Equilibrium autumn issue 54
-
Upload
anthony-parke -
Category
Documents
-
view
223 -
download
2
description
Transcript of Equilibrium autumn issue 54
MAGAZINE FOR WELLBEING
AU
TUM
N
2014
ISSU
E 54
AUTUMN Issue 54
>> Wellbeing News Roundup>> Race & Mental Illness>> Technology & Disability>> Art, News & Reviews
EQUILIBRIUM 2
web alerts
Equilibrium PatronDr Liz Miller Mind Champion 2008
Photo copyright remains with all individual artists and Equilibrium. All rights reserved. 2011
Equilibrium is devised, created, and produced entirely by team members with experience of the mental health system.
If you know anyone who would like to be on our mailing list and get the magazine four times a year (no spam!) please email:[email protected](www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium).
Design: www.parkegraphics.co.uk
Front cover: Kate Massey-Chase
EQUILIBRIUM 3
contact usEquilibrium, Clarendon Recovery College, Clarendon Road, London, N8 ODJ. 02084894860, [email protected]. We are in the office on Friday afternoons 2.30-4.30, but you can leave a message at other times and we’ll get back to you.
Equilibrium is produced by service users. Reproduction in whole or in part is strictly forbidden without the prior permission of the Equilibrium team. Products, articles and services advertised in this publica-tion do not necessarily carry the endorsement of Equilibrium or any of our partners.Equilibrium is published and circulated electronically four times a year to a database of subscribers; if you do not wish to receive Equilibrium or have received it by mistake, please email unsubscribe to [email protected]
Hoping you’re all keepng warm and that you enjoy our Autumn issue of Equilibrium. Packed full of
the usual news, reviews and opinion pieces, we’d again like to thank our guest contributors and
artists - do keep sending us your fantastic work! We’d love to hear your thoughts on this issue, so
go ahead and tweet us at @teamequilibrium. And if you’d like to join the team, contribute an arti-
cle or picture, or find out more, please do get in touch via [email protected].
Kate, Editor/Team Facilitator
editorial
disclaimer
contributionsWanted: contributions to Equilibrium! Please email us with your news, views, poems, photos, plus articles. Anonymity guaranteed if required.
the teamFacilitator/ Editor: Kate Massey-Chase. Editorial team: Angela, Dev, Ian, Alan, Nigel, Paul and Richard.Graphic design: Anthony Parké.
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38
Technology and disability
EQUILIBRIUM 4
Five steps for a high well-being society
A new report has been published by the
All-Party Parliamentary Group for Wellbe-
ing Economics, which is based on a nine-
month inquiry exploring well-being and
makes five key recommendations for build-
ing a ‘high well-being society’. These are:
1). Focus on stable jobs, not growth.
2). Promote shorter, more flexible
working hours.
3). More green spaces in our cities
4). Mindfulness training for doctors
and teachers.
5). Invest in arts and culture.
The report calls for all political parties to
set out in their manifestos their strategy for
building a high well-being society, and
how they are going to embed well-being
into the policy process if they are elected.
The New Economics Foundation suggests
‘you write to your MP asking them for their
party’s take on the report’ and that we try
and ‘make the next parliament the one
where well-being takes its rightful place as
a central goal of government policy’.
Somebody dies by taking their own life
every 40 seconds, according to a significant
report by the World Health Organization.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-29060238
This report has deemed suicide a ‘major
public health problem that was too often
shrouded in taboo’. The report is based on
10 years of research and data on suicide
from around the world, and has concluded:
Around 800,000 people kill themselves •
every year.
It was the second leading cause of •
death in young people, aged 15 to 29.
Those over 70 were the most likely to •
take their own lives.
Three-quarters of these deaths were in •
low and middle income countries.
In richer countries, three times as many •
men as women die by suicide
The economic crisis in Europe and North
America led to more than 10,000 extra
suicides, according to figures from UK
researchers
(www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-27796628)
The study by the University of Oxford and
the London School of Hygiene & Tropical
Medicine analysed data from 24 EU coun-
Wellbeing News Round Up
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 25EQUILIBRIUM 5
tries, the US and Canada, and suggest
that there’s a lot of good evidence show-
ing recessions lead to rising suicides. They
have, however, discovered that this isn’t
the case everywhere and is significantly
influenced by different country’s political
policies. Unsurprisingly, countries such as
Austria, Sweden and Finland, who invest in
schemes that help people return to work
(such as training, advice and subsidised
wages) and support and protect vulner-
able groups are not facing this dire influx
of suicides. Clearly, in fraught economic
times, we need to take even greater steps
to support the most desperate.
