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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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We`re not a lover of reality type programmes...peurile drivel as far as I`m concerned....
However we watched the..fly on the wall documentry on BBC4 last night! It held some promise, so we thought we`d give it a go ...
A wonderful and insightful piece of tele..compassionate and respectful...and irredeemably sad at the close....
More tele like this please...did anyone else see it ?....and what did you think ?
Dave... |
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I watched it the first time it was on late last year.
I didnt think it would be up my street atall.
But it was an utterly fascinating insight into the world of mental health.
WAY above the level of dross which would normally be described as a documentary and discussed on here.
Each of the three guys had a totally different background and situation. And each time you thought you liked one more than the others or felt you had sussed which one was the twat who deserved no better, they each managed to change your idea of them.
It was hard to work out which of the three stories was the more heartbreaking.
And the really hard part was knowing that at least two of them had a good chance of a 'normal' life if they could keep it together for long enough.
I cold have wept for the duaghter of the blck guy, who had so obviously done everything she could for her Dad, but was forced to draw a line.
The wife of the 'normal' guy, who didnt take part in the film, must have had the most hellish time imaginable when we left to set up on his own.
And the other guy? Fucking hell. At the end, when he had his 'are you sane enough to go back into the group' interview thing? By which time you were rooting for him to make it?
'No, they say I have to stay, i'm not well enough yet. But it's okay, because the Gods have told me it no longer HAS to be christmas day I kill myself, I can do it anytime I want now, so that's a bit of a relief to be honest....'
Powerful stuff.
They should put proper docs like this on a mainstream channel at a mainstream time so that people get a much better understanding of real issues and how they affect real people.
Instead of watching Ant & fucking Dec and clapping like Seals in a circus.
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"I can't watch those sort of progs either. I find them depressing. "
Sectioned was anything but depressing. It gave a fascinating insight into some aspects of mental healthcare and just what can be achieved. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"They should put proper docs like this on a mainstream channel at a mainstream time so that people get a much better understanding of real issues and how they affect real people.
Instead of watching Ant & fucking Dec and clapping like Seals in a circus.
"
But that would mean moving Eastenders and Corrie and I've only just grasped hold of the plot of both those soaps. And they are far more entertaining as they address all sorts of social issues, nutters, teen pregs, murder, mayhem and a geeky asian boy who couldn't pull in a brothel.  |
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"I can't watch those sort of progs either. I find them depressing.
Sectioned was anything but depressing. It gave a fascinating insight into some aspects of mental healthcare and just what can be achieved."
It certainly challenged some preconceptions I may have had.
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"I watched it the first time it was on late last year.
I didnt think it would be up my street atall.
But it was an utterly fascinating insight into the world of mental health.
WAY above the level of dross which would normally be described as a documentary and discussed on here.
Each of the three guys had a totally different background and situation. And each time you thought you liked one more than the others or felt you had sussed which one was the twat who deserved no better, they each managed to change your idea of them.
It was hard to work out which of the three stories was the more heartbreaking.
And the really hard part was knowing that at least two of them had a good chance of a 'normal' life if they could keep it together for long enough.
I cold have wept for the duaghter of the blck guy, who had so obviously done everything she could for her Dad, but was forced to draw a line.
The wife of the 'normal' guy, who didnt take part in the film, must have had the most hellish time imaginable when we left to set up on his own.
And the other guy? Fucking hell. At the end, when he had his 'are you sane enough to go back into the group' interview thing? By which time you were rooting for him to make it?
'No, they say I have to stay, i'm not well enough yet. But it's okay, because the Gods have told me it no longer HAS to be christmas day I kill myself, I can do it anytime I want now, so that's a bit of a relief to be honest....'
Powerful stuff.
They should put proper docs like this on a mainstream channel at a mainstream time so that people get a much better understanding of real issues and how they affect real people.
Instead of watching Ant & fucking Dec and clapping like Seals in a circus.
"
Your repeated attempts at dragging the content and the tone of the threads to a higher intellectual level, whilst admirable, are sadly doomed I fear. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"Your repeated attempts at dragging the content and the tone of the threads to a higher intellectual level, whilst admirable, are sadly doomed I fear. "
He'll keep trying though. He's nothing if not tenacious. |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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Thanks for all your thoughts ...all valid to the post..
I normally have reservations about this sort of programme,in the past I`ve seen programme makers treat a subject like this appalingly ...I remember one which was sensationalist,exploitative and partly concieved with a regard to appealing to some peoples natural purience.....
I think this was of a different calibre..it was informative, balanced and let the individuals speak for themselves ....without editing to manipulate the audiences responses....
The blokes were treated with respect and allowed to retain their dignity in the most vunerable of circumstances,their predictament was sensitively handled, we felt... it would of been so easy to caricuture them ..
It certainly provded us with an opportunity to talk about the issues raised....
The attitudes of the blokes themselves....fighting for independence of the mental health system...or right to live as they saw fit ...grasping for balance in their choatic inner world...the attitude of the carers...
So many things,some of which have been mentioned...regard the families ...
Above all tho, me and Sharon were left in pensive mood watching the youngest mans story unfold .....the boiling fat thrown on him as a kid ...the sexual abuse ...the inference of dysfunctional parents writ large...
