‘The Listening Game’

News Flash!

Craig Newnes in his article in the Guardian (10/01/02) entitled ‘Brainwashed: Mental illnesses are caused by chemical imbalances in the brain right? Wrong’ argues that, to date, studies have failed to demonstrate that people with common psychiatric

diagnoses have brain-biochemical imbalances. He states that the studies on all the main diagnostic

categories of psychiatry are ‘..plagued by a significant problem: the people being tested have almost always already received psychotropic medication, so if there is a blood, brain or liver disorder, this may have been caused by the treatment.’ He goes on to state that most GP’s do not request any forms of tests when

On Monday 25th February 2002, Dundee Rep. Theatre opened its doors to another

entertaining and thought-provoking evening of interactive theatre focusing on Mental Health. The evening, organised in partnership with NHS Tayside and the Specialist Dramatherapy Service based at Dundee’s Rep. Theatre, was facilitated by Maggie

Morgan who has established a country wide reputation for her use of interactive theatre for training and public consultation events such as this one. The focus for the short pieces of theatre was inspired by the results of public mental health consultation events in Tayside. The humorous and lively scenarios were used to stimulate the active

participation by the audience as well as promoting opportunities for discussion, with each dramatic piece offering the audience a chance to see things from a different view and/or actively alter the dynamics of a situation by redirecting the characters to try

different solutions and strategies to resolve the action. The audience was drawn from a cross-section of individuals

involved in the mental health

services and the event

proved to be a creative and

safe way for them to jointly

explore common themes

brought up during the

consultation process and to

help clarify what is meant

by ‘better care’ in services

with relation to the different

expectations and needs of

those within the mental

health sector. One of the ‘blind date’ scenarios from ‘The Listening Game’

Dramatherapy - Consultation Event 25th February 2002

faced with a patient with a psychiatric condition and that instead, the doctor merely prescribes drugs as treatment or refers the patient to a pyschiatrist.

Newnes continues to say that the psychiatrist does ask for tests, however, and once it has been

concluded that nothing is ‘..demonstrably amiss..’ with the patient’s brain or biochemistry, they tell the

patient that they are suffering from a condition that results from a bio-chemical problem. However, there are no tests that can prove that a so-called

mental illness was actually organic in origin - hence the reason why patients aren’t offered their test

results of brain chemistry. Newnes concludes by

advising that ‘next time you are told that a

psychiatric condition is due to a brain-biochemical imbalance, ask if you can see the test results.’