Arts to be further integrated into medi-
cal training (www.artsprofessional.co.uk/
profile/liz-hill. Liz Hill, Arts Professional)
A new project has been funded where
healthcare workers will receive arts-based
training, in an attempt to reduce human
error in medical interventions and improve
patient safety and wellbeing. This initiative
is part of a three-year research and devel-
opment partnership programme and will
be delivered for medical professionals at
King’s Health Partners in London, supported
by a £580k grant from the Guy’s and St
Thomas’ Charity. The findings will then be
shared with medical and arts educational-
ists, policymakers and participatory artists
across the UK, with the aim of establishing
arts-based learning as a key methodology
in the training of healthcare professionals.
New report by the Mental Health Network:
‘The future’s digital: mental health and
technology’
This report argues that compared to many
other service sectors, mental health serv-
ices – and the NHS more broadly – are
behind the curve with regard to using new
technologies. The report argues that we
need to make more use of digital technol-
ogy and online resources to improve over-
all public mental health. Everyone should
be able to access reliable information
about mental health and wellbeing online
and to access help and advice anony-
mously in a variety of ways (live chat,
email, text and phone). The scope for how
technology aids the way we design and
deliver NHS mental health services is huge,
giving more efficiency and choice and
empowering individuals to take charge of
their own recovery.
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM 6
Benefits & tips of Regular Eating
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 7
Regular eating is eating your meals and
snacks regularly throughout the day,
about every 4-5 hours. This is in order to
improve mood and concentration as
well reducing the physiological impact
of hunger which will lead to less hunger
binges as well as having more energy
in order to be physically active. In the
long-term regular eating will help an
individual to lose weight, and help lower
blood glucose and cholesterol levels.
Aim to include a starchy food at
every mealtime. It is these foods that
provide a steady flow of energy which
reduces physical hunger. Inadequate
starchy foods have also been linked
with increased anger, depression and
tension. It is best if you can to choose
slow energy releasing starchy foods e.g.
wholegrain cereals, basmati rice, sweet
potatoes , oats and rye or wholegrain
bread.
It is important also to always eat break-
fast. When you wake up after a night’s
sleep your blood sugar will be low
because you haven’t eaten for many
hours, therefore it is important to refuel
with a good breakfast that will raise your
energy levels and mood. Even if you
don’t feel particularly hungry even a
small amount of a breakfast will prevent
you from getting hungrier later in the
day. It will also help to regulate your
hunger/fullness signals throughout the
day back to normal.
If you can plan what you are to eat for
meals and snacks the night before can
be a good way of reminding yourself to
eat at regular intervals. It can also be
useful to take a snack with you when
you are out during the day.
Make sure you are also drinking enough
fluids during the day, in particular water
and sugar free fluids. Lack of fluid
affects your concentration, memory,
and well-being both physically and
mentally.
For further nutrition links see:
www.mind.org.uk
www.nutrition.org.uk
www.bda.uk.com
Rebecca Bennett
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM 8
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUM
Gifted Hands by Ben Carson is an
inspirational and moving book;
although I found it a bit predict-
able in places it is still an enjoy-
able book to read. The person who
inspired me most in the book is
Ben’s mother; she is the reason why
I read this book.
Sonya Carson raised her sons Ben
and Curtis to believe that anything
is possible. She is the one who
taught them that hard work would
get them what they wanted and
that they weren’t just entitled. Ben’s
determination and courage to
become a surgeon when the odds
are stacked against him is admirable.
Ben has a strong Christian belief,
which helped him through his dark-
est days. I’m not religious however
reading the book made me think
about what gets me through not so
good days.
For me this book is worth reading
because it made me both smile
and sad in places. I really wanted
Ben to succeed and followed
his journey of highs and lows.
Ben Carson was always going to
succeed there’s no doubt about
that.
Gifted Hands is a short book and I
read it over three days. This book
made me think differently about
things for a while; I still read Ben
Carson’s inspirational quotes when
I need to.
