A show image of Vicki, a close up of her mid dance with one fist on her face and one on her chest. The lights are casting interesting shadows on her partially lit face.

It’s Mental Health Awareness week. We’ve been doing a lot of thinking about Mental Health this past year. We recently begun identifying as Neurodiverse. This is because our Co-Directors experience a spectrum of Neurodiversity including Learning Disabilities, Learning Difficulties (Dyslexia and Dyscalculia) and Mental Health problems. The latter we talk less about, but Co-Director Vicki has decided to rectify this and give you an insight into BLINK’s Mental Health stuff from her perspective…

REHEARSALS:

Check in

We start each day with a non-verbal check in using Delson’s My Choice MAKATON iPad app. Everyone in the team joins in; including Stage Managers, Visiting Artists and Artist Support Workers. I find this part of the day hard, but BLINK’s devising process is a personal one and requires vulnerability and sensitivity which can be emotionally draining and it feels important that we start from a place of honesty.

I need

Next we spend some time reflecting on what we need during rehearsal that day. We each choose some visual cards that apply to us, these are left on the side throughout the day incase someone’s need changes.

I use my headphones as an accessible visual cue. When i put them on everyone knows i am feeling overwhelmed and to leave me to calm down. I try not to leave the room and to stay with my feelings and let them wash over me until i feel ready to join again.

Story Massage

We end the check in with optional group Story Massage . This includes affirmations such as ‘We are all equal’ and ‘We are growing together’. Story Massage has been proved to increase levels of Oxytocin and decrease anxiety. I personally find this really helpful as i find it hard to express how i feel and what i need and this grounds me again.

A small light coloured stuffed dog animal with a sad mouth stuck onto it’s face with velcro

WORKSHOPS:

In the sessions

We have been embedding Mental Health and emotional expression accessible exercises recently.

Francis is holding the ticksheet showing full ticks and has a huge smile on his face directed at the camera

With primary SEND students we use the Sad Puppy activity which is a Total Communication approach combining MAKATON, picture symbols, gesture and elements of intensive interaction to explore emotions and empathy.
With secondary MLD and SLD students we use an ‘I feel’ rap call and response which combines MAKATON, movement, rhythm and speech to explore self reflection
With SEMH students we have adapted Touchstone Theatre’s Emotional Chairs activity to look at de-escalation and positive communication in a safe, accessible and playful structure
With PMLD students we have been using Story Massage to explore feelings

Our team

We finish each session with a visual ticksheet which gives space for our inclusive team to reflect on the day and always ends with telling each person what they have done well.

L-R Delson, Rachel, Francis and Vicki jump in the air in a line with big smiles on the beach with the sea in the background

BLINK STRATEGY and MH

Touring

We now include Mental Health support in our funding applications as an access need. I receive support for extra therapy sessions during touring to manage the increased highs and lows and adrenaline bursts that come with touring and can feel destabilising.

We collect ‘Magic Moments’ from the start of the project and store them in a sparkly envelope. We read them all at the end when to remember the happy and funny times. This can really help me to not land with such a bump at the end and transition onto the next thing more easily.

General

As part of our Elevate company Development Grant from Arts Council England we will be working with a Process Supervisor. They will provide practical and accessible sessions which will allow us to look at our group dynamics, roles and journey in a safe space. Over 50% of our core team have suffered from burnout this past year and we hope this might help us to find ways to work sustainably together going forward.

We have done Mental Health First Aid. It was great, but not very accessible for our Learning Disabled Directors and team so we’re hoping to find or create something that everyone can access. Watch this space!

IN LOCKDOWN

COVID-19 has brought it’s unique set of struggles, as i’m sure it has to you all in different ways. For us the pause of our National tour (do check out our GIRL MEETS BOY show story video ) in the week before the premiere and the cancellation of projects and year’s worth of work has made it hard to stay positive at times.

Sabir holds his card up to the camera. It is colourful picture of a hedgehog and reads ‘Sabir the Hedgehog’.

However, our BLINK family has a strong bond and we’ve been supporting each other with:

Secret pen pal project. We’ve gone old fashioned and each person in our team from Administrators, Volunteers, Trainees, Freelancers and Directors have got in touch with their inner artist and created a card for someone to receive snail mail style
We’ve been paired up with a Dance Buddy and having weekly chats, dances and rap battles (check out our social media for some videos that will make you smile)
Once a month our whole team has joined together for a Zoom Social Dis-dance party
I have been inspired so much by the Vacuum Cleaner and learning about the Mad Pride Movement and been supported by the Mad Artists Mutual Aid group.

FINAL THOUGHTS

We’ve still got a long way to go on our BLINK Mental Health Journey, we hope to be able to make things more accessible and extend support and resources out to our wider team and network.

But for now we commit ourselves to always listening, supporting each other and giving space and time to talk, express ourselves and feeling all the feels and owning it.

Feeling all the feels and owning it