“Acting As If” to Educate about Mental Illness
In “Roles that shine a light on the dark: Mental Health Players educate public about mental illnesses“, Harriet Comfort is the director of the Mental Health Players, in which actors educate the public about mental illnesses by performing how someone with a particular mental illness may interact with a family member or colleague. Some members of Mental Health Players suffer from bipolar disorder, though others in the group do not suffer from a mental illness.
This is a wonderful concept, not only from a humanistic point of view, but from an educational point of view. The best way to learn something thoroughly is to be able to teach it. From Mental Health Players’ outreach efforts, the best way to impart understanding of an illness commonly assigned to character weakness may be to “act as if”, and walk in the shoes of someone who suffers from the illness.
Hope and Mental Health
Helga Meyer introduces readers to an emerging field of psychoneuroimmunlogy in The Pueblo Chieftain and the power of the positive placebo called “hope.” According to Ms. Meyer, it is important to fulfill our three basic needs to have something to do, someone to love and something to hope for.
I went to the society’s website at http://www.pnirs.org but I still don’t understand what this discipline is about. I’ve dispatched an email to a neuroscience friend and hopefully we’ll soon find out what research studies are being conducted in this field, and perhaps more information on Hope as a positive placebo (maybe more).
Bipolar Disorder - Loved Ones
Since I founded the Mental Health Source Page, I have received many emails from family members and loved ones of people who suffer from bipolar disorder. These emails are heartbreaking because by the time family members write, they are often very desperate and at their wits end. Often, I’m asked for advice about what they can do, whom they can call or reach out to, and when they should give up.
These are personal questions that outsiders often cannot answer appropriately or adequately. Especially in cases where children or individuals can face violence - where physical or emotional harm may be involved - family members may want to consider formal intervention. Bipolar Significant Others (www.bpso.org) is a website that is dedicated to supporting family members and significant others of those who suffer from bipolar disorder. I’d recommend any family members who face this tough dilemma to visit the BPSO website.