Overall a good book.
EQUILIBRIUM 9
Gifted Hands by Ben Carson
Sharon
Book Review
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM
Mental illness was probably the first
taboo, so why is there still stigma around
it? Will it ever go away? People are
discriminated against for lots of reasons,
including their race and sex, so what is it
like to be a black, female, mental
health service user, like me?
In many urban areas, Black and Minority
Ethnic communities are significantly
over-represented in the poorest wards,
notably people of African, Caribbean,
Bangladeshi and Arab origin. Research
suggests that both the experience of
racial harassment and perceptions of
racial discrimination contribute to health
outcomes (Chakrborty & McKenzie
2002). There are proportionally more
black people in the mental health
system than white people. This maybe
for reasons like racism, poverty,
unemployment, unstable family units,
prison, drug abuse, alcohol abuse and
bereavement.
Mental breakdown, also know as nerv-
ous breakdown, is a colloquial term for
an acute, time-limited psychiatric disor-
der that manifests itself primarily as
severe stress-induced depression, anxi-
ety or disassociation in a previously
functioning individual.
The Disability Discrimination Act (1995)
makes it unlawful to discriminate against
employees with a disability. Those with
a mental illness that has a substantial,
adverse and long-term (over 12 months)
effect on their ability to carry out normal
day-to-day activities are considered
to have a disability under the Act. It is
intended to offer protection but attitu-
dinal changes towards disability and
mental health lag behind legislation.
Despite this, a report of Mental Health
and Social Exclusion, published by the
Social Exclusion Unit in 2004, showed
that amongst those with long-term
mental health problems, only 24% were
employed.
When people using mental health serv-
EQUILIBRIUM 8
Race & Mental Illness
Summer/ Issue 38 EQUILIBRIUM 9
ices are asked about the major issues
that concern them in their daily lives,
personal finances are consistently
identified as a major source of diffi-
culty and distress. 1 in 3 people with
a serious mental health condition is
thought to be in debt. Concerns and
anxieties regarding finance constitute a
significant stressor (In the red: debt and
mental health, Mind, 2010).
A study by the South London and
Maudsley Trust found that people diag-
nosed with serious mental illness had
significantly reduced life expectancy
(8.0 to 14.6 life years for men and 9.8
to 17.5 life years for women). Highest
reductions were found for men with
schizophrenia (14.6 years lost) and
women with schizoaffective disorders
(17.5 years lost). Living with schizo-
phrenia and bipolar disorder increases
the risk of certain physical diseases
(cardiovascular and chronic respiratory
disease, diabetes, hepatitis C, HIV).
According to the Mental Health Foun-
dation, only 1 in 10 prisoners does not
have a mental health problem, count-
ing substance abusers (and those with
dual diagnosis), those with a primary
mental illness and others who become
unwell under the psychological stresses
of imprisonment. There are a dispropor-
tionate number of people from ethnic
minorities in prisons in this country; in
2010, the ethnic minority prison popu-
lation (of which the highest proportion
is black) had doubled in a decade
(‘More black people jailed in England
and Wales, The Guardian, 10 Oct 2010).
I am a black Caribbean women born
in the UK. The family unit is often very
unstable in the Caribbean commu-
nity. Unfortunately there are too many
one parent families. The National Child
Development Study (which has tracked
around 17,000 people born in Brit-
ain during one week in 1958 over the
course of their lives) has recently shown
that greater social acceptance of
divorce has not reduced its impact on
children. When outcomes for this group
were compared with children born in
1970, children from both cohorts whose
parents split up are ‘equally likely to
end up without qualifications, claiming
benefits and suffering depression’ (Elliot
J Vaitilingham, Now we are 50: Key
findings from Child Development Study,
Centre for Longitudinal Studies, Institute
of London, 2008)
Angela
cont.
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM 10
My story
During my time as a service-user, I have
noticed that there are a lot of social
workers and nurses who are from the
Caribbean and Africa. I found this useful
as a black Caribbean woman. The black
staff would always make sure that I
looked after my appearance; they would
tell me, for example, when I needed
to go to the hair salon, tell me to wear
smart clothes and shoes, and would
check my hair and skin to make sure I was
looking after it properly and it
wasn’t too dry. However, I have not seen a
lot of black doctors in the mental
health services (only 2 doctors from
Africa).
