social work.

A Rare, Restorative Take on Mental Health For Challenging Times Poetry has way of connecting directly to the heart, and that's especially true with this poetry book about mental health and mental illness. It's too simplistic to label this as depression poetry or anxiety poetry--this is poetry about what it means to be a human being struggling and coping with everyday mental health issues. This is self love poetry. This is poetry for people who don't like poetry or have never even read it before. Here's an example of the poetry you'll find: You Can't Write Poetry About Depression You can’t write poetry about depression You have to feel it It has to seep out of your bones It has to leak out of your eyes The poetry is in the becoming the shifting feeling the falling breath the terror of monotony the naked desperation the losing of hope and the long wondering if it will ever return You can’t write poetry about depression You have to experience it You have to know it like a brother And you have to hate it so much that you use it you terrorize it for what it d`id to you Until you see the sudden strength hidden within the darkness Until you become the darkness and in so doing you realize you’ve always had the light Before he became a social worker, a writer/poet, and a mental health advocate tweeting for 31,000 followers, and before he started writing the popular weekly email newsletter, The Mental Health Update, Jordan Brown was terrified and lost. Forced to respond to a parent's mental health crisis right after graduating from college, Jordan made decisions he never thought he would have to make. This experience of feeling completely unprepared to deal with mental health issues led him, after giving back to others in the Peace Corps in Guatemala and in AmeriCorps in Montana, to seek out and take the 12-week Family-to-Family course with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). A year later, he was teaching the Family-to-Family course and starting a family support group in Helena, Montana to help others deal with their own mental health crises. But everything changed in 2012. A year before finding mental health resources and a supportive community with NAMI in 2013, a 24-year-old Jordan was rushed into sudden open-heart surgery to repair a failing aortic valve. Surprisingly, the physical recovery from this near-death experience was nothing compared to the emotional recovery that wreaked havoc on his life by worsening anxiety and OCD symptoms that began in childhood. Mental illness caused months of insomnia and progressed to severe depression and worsening suicidal thoughts. It is out of these experiences that In Search of Happiness was born. Three years in the making, this mental health poetry book carries the reader along a four-part journey through overcoming anxiety and relieving societal pressure, to receiving healing and, ultimately, finding meaning. With special emphasis on anxiety and depression, In Search of Happiness examines the vast spectrum from mental illness to mental health. At its core, the book of poems addresses the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual reality that is the everyday mental health experience. It's not only a book about depression poetry or anxiety poetry. It's life-affirming poetry that helps others create their own meaning. And it's not just one person's story as much as it is a collective mental-health story emerging from one person's experience. In Search of Happiness is a vulnerable collection of poetry and short essays that encourages the reader to see mental health in a new, more hopeful light. This is not the doom-and-gloom narrative that scares society and spreads stigma. This poetry-and-prose collection increases mental health awareness by highlighting the entire mental health spectrum on which we all exist.

This engaging and provocative collection of classical and contemporary works contains poetry, plays, fiction, and autobiography. The works are excellent descriptions and examples of different forms of mental illness and serve as fascinating alternatives to case studies. The work consists of eight chapters and each chapter is a selected DSM-IV-TR category. For example, chapter 3 deals with substance-related disorders and the three works in chapter 3 all provide insight into how a substance abuse problem can affect an individual. Every selected work demonstrates a mental disorder. William Shakespeare's Hamlet illustrates the many behaviors associated with schizophrenia, Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar illustrates the severe loss of interest associated with major depressive disorder, and Graham Greene's The End of the Party illustrates one person's phobia, fear of the dark. Mental Health in Literature: Literary Lunacy and Lucidity provides a vivid and human portrait of the symptoms, realities, and dark recesses of mental illness.

Poetry can prove a great way into difficult conversations in therapeutic, classroom or family settings. This book is a clear and practical guide to the use of poetry as a therapeutic tool to help explore issues surrounding mental health and emotional wellbeing. The first part of the book provides guidance on different methods of using poetry to open up discussion. The second part consists of a collection of over 100 poems written by the author, on topics such as bullying, anxiety, bereavement, depression and eating disorders, with a range of therapeutic activities that can be used alongside each poem. The third part focuses on ways to support and encourage clients to write their own poetry and includes 50 poem writing prompts and examples. A complete resource for anyone considering using poetry to explore difficult issues, and a creative way of exploring important mental health issues in PSHE lessons, this book will be of interest to youth, school and adult counsellors, therapists, psychologists, pastoral care teams, PSHE co-ordinators and life coaches, as well as parents.

Perception of mental health, and people that suffer from mental health issues, has come a long way from the tired old clich