The show was based on Ruby Wax’s life, going from the “loser” at school to fame and fortune, to depression. She had the house of her dreams, a devoted husband and three children yet she felt lost in her life, and as she often mentioned “I didn’t have a manual”.

Judith Owen made a fine musical sidekick as she broke out into song after every monologue performed by Ruby. Judith had an incredible voice and played beautifully on the piano.

I laughed a lot but it was also incredibly moving, there was a good mixture of humour and serious messages throughout, it was a roller coaster of emotions.

Ruby was definately on top form and it is really refreshing to see that she is so open about her mental health issues. Although things are shifting, there still is a massive stigma towards mental health issue. Ruby added that if she had a broken leg she would get heaps of get well soon cards, but when she went to the Priory Clinic to treat her depression she didn’t get any.

Steve Light

Picture: EPA

The Liberal Democrats have made a poor start to their new role in government, having to issue two public apologies for language used by senior party figures that was offensive to people with mental health difficulties.

The Liberal Democrats have made a poor start to their new role in government, having to issue two public apologies for language used by senior party figures that was offensive to people with mental health difficulties.
The Lib Dem peer, Lord Jones of Cheltenham, has said sorry for upsetting anyone after being challenged by the mental health magazine, One in Four, about his reference in a radio interview to a ‘looney list’ and for suggesting that people with mental health difficulties should not be out on the streets.
This followed a gaffe by party leader and new deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, when he made a reference to ‘nutters’ in the second of the televised leaders’ debates. He has apologised and said he did not intend his words to be derogatory.

Interviewed on BBC Radio 4’s PM programme on Friday 14th May about the recent knife attack on Labour MP Stephen Timms, Lord Jones, formerly Nigel Jones, MP, recalled a similar attack in his own constituency offices 10 years ago in which he was injured and a member of his staff killed by a man wielding a samurai sword. He told radio listeners: “We did have what we called our looney list which had a dozen people on it who we thought might be a little difficult.” He said of the man who had attacked him: “We subsequently learned that he had a mental health problem and we hope that’s cleared up now because he’s out on the streets.”

When questioned by One in Four about the appropriateness of his words, Lord Jones said that in the interview the memories of that horrible day in January 2000 came back to haunt him. “No I do not think that people with mental health problems are ‘loonies,’” he said. “During my time as MP for Cheltenham, I was for many years a patron of the Gloucestershire Association for Mental Health and have campaigned for better services in the community for those with mental health difficulties.

Pressed further about why a public figure who represents himself as a campaigner in an area where stigma is a problem uses such language, Lord Jones told One in Four it was the stress of the moment: “The horror returned in full force.  I suspect, unless one has experienced what I did, the reawakened torment and distress make normal, restrained speech difficult to utter.”

During the second of the TV debates between the three party leaders, Nick Clegg described the Conservative group in the European Parliament as, “Nutters, anti-Semites, people who deny climate change exists and homophobes.”  He was picked up for that by Stand to Reason, the service user-led mental health charity, and he apologised for any offence caused.

Mr Clegg was a signatory to an agreement by all main party leaders not to use derogatory or stigmatising language related to mental health issues in their campaigns. In a letter to Stand to Reason he said: “I am acutely aware that the stigma of mental health causes great distress to many people and my use of language that could be considered derogatory was entirely unintentional.”

The editor of One in Four, Mark Brown, said: “It shows how far we still have to go if we call someone a ‘nutter’ when we think they’re wrong.” On the words of Lord Jones he said: “We shouldn’t let our worry about particular cases colour our view of people with mental difficulties as a whole. The majority of violent crime isn’t committed by people who have got mental health difficulties.”

Jonathan Naess, director of Stand to Reason, said: “’Nutter’ may well be everyday language. But it is in truth an insult based on disparaging and deriding people with mental health problems. If you’ve ever suffered from mental illness or you have a loved one who’s been affected, you know it’s no laughing matter. It’s not okay to joke about someone in a wheelchair, so what’s so funny about mental illness?”
A party spokesperson told One in Four, “The Liberal Democrats recognise that the language recently used by party spokespeople could be seen as derogatory and offensive. On both occasions the people involved have rightly apologised. The Liberal Democrats will continue to call for more support for mental health services and for our members to support any effort to change attitudes to mental health.”

Mark Brown

from: One in Four www.oneinfourmag.org

Depression is a common mental illness which is estimated to affect up to one in five Britons at some point in their lifetime and to cost the UK about £8bn a year in medication, benefits and lost working days.

It can strike at any age and the feelings of hopelessness and helplessness attached to it can make it difficult for people to carry out their normal activities.

It can be more or less severe and symptoms are often varied, making it often hard to diagnose.

It is thought that some individuals may be more prone to depression, whether because of life experiences, their body chemistry or genetically inherited conditions.

Those who have suffered from depression include Sir Winston Churchill and Florence Nightingale.

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17th November 2009
Steve Light is 27 years old, but growing up he felt robbed of a fulfilling life because he was gripped by social anxiety. Throughout his teens and early twenties he was locked in a cycle of acute shyness and low self-esteem. With social anxiety the main fear is of being negatively evaluated or judged – this can result in physical symptoms such as blushing, shaking or sweating.

After plucking up the courage to attend a local support group, Steve decided that he’d had enough. In 2005, he pledged not to let social anxiety ruin his life. Now 27, he’s set up Leading Light to help others who were affected by the condition. The programme offers help, support and guidance for social anxiety sufferers through various workshops, events and advice.

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