What I found strange the first time I was
admitted to hospital was that they
said they had to medicate me because I
was smiling all the time and over
happy. This sounds like they would prefer
me to be some kind of zombie
(smile and the world smiles with you?!).
One of the social workers set up a
support group for black women in the
mental health system. We used to meet
up every week at St Anne’s Hospital and
talk about our experiences. I will
never forget the session when we
discussed being manic, because it was so
funny. One Saturday, they took us to
Margate seaside resort. We had lovely
Caribbean food and really fantastic
weather. I am glad that I went because I
didn’t have anyone else to go to the
seaside with.
Lambo Day Centre
I was pleased to see Lynton Bedford’s
recent letter in the Islington Tribune, as
she is just saying what everyone in the
black community is thinking: race is at
the heart of the decision about Lambo
Day Centre. The Afro-Caribbean Day
Centre at Despard Road in Archway was
created to compensate for the
disproportionate number of black people
locked up in psychiatric wards.
Moving all the users from two other centres
into what is currently an all black
centre will mean that Despard Road will
no longer be a black service.
I used to attend Lambo Day Centre. All the
staff are black. We get African and
Caribbean food, such as rice and peas
and chicken, and curries. We have
had a speaker in talking about sickle cell,
which is a blood disorder that
affects the black community. The first
group I attended there was a music
group. We made our own songs, which
was really good. This group had even
produced its own CD. Other activities
cont.
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 11
include sewing, going to the gym,
cinema trips, dinner and dancing, going
to the West End for Christmas,
holidays in Centre Parks, Belgium and
France, fire safety talks by the local fire
brigade, a restaurant manager talking
about healthy eating – the list is
endless!
We celebrated Windrush in 1998, and
have also attended black theatre
productions and black concerts. We
went to a cooking show which featured
Ainsley Harriet, a black celebrity chef. He
came to talk to us and took pictures.
We have visited African restaurants and
took part in an exercise class led by
a trained black service user. We also
went to African Village and have had
lots of parties (any excuse for a party!).
The anthem for the Day Centre was
‘Lean on Me’ by Bill Withers.
Conclusion
The Minister for Mental Health, Norman
Lamb, says he is supporting mental
health is Black Britain and the Mental
Health Foundation is a charity involved
in research, who hopefully can help us
understand some of the issues better.
If we can’t get rid of the taboo about
mental illness, let’s get rid of mental
illness (prevention is better than cure)!
A lot of doctors in mental health services
are white and middle class, and do not
understand our culture which can lead to
misdiagnosis. We all need to know how
to handle stress and be happy.
For further information, please see:
Goldberg RW, Seth P; Hepatitis C serv-
ices and individuals with serious mental
illness. Community Ment Health J. 2008
Oct;44(5):381-4. Epub 2008 May 9.
Sajatovic M, Dawson NV, Perzynski AT,
et al; Best practices: optimizing care for
people with serious mental illness and
Psychiatr Serv. 2011 Sep;62(9):1001-3.
If you’re in distress or need immedi-
ate help, there are many services and
organisations that you can talk to, includ-
ing The Samaritans, who offer emotional
support 24 hours a day. Get in touch with
them on 08457 90 90 90 (UK)/1850 60
90 90 (Republic of Ireland) or email jo@
samaritans.org.
The Black and Minority Ethnic Mental
Health Network campaign is gaining
momentum. For further information, call
0208 215 2424, or visit
www.diverseminds.org.uk n
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38
Technology and disability
EQUILIBRIUM 12
Technology now plays a very important role in
everybody’s lives, whether that’s watching TV,
using mobile phones or the internet, or even
traffic light signals. In fact we are inundated
with technology. If you walk down the road
you will see so many examples. But technol-
ogy can play an important role in supporting
our physical bodies as well. Big strides have
been made in helping people with physi-
cal problems, regardless of which part of the
body, through technology. These technologies
are making life easier for people with various
disabilities, including severely disabled people.
A famous example is Steven Hawking, who
use modern technology both to communicate
and move around. In fact, Robin Christopher-
son from AbilityNet, a British organisation that
promotes accessibility in technology, says:
‘One of the beauties of mainstream devices
is that they have hundreds of peripherals that
you can just add on’.
