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Friday 1 November 2013

Bedlam

or the Royal Bethlem, as it is called.  I have just watched the first of these programmes on Anxiety and enjoyed it.  Well, perhaps not enjoyed.  More watched with compassion and understanding and loved the staff, the people who agreed (incredibly bravely) to take part and, above all, James' hair and clothes.  I do wish I could refeed him a bit though....

I didn't like this review, in the Daily Telegraph, as the reviewer has put his own "cleansing" spin on his understanding of OCD and anxiety. Facile correlation/causation psuedo psychobabble from a newspaper reviewer, not a trained mental health professional - now there's a nice change (not!).  This reviewer in the Guardian, is much more along the right lines and doesn't try to be clever or patronise with Bunkum/Woo/Feathers and Beads from a totally childish viewpoint, like the one Mr Rees.

Loving that SLAM has opened up the doors of the world's oldest psychiatric hospital.  I know this is where Professor Treasure often drops in for breakfast.  I do hope we get to see her.  In the meantime, it is reassuring to know that there are great Mental Health professionals out there, trying to Stop the Stigma and give the general public a better understanding of people with mental health issues that are no fault of their own.

It was the most watched programme by the 18-25 year old age group last night.  There is hope for the young - they seem less afraid to watch, learn and confront these issues than us old codgers, with our inbuilt prejudices and our sad preconceptions about psychiatry, psychology and other therapies.  Like Jaspar Rees, who should be sticking to his experiments with French Horns and not dabbling in stuff he doesn't understand.

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