BBC3 fired the mad world season into action with a shocking, yet truthful insight into life in an adolescent psychiatric unit, filmed in one of the largest units of its kind - the McGuinness unit in Manchester. They showed a wide range of mental illnesses including depression, anxiety disorders and psychotic episodes with a balance between the voluntary and sectioned patients. The overall aim of the documentary was to raise awareness and break down the stigma of mental illness by educating people on the facts of what life is like for young people experiencing such problems.
One successful quality was the portrayal of both good and bad times witnessed by the millions of viewers, showing real honesty of life in a psychiatric unit. The raw emotions expressed by the patients touched viewers in many ways but most importantly they showed the ongoing struggle with twisting emotions and heightened mood swings resulting in unpredicted behaviour and responses. However, the BBC have been criticised for showing such extreme emotions and it has been argued that the programme was extremely triggering for those who have past histories of mental illness and those presently suffering. Every episode addressed the issue of self-harm and although this tackled many myths and settled the fact it is used as a coping mechanism and not suicide, it was still considered to be distressing for may individuals. Not only was the subject discussed, almost all of the teens' cuts were recorded, showing arms full of deep cuts and scratches. While setting the record straight about the self-destructive coping mechanism, thousands of young people found this triggering leading to recovered people resorting to the same behaviours - leading to physical and psychological harm- something that the BBC chose to ignore. This was also the case with eating disorders, as a patient was repeatedly filmed whilst dramatically struggling with anxiety and later was shown to be recording the amount of hours managed without food. This in turn was argued to be triggering, causing psychological harm to viewers. On the other hand, the debate about truth vs triggering was probably considered by broadcasters leading to what they perceive as the most sensible decision. In addition, it was stated that there are 11 beds for females and only 4 for males in the unit. This was, however, legitimated by a professional explaining that females can talk more easily about their problems while on the other hand, the males tend to keep their emotions bottled up. This generalisation that is made may not be accurate for all hospitals therefore not making a valid statement.
Another important misconception about psychiatric units was dealt with my the clinical psychologist who explained that young people do not leave the ward completely cured and that the aim is to help and provide coping strategies for the teenagers so they are then able to cope better when they are alone in the outside world. The staff filmed provided an illuminating insight as to what life in the unit is like for them and their responsibilities. This was exceptionally interesting and brought many jobs into the light that people many have not considered or known much about. Review groups enabled the viewers to see the stages in which professionals go through when treating mentally ill patients. Others clips showed art therapy, physical therapy and tasks carried out by the occupational therapist which portrayed many of the recovery therapies that most patients go through.
One particular patient was filmed experiencing what appeared to be psychotic episodes. While searching for a clear diagnosis, it was found that the 14 year old girl having hallucinations and delusions were actually ways of coping with the abuse she had experienced in childhood. Although she had been adopted, she explained that she has younger siblings still living with the parents who are obviously abusive. This brought to light a worryingly dangerous situation which the BBC failed to commentate on.
Despite these few criticisms, the episodes succeeded in portraying the honest reality of millions of teenagers and the 3,500 that walk through the hospital ward every year. It challenged the stereotypical views about mental illness and addressed how the young people feel judged when they are in the outside world. Mental illness is no less serious than physical illness, and with the continuation of programmes such as Don't Call Me Crazy, more and more people can become more open minded to the reality of so many lives. The fact that so many people are completely shocked about what they viewed in the documentary proves the long silence of mental illness...
Do you still judge mental illness?
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