These types of technology can vary widely,
such as the ibot 360, a wheel chair that can
climb stairs. This is achieved by having three
sets of wheels on either side of the chair, rather
than just one on each side. When the first pair
of wheels are placed on the stair and locked,
the wheel rotates forward for the second chair
to reach the next step whilst lifting the chair.
When not climbing up the stairs it is used as a
normal wheelchair.
The DinaVox EyeMax system was created to
assist people with severe paralysis or strokes
to communicate with their eyes, by an eye
recognition system. Basically, the eye points
to a letter on an onscreen keyboard allow-
ing them to enter words and phrases; these
are then translated into spoken text via the
device’s text-to-speech mechanism. It also
has predefined words that make it easier for
them to speak. You might have seen this being
used by Steven Hawking.
Another interesting invention is the Kapten PLUS
Personal Navigation Device for blind people.
This helps guide visually impaired people to
Dev
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 25EQUILIBRIUM 13
get to their destination using voice activated
and GPS systems. It also tells you where you
are, similar to a Sat Nav in your car. But this is
currently only available in the US and the only
flaw with this device is that it is not found in any
other language.
An engineer, Dr David Hong, has created
a car that can be driven by a blind or visu-
ally impaired person. It uses sensors on the
person’s gloves and on the seat allowing the
person to independently drive a car. It also has
sensors to tell you when there is an obstacle in
your way. At first view, it seems that it would be
impossible, but when seeing it actually work it
shows what can be done with the help of tech-
nology.
A small but highly useful technological inven-
tion is the Cochlear Implant, a device that
allows severely deaf people to hear sound.
First it picks up sounds via a microphone; this
then carries the signal to a small computer
worn behind the ear, where it is transferred to
a digital signal and transmitted to the implant
itself. Once received by the implant, the
device directly stimulates the auditory nerve,
providing an entirely new means of auditory
sensory input.
However, saying this, there are several prob-
lems with these new technologies. For exam-
ple, the accessibility of these products. Take,
for example, the ibot 360 wheel chair. Would
it be able to handle steep narrow stairs, stair
wells or even bumpy terrain? More impor-
tantly, would people who are on low wages
or people from poor countries be able to get
this or any of the other technologies described
above? Also some of these inventions are still
prototypes, such as the cart for the blind. Most
of these technologies still need to be tested
at very, very basic level or, as engineers say,
to try a ‘viability test’. But with the advancing
technology more technologies will be able to
assist people with disability – as long as they
can get access to the technology. n
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38
Artwork by Denica Charlery
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUM
Art Review: I was recently asked to
be an art critic; I found myself jump-
ing for joy because I love creativ-
ity, whether it’s painting, drawing,
colouring or writing, I find myself very
much at home; the healing power it
produces makes me ecstatic.
I am looking at Denica Charlery’s
art work; it is very bold, bright and
colourful. She loves shapes, from
circles to crosses and even the Jewish
star (which represents male and
female) and a Celtic-looking cross.
No two pages of her art are the same,
all as individual as thumbprints. Black
snakes, zigzags – her imagination is
as wide and varied as one could ask
for; she has even gone as far as to
not fully colour some of her designs,
which reminds me of the cartoon
character Rhubarb and Custard (that
might jog some memories for a few
people, and it might give an idea of
my age to you, the reader!). Denica
has also done a cartoon style face
with a crown that I’m assuming is a
king. In another picture I see thought
bubbles, like the type you get in
cartoon magazines, starting small and
getting bigger. Oval shapes, flow-
ers, tear drops, stained glass window
arches, churches, trees, clouds,
diamonds, jars and cups…. She has
a very beautiful imagination. I would
say the sky is the limit and as the old
saying goes ‘if you aim for the stars,
you land on Mars’. I would love to see
her go on to do more creative work
and delve deeper into her pool of
creativity.
