Feature: Arts and Health 2011

This page is part of the features section.

On this page | Mental Health | The arts can improve your health |

Mental Health - change the status quo

A cutting edge band is giving creative people the chance to rock the status quo of perceptions surrounding mental ill health.

Backed by national charity Advance, Leicester band Refuge, is giving everyone the chance to star on their next big thing - an EP to be launched at a festival on World Mental Health Day

In 2010 Refuge's ground-breaking album Allowed A Voice turned the spotlight on shattering stigmas . "So many people told us they were inspired and wished they could have been involved in Allowed A Voice that we decided to offer everyone the opportunity to be part of the new release," said lead singer and songwriter Peter Hirst.

The band has launched a national competition to find the lyrics, poetry and cover artwork for the EP, which will raise money for mental health charities. As well as having their work immortalised on the EP, the chosen three will win Netbooks and there will be iPods for four others selected for the record.

"But best of all, they will get people thinking and talking about mental health and sharing their own experiences," says Peter. Refuge has been working with Leicester-based self-help mental health group SISO (Safe Inside Safe Outside), where Peter, who has Bipolar affective disorder, is a Development Worker. Led by Advance Project Manager Leon Herbert, whose post is funded by the charity and the Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, SISO is now employing nine team members on permitted earnings and they are moving towards setting up their own sustainable community interest company.

SISO poets helped provide some of the lyrics for Allowed A Voice, which was released on World Mental Health Day last year, attracting loud praise, and making it to the finals of the nationwide Independent Specialist Care Awards. The band, who are avid supporters of mental health because of Peter's condition, wanted to pump up the volume for the release on 2011 World Mental Health Day on October 10th.

"It was nice that people kept telling us how wonderful they thought the Allowed A Voice project was, but what came through loud and clear was that there are lots of people who want to get their thoughts out there," Peter told us.

"We wanted to offer them the chance to help change views of mental health issues for the better" Peter said.

The competition launches on June 1st and details can be found on the Refuge web site. The closing date for the competition is August 1st. It is open to anyone who has something to say about mental health, and Refuge is looking for lyrics, poems and artwork.

The band, which will provide the music and produce the album, is looking for four inspired song lyrics, two poems and a winning piece of artwork for the EP cover. All submitted work will be showcased on the competition website's gallery. The new release will be unveiled at Refuge's charity fund raising festival on October 10th.

The album will also be available on iTunes. "The competition and the EP are a great way to raise awareness about mental health issues and celebrate creativity. Art and music are such wonderful media to express feelings, " added Peter, whose project is also being supported by mental health organisations and NHS trusts across the country.

"As well as raising awareness of mental ill health - and one in four of us will be affected by by it, so it is something that everyone should be aware of - we will also be making the point that there is a lot of support out there too. Together, we can make a big difference.". Peter said.

The arts can improve your health

We look at how health workers have teamed up with artists to promote health and well-being

Participating in music, dance, singing or painting can promote health, it was claimed at a recent conference held at the brand new Phoenix Square building (26th February 2010.) Indeed, I read an article recently that claimed that people who sing in a choir have a much lower rate of illness than people who do not.

On the other hand ... musicians who play in bands seem to get sick at a higher rate than most people, judging from the rate at which they drop out of gigs. Even so, drama is being used by people working with those suffering from mental health problems. Drama is also being to spread the word about things like cancer treatment, reaching communities with messages about testing where conventional methods have failed.

Mantle Arts has been working with health in North West Leicestershire

What was clear from the conference is that arts organisations have been working closely with local councils, the NHS and other public agencies to spread health messages and to help patients get better. We watched a film about a group of school children who have asthma. Musicians take trumpets and brass instruments into the class room and teach them to play. Learning to breathe correctly to play an instrument helps the kids with their asthma and there were some remarkable improvements as a result of this activity.

Pregnant teenagers

Comedians have created a workshop in which teenagers can work on material about pregnancy and sex education. Turning serious issues into comedy has helped get the message across in a way which was failing to work with conventional methods.

Much of this work involves thinking outside of the box and being creative about how to work creatively with health issues. Drama and music provide powerful media for getting messages across. Well we know that from what we see on the TV soap operas and from the lyrics of many popular songs and rock bands.

Arts and mental health

The arts can be used to support people with a wide range of physical conditions but in the area of mental health, drama has been playing a particularly interesting role. Some people find it very difficult to get their views across to doctors and professionals because of their mental conditions.

Actors have worked with individuals to understand their concerns about hospitals and treatments and then have represented those views with doctors through acting the role of the patients and saying, in an articulate way, what they would have found extremely difficult to say in real life. Role playing people with mental health conditions has been used effectively in the training of junior doctors.

BrightSparks - working with mental health service users

There are many examples of art being used as therapy. One worker talked about how she had got socially isolated old people to get out of their houses and spend some time painting or modelling with clay. The results are encouraging: improvements in health and well-being and a decline in symptoms.

The cost of providing these services is a lot less than the cost of providing drugs and time spent in hospital, saving the NHS a lot of money. Arts offer particularly valuable opportunities for working with stress, depression and anxiety. Painting, drawing, creative writing, clay work, sculpture and drumming have known therapeutic values and can often provide both patients and doctors with insights into the conditions and the ways they are affecting the mind and personality.

Tackling health inequalities

It is not only personal health where the arts are playing a role. Art is also a way of tackling the inequalities we see in health and getting through to communities that are hard to reach by conventional methods.

Actors, comedians and singers can reach people with messages about smoking, alcohol, sex and eating. Film makers and animators have been producing videos and cartoons with particularly powerful messages. Young men and attitudes towards alcohol and sexual health is just one of many projects where film makers have scored a hit.

We will keep our eyes open for examples of how artists are working with health issues right here in Leicester/shire and bring you some news and info in the weeks ahead.

Links

Emphasis: East Midlands Public Health

Arts for Health

Big Difference Company

Bronchial Boogie

Sinfonia Viva: Fever

Gypsy Traveller Health Ambassadors

Chlamydia dance and hip hop

Other pages you might like:

We talk to Jenny Hand of LASS about how arts help support people living with HIV.