A Fantastic Article on Stand Up Comedy and Mental Health.

Hi all. For anybody that's read Mind Palaver, you'll know our blog has been dormant for a while. This was because Elle was dealing with some very changeling mental health issues.  I'm delighted to say she's getting better now and will soon be returning to the blogosphere in a new project that will feature many…

Treatment and Stigma.

As Elle is unfortunately still in hospital and I’ve got work on we’re going to reblog some of our favourite old posts from earlier this year. So here we are. Your thoughts and follows are always appreciated.

Mind Palaver

Some people feel as if a diagnosis somehow labels them, diminishes them and leaves them open to prejudice. I couldn’t be further from this position. I think that owning a diagnosis and not skirting around it is ultimately empowering, allowing you to take steps to deal with what needs dealt with.   

I really did enjoy Elle’s last post. She always shows such great insight when tackling a subject matter. Obviously a huge part of dealing with mental health issues is stigma. I’ve been with a mental health condition for twenty two years and have only decided to talk openly about it since last July. Deep down I can’t help but admit this has to be related to concerns over how people would perceive me. The happy truth is people in general have been really positive. Several have told me how they had no idea how these things have impacted on…

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Getting the ‘Label.’ Elle

As Elle is unfortunately still in hospital and I have a writing deadline to meet. I’m going to reblog over the next couple of weeks some of our favourite posts. So here we are…

Mind Palaver

Both John and I experienced misdiagnosis before we were finally diagnosed with Bipolar 1. This I believe is a pretty common experience. The figure often quoted is that it takes on average 10 years from the onset of symptoms to the point where the diagnosis is made. There are a number of reasons for this as I see it – (a) Hypomania is usually seen by the patient as an entirely positive state of affairs, and is often not reported as a problem. This leaves a bipolar person reporting more on the depressive episodes, leading to a diagnosis of major depression. (b) As I said previously people may try to cope with the worsening symptoms on their own out of fear, shame or degrees of denial (I’ll talk about medicating with alcohol later). (c) Psychosis (as in John’s case) or intense paranoia can lead to false assumption that the person…

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Inclusivity And The Arts. One Size Fits All. (John)

I met the first Transgender person I ever knew when I started out as a comedian back in 1999. It was at a workshop run by the Stand Comedy club for new wanna be comedians. The woman's name was Karen and I remember her making me really laugh out loud when she sang a song,…

Joy! 25 Songs That Make You Feel Good.

  I suppose this is a continuation of my Songs Of Empathy And Mental Well Being blogs, but "25 songs that make you feel good. Songs Of Empathy And Mental Well Being." Is far too long a title for a blog. If you want to read the other blogs there are links below. Songs About…

Songs of Empathy and Mental Well Being. No.2 Shine On You Crazy Diamond.

Shine On You Crazy Diamond is a Pink Floyd song that is famously about their ex-lead singer Syd Barrett. It comes from their mega selling album Wish You Were Here which is also apparently a reference to Syd. Syd Barrett is regularly referred to as a 60s 'acid casualty'. That's an old fashioned language that…

Songs About Mental Well Being. No.1 Bridge Over Troubled Water.

When I was doing my show on mental health at the Edinburgh Festival last year I would put up wee notices about it along with a song about mental health. I think it might be a good thing to do here on the blog too. Perhaps one a week. So here's the first one. A…

Fix our NHS. Fix Us. (Happy Anniversary Elle.) John.

Above is the letter I found in my collection bucket last year from Elle. Facebook sent me one of those reminders today that it was a year ago this event happened. Happy anniversary Elle. It's to my great regret that things are not good for Elle just now and she is battling the most debilitating…

Social Media and our Mental Well Being.

Although it is not for everybody I believe there is a lot of positives to be found in the world that is Social Media. I also believe the good it does for our mental well being way outdoes the bad. FRIENDS.  In my life social media started with the site Friends Reunited. Those that remember…

One Top Reason Why It’s Worth Being Open About Mental Health. John.

Hello we're back. For those of you who come here regularly we've been quiet for a couple of weeks. I'm afraid Elle is still in hospital, so any love you can send her way is very welcome. As for me...I'd just been having a wee break until I had a list of new stuff worth…