Richard Honan (a.k.a. mohecan,
raphecan, touché, punt, lsd, kudos,
cara2che)
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38Photo: AnthonyEQUILIBRIUM 16
Hospitals are Turning to Art to Reduce Stress
As an artist I’m always interested in
new and innovative venues to hang
art. However my previous opinion of
hanging art in hospitals had always
been that it was merely a form of
distracting decoration. Little did I
know…
Researchers are learning more about
the precise ways paintings and other
works of art can help patients and
families in the healing process. With
studies showing a direct link between
the content of images and the brain’s
reaction to pain, stress, and anxiety,
hospitals are choosing artworks based
on the evidence and giving it a higher
priority than merely decoration for
sterile rooms and corridors.
Certainly the health benefits associ-
ated with the creation of art is well
documented. Art therapy classes run
the length and breadth of the country.
But the health benefits received from
viewing art, are less widely known.
Lisa Harris, a nephrologist and chief
executive of Eskenazi Health says,
“These [artworks] are not just accou-
trements or aesthetics anymore.” With
a $1.5 million budget from donors, the
health system commissioned 19 artists
to create original works to support
“the sense of optimism, vitality and
energy” for the Sidney & Lois Eskenazi
Hospital .
I always think of art in hospitals
as running along corridors and
entrances, and of course patients art
wo
rk: A
ntho
ny J
. Pa
rke
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 17
Nigel Prestatyn
do indeed walk along corridors and
the like, and so benefit can certainly
be gleaned – at least for the physi-
cally able. But I wonder how much art
is shown in the wards themselves, for
certainly this is where patients might
best benefit from them. It’s one thing to
hobble past an artwork in a corridor,
perhaps another thing altogether to lay
in one’s hospital bed and contemplate
the work. I know which I’d prefer, if I
were unfortunate enough to be in that
position. And which I’d likely benefit
more from.
Heather Kreinbrink says when her
daughter Allison had a stroke at age
12 in 2010 and was hospitalized for a
week, she and her husband, Rod, found
looking at the installation outside the
children’s wing provided a sense of
calm amid their fear and exhaustion. “It
ended up being something we would
go to every day for peace and to come
to terms with what was happening,”
she says. When Allison was discharged,
her parents brought her to see it. “It
made me think as I saw other kids being
pushed in wheelchairs by their parents,
how awesome it is to be able to have
something like that to take your mind of
everything you are going through,” says
Allison.
Hearing Alison’s story made me think.
I have no figures that suggest this, but
I suspect there is far less artwork in the
actual wards themselves, than there is
in hospital walk ways and the like. And
I would imagine that is, in part at least,
perhaps a logistical problem. I’m think-
ing of the walls behind ward beds and
surrounding areas filled with medical
apparatus of one sort or another. But
imagine, if you will, images of artworks
projected onto ward ceilings, constantly
changing images of art work; in this
scenario Alison wouldn’t have wait to
recover before she could enjoy and
benefit from the artwork as her parents
did; she would have benefited from it
when she needed it most.
http://www.paintingsinhospitals.org.uk
http://online.wsj.com/articles/more-hospitals-use-the-
healing-powers-of-public-art-1408404629
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38
If you like to watch TV you may find
some recent research in Psychologies
Magazine interesting. The University
of Maryland article called “The Mind
Experiment” reported that people who
watched TV for 18.9 hours per week
were happier than those who aver-
aged 25 hours per week.
The unhappy viewers were not as satis-
fied “with their financial situation”,
“felt less safe, trusted others less” and
thought they were less active socially
than their peers, who were more happy
after viewing TV less. The average Brit
watches around 4 hours of TV each
day. The collective total is around 455
million hours per year.
Using programmes as a topic for
discussion, watching comedy or music
programmes tend to make people
happier than people who allow the TV
to dictate what they watch.
This research was in an article by
Martha Roberts, an award winning UK
health writer and mental health blog-
ger at mentalhealthwise.com
EQUILIBRIUM 18
Psychology Marco Lanzarote
Watching Happy TV
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUM
Brain Health
A new word in my vocabulary is “micro-
biome” and I came across it as it relates
to bacteria in the human gut which scien-
tists are now studying. It actually refers
to “bacteria living in the gastro-intestinal
tract” and plays “a complex and critical
role in the health of its host”.
The studies done so far are probably
common knowledge but now scientists
are interested in understanding not just
how the microbiome affects the organs of
the body but also how it affects the brain,
in order to
develop potential gut-based treatments
for “neuropsychiatric disorders”.
