OBJECTIVE OF THE SESSION
The objective of this session is to provide mental health professionals with improvisation skills in order to help clients with mental condition with sadness and shame issues[DS1] to identify their emotion, manage it and turn it into a positive emotion.
By the end of the session each member will be able to:
– use theatre techniques as a methodology for preventing emotional violence
– create a safe zone for any subtypes of victims and aggressors in the group via improvisation
– analyze and deepen the story and its impact on the group’s members, through drama conventions.
CASE SCENARIO
Leonidas is a 42-year-old man diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2001. He had this diagnosis from the X psychiatric hospital when he was voluntarily hospitalized due to some auditory hallucinations. He was hearing voices criticizing him as «useless», “loser” and other derogatory comments. He had also some annoying thoughts. After his hospitalization, his employer fired him from the café, where he worked as a waiter, citing financial difficulties that did not allow him to have many employees. Since then he has been unable to find a new job. While he was looking for a job, he became very depressed because he couldn’t find employment. His mother told him that it was worthless to look for a job, because a person with a mental disorder could hardly be accepted for work. Finally he accepted what his mother told him and he remained unemployed. He lives with his parents in a house in a suburb of Athens and visits a day center three times a week, where he is examined in a regular basis by a psychiatrist and participates in various groups, such as a group of artistic activities, a poetry group etc. One day while he was walking to the day center for the poetry group, he was reciting a poem loudly. Passing out of school, some high school students began to make comments, such as «you are crazy», «where are you going old man», «you are smoking like chimney» etc., and they laughed loudly. Leonidas kept walking to his destination, giving no attention. He thought that the students had this behavior because they were children and it was a big mistake to talk alone. He attended the meeting with the poetry group, and when he was invited to recite a poem, he politely refused. He kept going to poetry groups, following a different path. He tried to stop his habit of reciting on the street. After three meetings, he stopped joining the group, saying “he cannot make it”
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TRAINING SESSION
The trainer welcomes the participants and informs them of the case scenario (see above) via narration. After having informed the participants of the case scenario the trainer presents the goals of the session by pinpointing the type of aggression, the emotions and the coping strategies:
- Aggression Type: Social Stigma, reinforced with episode of verbal aggression
- Emotions: sadness, shame
- Coping: Stressors related to mental illness/social stigma and self-stigma. Functional coping strategies
- Questions and answers to reflect about/work on during the session relating the situation of the case scenario:
1st Question
At what point in the scenario do you find that the protagonist was a victim of violence? To what kind of violence does the scenario refer to?
1st Answer
The point at which Leonidas was subjected to violence was where the children described him with various comments. The various derogatory comments he received, can be possibly regarded as verbal violence. Also in the scenario where Leonidas’ mother tells him that it is difficult for a person with a mental disorder to be accepted for a job, it can be possibly considered as discrimination. The same may occurs with his employer’s decision to fire him after his hospitalization (in the event that his employer did this because of his hospitalization and simply referred to financial problems as an excuse).
2nd Question
Do you think that the thoughts, the actions, the feelings and the attitudes adopted by the protagonist of the scenario helped him/her to cope with this situation? Are there any alternative ideas?
2nd Answer
Leonidas in the incident with the children did not get angry. The scenario does not report that he experienced specific intense emotions. The scenario gives the impression that he “isolated” his emotions. He also seemed to rationalize their behavior. He accepted the situation as it was. The rationalization of the children’s behavior may help to prevent him from behaving aggressively towards the children, thus he avoided a potential trouble. Possibly the suppression of his emotions about the event (his feelings were not even expressed in the group at the center of the day), may have possibly contributed to his dropout from the poetry group.
3rd Question
What other interventions and actions could further help the protagonist to deal with this incident and with any potential similar incidents in the future?
3rd Answer
Not responding to aggressive behaviors may help but he could express his feelings to a group or to a daycare mental health professional.
Then there is a discussion and the participants express their ideas. By the end of this part the participants should have determined that the case scenario deals with:
Expressing positive and negative feelings.
Accepting your own feelings.
Developing strength by setting limits.
PREPARATION
This session is carried out between the trainer (improvisation professional) and the caretakers. They should all wear comfortable clothes and shoes.
- Duration: 90 minutes.
- Number of participants: 6-20.
- Place: A room where there is space to move.
- Material: Music file with 5 different songs to play
NOTE: This sessions proposes a set of activities to deal with the emotions produced by verbal violence situations, some activities might be more suitable than others to the final trainees depending on factors like their culture or mental health illness (i.e those activities involving physical contact). The mental health professional leading the session can skip or modify those exercices adapting it to the needs of the trainees.
PROCEDURE
Introduction
Duration: 10 minutes.
Description: Introducing the case scenario, the questions and the emotion.
Introduction Exercises – Improvisational training
Exercise 1: “You, thank you!”
Purpose: Activation of a partner feeling. Positive acceptance of an impulse and passing it on
Duration: 5 minutes.
Description: The trainer makes the participants come together in a circle. He points with his hand at another person and says: «You!». The other person nods and replies with «Thank you!». It is now this person’s turn to point to the next person with «You!». And so it continues.
The trainer makes sure that everyone has had their turn.
The trainer takes care to emphasize the positive focus by making sure that each participant says «thank you». To bring the group even more into a collaborative flow, he can also increase the pace.
