Detachment is Wonderful

Categories: durham

Date: 24 July 2010 14:05:27

Twenty years ago I would have happily pulled an all nighter....now four and a half hours sleep equals sleep deprivation. That combined with the fact I have literally just left a wonderful conference is why the TAZ stuff waits to next week.

However, you do get a brief comment on the Listening to People with Mental Health Problems conference which Durham Christian Partnership organised today.

This was a great day, which I really enjoyed. For me part of the enjoyment came from the fact I went as a Streetlights volunteer and from a detached perspective. It meant I could think about and engage with mental health issues from a distance, forgetting their impact upon my own life, my daughters life and many of my friends lives. Now don't get me wrong I don't mean me, my family and my friends are a bunch of crazies, (ok v. unpc but you know what I mean), but many of us have suffered from issues such as stress, depression, anxiety or similar at some point in our lives....not suprising as 1in 4 people does, (I just happen to know a slightly higher ratio). Sometimes, I find it is very useful to engage with "the other" even if you know that in "real life" "the other" is actually "us". It is one of the reasons I like compartmentalising my life, although I know it drives those around me mad.

Anyway the conference gave us the definition of the "health care professional" followed by the stories of two people who have mental health "problems".  Then we had a retired mental health chaplain leading a session on listening to people with mental health problems. This was followed by the highlight of the day for me, three poets from the Waddington Street Centre. One of the poets was the editor of Moodswing, a poetry magazine stemming I think from the work of the centre.

In the afternoon there was a q&a session with all the contributors, following a bit about enabling environments from three people who work with people who have mental health problems.

It was one of those lovely days when the crap was cut and you learnt something useful.

Anyway