I understand that a healthy gut is impor-
tant to overall health and I want to see if
they can find new treatments for depres-
sion or possibly even other psychiatric
disorders now that we have reached the
stage where resistant 20th century antibi-
otics etc. are causing scientists to re-ex-
amine our relationship with bacteria in the
21st century.
See: The Conversation.com/uk
EQUILIBRIUM 19
Psychology Marco Lanzarote
ww
w.fu
ture
mo
rph.
org
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM 20
Tea: The Iron Killer? Nigel Prestatyn
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 21
My partner has forever been telling me
not to drink tea after my meals, that I
should drink coffee instead if I want a
beverage. Well, coffee aside, what is the
harm of drinking tea? I often stop taking
these things without necessarily under-
standing them. Often relying on my
partner’s own brilliant insights into these
matters. But this time I thought I would
check, to see if her suggestion, like tea,
held water (pun intended).
I does seem that drinking tea after a
meal does in fact stop iron entering your
body. So what’s specific about tea, and
not say coffee. Is it okay to drink coffee?
Well Tea contains tannic acid chemi-
cals which bind to the iron in food and
absorb it.
Well surely I can spare a little iron? I’m
not anemic or in any category that
would require me to maintain levels of
iron. Of course this is very much an issue
which should be of concern to women
of a certain age. When that ‘time of the
month’ comes around, there is very
much a drop in iron levels due to the
loss of blood, and so avoiding tea after
food would be beneficial for people in
this category.
So a little bit of iron lost via absorption
through tea is no big deal. I guess. But
holds on don’t I always complaining
of feeling tired, don’t I complain of not
having enough energy to complete all
the tasks I have in the day? Can I actu-
ally afford to lose any iron? The answer is
no. why bother with tea when I can have
coffee.
Let’s be clear, the iron absorbed from
your food is of a certain type. Drink-
ing tea with red meats, poultry or fish
does not significantly decrease the
amount of iron your body receives.
These animal products contain the heme
form of iron, which is easily absorbed by
your body. In contrast, the non-heme
iron in plant foods is more difficult for
your body to use and more likely to be
inhibited by black tea.
So look after to your vegetables, treat
them with respect, and absorb all their
beneficial irons!
Tea: The Iron Killer? Nigel Prestatyn
Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM Summer/ Issue 38EQUILIBRIUM 22
Transforming mental health: A plan of action for London
A new report on mental health from the Kings Fund
http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/sites/files/kf/field/
field_publication_file/transforming-mental-
health-london-kingsfund-sep2014.pdf
Summer/ Issue 38Summer/ Issue 38 www.haringey.gov.uk/equilibrium EQUILIBRIUMEQUILIBRIUM 23
The Kings Fund have recently
published a report called ‘Transform-
ing mental health: A plan of action
for London’ (Gilbert, Edwards, Murray,
Sept. 2014), which describes a vision
for the future of mental health provi-
sion in London. Tackling the costs
of mental illness (almost £7.5 billion
a year in London alone) has been
identified as a priority by the London
Health Board, and the report details
worrying statistics regarding the
prevalence of mental illness: it is the
single largest cause of disability in
the UK (contributing up to 22.8% of
the total burden, compared to 15.9%
for cancer and 16.2% for cardiovas-
cular disease, according to the World
Health Organisation in 2008). It also
notes that the incidence of mental
illness varies considerably between
London boroughs, with some mental
illness twice as common in deprived
parts of London compared with the
least deprived areas (People’s Inquiry
into London’s NHS 2014). Other key
findings include:
• People with mental health problems
are at a higher risk of developing
significant physical health problems,
including preventable conditions
such as diabetes and heart disease.
• People with serious mental health
problems die 20 years younger (on
average) that the general popula-
tion.
• Overall, the health, economic and
social impacts of mental illness result
in costs to the capital of an esti-
mated £26 billion each year (Greater
London Authority 2014)
• There are three important factors
effecting London’s mental health
needs which need to be considered:
poverty, ethnic diversity and transi-
ence (people moving in and out and
between boroughs)
Kate Massey-Chase
EQUILIBRIUM 24
what can art make us feel?
ima
ge
: ww
w.d
ee
pe
rmin
d.c
om
What can art make us feel?
I was pondering over this question
recently because I began to wonder
what do I want people to feel about my
art!