Exercise 2: Rhythm Clapping Circle
Purpose: To increase group awareness. Change focus from ME to YOU. Coming into the moment
Duration: 10 minutes.
Description: This is done in several steps. The moderator always makes sure that the rhythm remains the same. The participants stand in a circle.
1. The moderator claps his left neighbour and says ZIPP! He also passes the ZIPP! on to his left neighbour (eyecontact!). And so on and so on. The moderator ensures that the rhythm remains constant. He can also be very slow, as long as the participants pass the ZIPP! on in rhythm. Little by little he can then increase the speed again.
2. The ZIPP! can now be passed to the partner to the left or to the right hand side. Do this for a while.
3. Now the ZAPP! is added. The ZAPP! goes to everyone else, but not to your own neighbours to the left or to the right.
The moderator can reduce or increase the speed at any time: the main thing is that the clapping stays in rhythm.
Exercise 3: Dancing in changing moods
Purpose: Sensing changing moods through music. Transfer of the heard mood into the physicality
Duration: 15 minutes.
Description:
The participants move through the room to the music and dance. It is better to use non popular songs for this exercise. Everyone can find movements for him that he wants to express through the body. Minimalistic moves are fine for people with mobility issues.
The facilitator participates and suggests that the lights can be turned off, if the trainees want. He also contextualizes the music with references to concrete places or stories in order to facilitate the performing of it. Fast music changes with slow music. Each track corresponds to a different mood. The participants should recognize which emotion fits to the respective music and move corresponding to it.
After two alternating pieces of music the trainer asks for feedback: «How was the exercise so far?» – «What’s been easy?» – «What can help to recognize/accept/express the feeling of the piece of music through dance?»
Possible ways to help are:
– Close your eyes.
– exaggerated physical expression
– Switch off inhibitions
Exercise 4: Brother Jacob in emotions
Purpose: Playfully feel the expression of different emotions
Duration: 5 minutes.
Description: The participants stand in a circle. Together they sing the song «Brother Jakob». The trainer sings the song once, the participants can tune in quickly. First the song is sung together. Then the trainer puts a feeling at the end of the chorus, e.g. «anger». The next chorus is now sung in exactly this emotion. It is recommended that negative and positive feelings alternate. It may be noted that the expression of the feeling may be exaggerated here. The emotion is expressed through voice and physicality.
The trainer focuses on the exaggerated presentation. In between, the trainer gives the instruction: «More body language» – «Louder», to reduce possible inhibitions.
Exercise 5: Gromolo Circle
Purpose: To develop a content-free language. Get physical. Exaggerate expression
Duration: 15 minutes.
Description: «Gromolo» refers to a non-existent fantasy language. It is not important to know the content of one’s words while speaking, it is much more important to find an expression in the body through the conscious elimination of content, which thereby appears much greater. In the gromolo circle the participants stand in a circle. The trainer explains the meaning of Gromolo. In order to make it understandable for every participant, the trainer gives the instruction to try it out for himself Each participant can now speak a few sentences in Gromolo for himself. The facilitator precises that the trainees can also use mimics instead of Gromolo.Then the first person says a sentence on gromolo and supports it with lots of gestures and physical expression. The next person now has the task of translating this sentence into the original language, interpreting this sentence as if it were a popular proverb that does not yet exist. The translator can adopt the gestures and expressions of the «gromolo speaker» and get inspired by them. After the translation, it is the person’s turn to pass on another gromolo sentence (or mimic) to the next person.
The trainer focuses on exaggerated body language.
After a run-through the trainer asks for feedback: «What helps me to bring more expression into my body? The participants can discuss this. Afterwards the trainer establishes another round of the Gromolo circle.
Exercise 6: Gromolo Party
Purpose: Recognizing emotions in others. Engaging on emotions with a focus on physicality (effect on others) by eliminating the content
Duration: 20 minutes.
Description:
The participants imagine they are at a party. The requirement is that everyone talks to each other in the same way as is usual at parties, i.e. you exchange a few words with someone and then go on to another person. Sometimes small groups can also stand together and talk. After the preliminary practice of the «Gromolo circle» the participants are now told that they may only talk on Gromolo. Little by little the trainer now gives feelings into the group. This feeling is now accepted by everyone. In between the party is stopped from time to time to get feedback from the participants, e.g. how do I feel in certain emotions or how was the communication with the other persons.
The trainer asks the group for feedback after some time:
«How does it feel to communicate with the other people?»
“Does the given feeling change about the content of our communication?»
«What has this insight changed for my communication in the real life?”
Exercice 7. Last Feedback
Duration: 10 Minutes
Description: The trainer asks for insights into the current unit. These can be written down on the flipchart and discussed. Possible questions are:
- Which exercises were helpful for you to fulfill the previously collected goals?
- Which exercises help the protagonist concretely in his situation?
- What wishes are there to add?
CONCLUSION
- Duration: 10 minutes.
- Description: At the end of the session the trainer will ask questions that stimulate reflection, namely “How do you think the above session links to the emotion we are dealing with?”, “What did you find helpful?” and so on. Then s/he will invite participants to pinpoint what stroke their attention, what they gained and want they want to keep as a reference point from all the above procedure as well as to ask any questions related to the above exercises.
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