Was his condition a understandable response to such a tough break in life ....He spoke for himself, course alot of what he said could be the ravings of his voices....but I don`t mean that more he seemed such a bright,loving chap....full of intelligence and wit ...
So my passing thought was .....Luck and gratitude....
How lucky I`ve been not having his breaks in life .....just a lottery isn`t it ....
And finally...yeah..a programme to remember for us ....what we pay BBC to produce on its more serious side ... |
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I'm watching it now. I used to work in a Mental Health hospital and got a huge shock to the system from it. I worked on the ward for the South West sector of Edinburgh for about two years and found it incredibly sad, hugely insightful but not really depressing as such.
It made me realise that mental health issues can affect absolutely anyone. Not sure what I thought prior to that but the stigma attached to mental health should be pushed out as far as we are all capable of doing.
Schizophrenia is one of the worst illnesses I could ever imagine. We had one guy who, when taking his medication, was an incredibly cool, clever bloke. However, when he was better he thought that he didn't need to keep taking the medication and came back frequently. The insight just wasn't there. It's an awful disease for not only the patient but for the families who have to try and live with it.
Awareness is good. I agree that these programs should be on mainstream TV so that more people catch a glimpse into mental health and the issues surrounding it. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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ido volunteer work in the mental health area and it was a programme made extremely well and proffessionally,did you notice the only 2 % of mental health cases are sectioned,unfortuneately they should do a similar programme in a womans prison where over 35% of inmates are deemed to be suffering from mental health issues |
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I think the thing which gave me the biggest pause for thought was the older guy who had lived an absulotely normal, classicly middle class life, job, wife kids, house, the whole nine yards.
Until the wheels came off it for him.
And not because of any particular stress, or trauma, or becasue something had happened to him earlier in life.
He was such a normal guy.
It brought home to me how thin the line is sometimes, and that this could happen to anyone.
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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davshaz a superb portrayle by yourselves of what these programmes mean it highlighted all aspects-great forum post and most definately answerd with consideration and compassion |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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"davshaz a superb portrayle by yourselves of what these programmes mean it highlighted all aspects-great forum post and most definately answerd with consideration and compassion"
Thank you.....
And I do agree most peeps treat mental illness with an arms length response....
I`ve had occasion to talk about the mental health problem I`ve experienced personally, in my family and other peeps in the community..I never sought help through the social care system , I went the self help route...but I do understand the stigma you invariably encounter, workmates would totally avoid me, as if it was catching, like measles lol....still..
I`ve done voluntarily work in the community, and visited peeps in open wards .....many different peeps, all with different backgrounds and status....a humbling experience, and only then could I understand the staffs commitment to care and their constraints ...
Seems almost naive that peeps think it won`t affect them ....a chap I knew, hes now dead thru suicide, was a high flying prof, who tragically lost a son following an accident ....he went of the rails...poor sod ..
They say most peeps will experience a mental health problem sometime in your life ....that might be an urban myth tho..But its wise not to be complacent .....I`ll post a fantastic read on prevention of mental health issues by Dr Raj Persaud
I think the likes of Alistair Campbell and Stephen Fry talking publically about their own struggles for " wellbeing " helps..but this programme thoroghly deserved a BBC2 slot..... |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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"I think the thing which gave me the biggest pause for thought was the older guy who had lived an absulotely normal, classicly middle class life, job, wife kids, house, the whole nine yards.
Until the wheels came off it for him.
And not because of any particular stress, or trauma, or becasue something had happened to him earlier in life.
He was such a normal guy.
It brought home to me how thin the line is sometimes, and that this could happen to anyone.
"
Yep, we were struck by his analytical reviews of himself....seemed like cognition was almost there didn`t it!!.....but jeez, his abject apology to the pyschiatrist when he was being reviewed was gut wrenching ( he didn`t go to the doctors to pick up his prescription ) ......such a lovely bloke we felt, and a compassionate and supportive response from the team looking after him, was it wisdom, that they didn`t step in with much help with the rented bungalow...we thought so !!!...
And his wifes haunted look, both of them mercy to fucked up chemicals or wiring in the brain ...
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"I think the thing which gave me the biggest pause for thought was the older guy who had lived an absulotely normal, classicly middle class life, job, wife kids, house, the whole nine yards.
Until the wheels came off it for him.
And not because of any particular stress, or trauma, or becasue something had happened to him earlier in life.
He was such a normal guy.
It brought home to me how thin the line is sometimes, and that this could happen to anyone.
Yep, we were struck by his analytical reviews of himself....seemed like cognition was almost there didn`t it!!.....but jeez, his abject apology to the pyschiatrist when he was being reviewed was gut wrenching ( he didn`t go to the doctors to pick up his prescription ) ......such a lovely bloke we felt, and a compassionate and supportive response from the team looking after him, was it wisdom, that they didn`t step in with much help with the rented bungalow...we thought so !!!...
And his wifes haunted look, both of them mercy to fucked up chemicals or wiring in the brain ...
"
It's a while since i saw it, but now you mention the prescription thing i remember it.
The staff were indescribable. Knew when it was time for 'tough love' and also when to say 'gon on then, do it yourself...'.
Am pretty sure they made a call on the Bungalow thing, guessing that it would make him realise he couldnt/shouldnt be there.
The poor guys wife. What she must have gone through.
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