To answer it I had to put myself in the
position of a viewer of my art, rather than
a creator. Of course one would think it
wholly natural for an artist to begin by
thinking how an idea for a work may
affect people, but often times, it can be
the other way round. You have an idea
for a work, you create it, and then, if at
all, you may consider how this work may
affect people.
It is not entirely impossible for some
artists to not care a jot about how their
art affects people. To give any consid-
eration at any point throughout its crea-
tion as to how the work may emotionally
affect people.
Now this could be my naïve take on
things. It could be that I’m basing this on
my own shortcomings. I’ve often consid-
ered how people might emotionally react
to my work, but in a very general way.
But the language we most commonly
use as artists is often a language
designed to express the work’s meaning.
So we possess a language to convey the
conceptual underpinnings of the work.
This in turn will determine to a degree
people’s responses, but perhaps intel-
lectual responses, rather than emotional
responses. But it is emotional responses
that I’m interested in.
So the question is not what people think
(though naturally this is of course very
important), but more a question of what
do people feel about my work: or more
specifically what do I want people to
feel about my work?
Well when I first considered this question
I have to confess I didn’t feel I had the
necessary language to answer this question.
So what can we feel about works of art?
There are of course as many answers
as there are spectators. A Rothko can
convey a religious quietitude for some,
whereas for others it may convey a
EQUILIBRIUM 25
cont.
Nigel Prestatyn
sense of melancholia, and for others
something different entirely.
So there is no definitive answer of how a
specific work of art can affect people.
But in a hypothetical world, how would
I like my work to effect people on an
emotional level?
As a hyperrealist I create images of
everyday objects. How we respond to
these everyday objects in actual daily
life, and how we respond to them in a
painting, are different. We don’t regard
several figs in a bowl on our tables as a
work of art (so no emotional aesthetic
response), yet when this image is trans-
ferred to a canvas it can convey an
emotional response (though there are
likely many who argue otherwise).
As a hyperrealist I’m obsessed with
detail, and for many their responses can
often begin with the technical matters of
a painting. But in what way can a paint-
ing of several figs in a glass bowl move
people on an emotional level.
I think the emotional response would
need to involve a response to beauty.
For these objects are beautiful - or at
least that is how I see them. Hopefully
others would too. Is it not too far fetched
to hope that one would have a similar
emotional response to a rising sun as
they would a painted image of figs? Is
this expecting too much?
But what do we feel in the face of great
beauty? We feel a sense of awe, wonder-
ment, perhaps even a tingle of excite-
ment? When I look out of my flat window
and see a striking skyline, there is quiet-
ness, a sense of humility in the face of
such monumental natural beauty. But is it
hard to make this kind of emotional tran-
sition for art? When we see a butterfly or
a beautiful flower, we are fascinated by
its formal properties. These properties in
turn can make us feel a certain way.
Unfortunately I don’t have the perfect
answer as to what emotional response
I would like from viewers of my work. I
think I would simply ask that they feel the
beauty of these objects. For it is a beauty
heightened, exaggerated, a ‘hyper’ real
beauty. There will always be a sense of
wonderment at the minutiae of the natu-
ral world, as well as the monumental,
and with both perhaps a feeling of awe,
however mild or intense.
EQUILIBRIUM 26
n
Equilibrium at Clarendon Recovery College
Clarendon Recovery
College is a place where
I come to the magazine
group, Equilibrium. I come
on a Friday. It starts at
2.30pm. I come here and
I write about many differ-
ent topics. I also go into
the library and read many
different things. I have been
coming for about three
weeks. I hope that I will gain
good skills so I can move on
and get a job or go and study until I get one. Maybe by study-
ing I will get a certificate. I may write something they will put in
their magazine, called Equilibrium*.
I enjoy writing because I like to write about different things, such
as articles, books, maybe poems. I started writing a couple of
years back, first at 684, then Barnet College, then Crisis, then
Alexandra Palace, then Mind. Now I write at the Clarendon
Centre. I am also writing a book about the life of King Henry VIII.
I am learning to write at City Lit. I enjoy writing. I wish one day I
could become a good writer, perhaps writing books or for the
newspaper.
* Paul is very pleased we have!
EQUILIBRIUM 27
Paul Blackman