Performing for Adolescent Psychiatric Patients: Part 2

In part one of the "Performing for Adolescent Psychiatric Patients," I described my experience last week performing a science show for adolescent patients at a psychiatric center.  I was initially unsure of how it would go, and even uncertain that it was an entirely appropriate venue for a science demonstration show; but somehow it worked.  In this post I want to talk about why I now think psychiatric centers are a great venue.

I don't presume to say that one enjoyable 45 minute show is going to "fix" the patients' problems.  I'm not a mental health worker, or even someone who can be around long enough to see if there are any quantifiable results.  But I do believe that not only did the show not cause any harm (number one rule), but that it was helpful to the patients in a few ways.

1.  Confidence Building - The patients that made up the audience got to ask and answer questions, volunteer to help me, were trusted to pet a turtle, and a couple even got to drum with me in front of the others.  They weren't really working on skill building, like in wilderness therapy programs, or expressing their innermost thoughts, like in journal writing, but they were getting a chance to be heard and included through voluntary participation.

2.  Content - Learning about how an optical illusion works or why a male slider turtle has long claws may not be information that specifically related to the patients' problems, but they don't have to be.  Our universe is a fascinating place, and sometimes we need some exposure to its wonders to remind us of that.  Science stems from our natural curiosity, and demonstrates that there are things worth learning and participating in that are bigger than ourselves and the personal problems we can become trapped in.  Books like Last Child in the Woods describe some of the benefits children gain from exposure to nature and problems that come from losing it.  I don't think it is just the "nature" that kids need, but exposure to ideas about "nature" and the wider world around them.

3.  Role Modeling - This is probably the most important of the three I've listed so far.  In fact, without it I'm not sure much of the confidence building or content gets through.  So, what do I mean by role modeling?  I mean practicing what you preach, embodying a lifestyle or attitude that connects with the content.  Here is a great quote from Kipling that explains what I mean.


No printed word, nor spoken plea can teach young minds what they should be. Not all the books on all the shelves – but what the teachers are themselves.

Rudyard Kipling

When my audiences see me giving a presentation I know they are picking up more than I'm saying.  Even if they don't realize it themselves, they are bringing all their experiences, prejudices, and current mood with them to color their perception.  And everything from what I'm wearing and how I'm standing, to my pronunciation and delivery are a part of what they take from the presentation.  Certainly, this could be a roadblock.  Imagine how many people would listen to my message if they thought I was unsure of the content, untrustworthy, or unpleasant.  But, on the other hand, what if I can convince them of the opposite.  Along with the content, the presenter is also the message.  The phrase, "The medium is the message" applies to people as well as newspapers, cellphones, and TV.  

By demonstrating that a life filled with learning, curiosity, and respect can be a path worth traveling, a good role model can open their audiences eyes.  And for an adolescent who isn't sure about their future, this seems like an opportunity any adult working with them cannot afford to miss.

4.  Music - During the show I spent about 15 minutes demonstrating the science behind sound and playing music with various instruments.  I love music and it turns out that just about everyone else does to.  I started by asking them if they thought of music as being an important part of their lives.  Then I mentioned how powerful music can be on our emotions, and explained that even though it seems like magic, we can use science to help us understand how music works.  This seemed to draw them in, but honestly, music doesn't need much help to do that.  Why is music so powerful?  I don't really know and I didn't try to answer that question with the audience, but I do know that music works for any age and for just about everyone.

Performing for Adolescent Psychiatric Patients: Part 1

Working with new groups of people is one of my favorite experiences as an informal science educator.  I find it a great challenge and opportunity to teach science to groups of people I haven't worked with before, especially if I think my interaction with them can have a positive impact.  You may be surprised to learn I've performed science shows for immigrant and refugee children, grieving children, hospitalized children, the elderly, and religiously conservative groups who may distrust science.  In each one of these cases I felt their was something special I could offer, and I did my best to tailor my shows to accomplish this.

Whenever someone calls to request a traveling show, I never know where it might lead. Recently a phone call led to my first performance at a psychiatric hospital for children and adolescent patients.  Huchings Psychiatric Center helps children with a variety of mental health problems.  Their website provides informational material on Depression, Eating Disorders, Schizophrenia, and other mental illnesses.  Before going to the Center I read through all of these materials and asked the women who booked the show a number of questions about what I should expect from the young people and how my shows fit in with their schedule.  The Center wanted to celebrate the Thankgiving school break with the patients, and thought it would be fun for the students to have me visit and provide some educational entertainment.

I ended up performing a show for the younger patients and another for the adolescent patients (ages 13-18), but it is the show for the adolescents I want to write about.  I knew I would have no problem with the younger audience, but I did a lot of thinking about how I would connect to the older kids and deliver a show that would entertain, teach, and possibly help with the healing that the audience needed.  I don't perform traveling shows often for teenagers, and it always makes me nervous.  An 18 year old can ask questions that are a lot harder than a 10 year old usually can, and many times teenagers can adopt an "I'm too cool for this" attitude.  Whenever I do a show for this age group I prepare with some extra reading on the science topics and commit myself to giving an A+ performance.   Having an audience full of teenagers who were potentially cutting, attempting suicide, and starving themselves before entering the Center seemed like it could add more difficulties I couldn't plan for.  Would the patients have problems with me as an "authority figure?"   Would they be angry they were forced to live in a hospital and resent me for being a part of it?  I just couldn't know.

Thankfully, the show went great.  In fact, it was an experience I won't soon forget and I don't think the teenagers will either.  If you had observed, you would have seen an audience eagerly participating and enjoying themselves while learning about optical illusions, the science of sound and music, and meeting the museum's pet turtle, Patsie.  The experience wasn't magical and didn't resemble a Hollywood drama, but it was real.  I noticed only one of the patients seemed a bit withdrawn, but even he was interested when he saw the African hand drum I brought.  I couldn't have asked for a better audience.  I left this show feeling like I had made a positive impact on the patients' day, and maybe even on their recoveries.

If you are an educator and you get the opportunity to work with a group you've never worked with before, or whom you might be reluctant to work with, I say to just go for it.  Do what research you can beforehand, and go for it.

In this post I gave a description of the show and my thoughts leading up to it.  In Part 2 I will talk about why I think the presentation worked and what role science presentations might have in the recovery of adolescent psychiatric patients.