Hello, All You Beautiful Icaristas!!!
Welcome back from Spring Break.
We are not meeting this Tuesday March 31st because Will Hall (host of Madness Radio) is showing and discussing his film “Hearing Voices” in Portland at 6 PM. For those who are interested in caravanning down to Portland THIS TUESDAY, we plan to leave at 1pm in the the huge parking lot outside of New Moon downtown on 4th Ave. Laura’s car has room for 3 people. The first three to contact Laura (sageoaklyptus@gmail.com) back has priority. Then, we’ll coordinate who else wants to go with who else wants else wants to go and has a car.
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Public Screening of “Hearing Voices” Documentary & Discussion of New Project
On Tuesday, March 31 2009 at 6 PM the hour-long BBC documentary video “Hearing Voices” will be screened at the Multnomah County Central Library in Portland, at 801 S.W. 10th Avenue.
The 1995 documentary interviews a number of voice hearers and presents many different points of view on this little-understood phenomenon. The video will be followed by a community discussion.
- Tuesday, March 31 2009 6:00 - 7:45 PM
Multnomah County Central Library - public meeting room
801 S.W. 10th Avenue @ Yamhill
A small percentage of people hear voices no one else hears and have other unusual sensory experiences. Sometimes these voices and sensations can be painful and terrifying, but sometimes they are creative and even spiritual. Throughout history the mysterious meaning of hearing voices has defied any final explanation.
What is it like to hear voices and have unusual sensory experiences? How do people learn to live with their voices? Are voices always part of pathology and disorder, or are they related to sensitivity and creativity or have other meaning? How are Hearing Voices Groups in England and Europe providing ways for voice-hearers to gain greater control of their lives?
This event is sponsored by Portland Hearing Voices, a new community learning partnership dedicated to education around hearing voices, unusual sensory experiences, and mental diversity. The discussion will be led by Will Hall, a voice hearer diagnosed with schizophrenia and the program director of Portland Hearing Voices.
This event is free and open to the public, on public transit, and wheelchair accessible. Because of chemical sensitivities, please do not wear scented body products.
For information, contact Jess Jinkies, Outreach Director for Portland Hearing Voices
portlandhearingvoices@gmail.com or at 413-210-2803
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Below is the plan for our first meeting on Tuesday April 7th in COMM 307 Lounge. Please take note of the Word Defining Reclaiming section in case you want to add more word suggestions before the meeting.
Mad Love,
Rosie and Laura
Agenda - Tues April 7th COMM 307 Lounge
Climate – emotional/mental forecast for the day
Consensus Review - Go over consensus process and hand signals we personalized to TESC TIP
Wellness/Crisis Plan - Go over the structure and purpose of a Wellness/Crisis Plan so that we can all have ours made by next meeting April 14, 2009.
Activist vs. Support Meetings - We’re thinking we should have activist meetings gather during the 2nd and 4th week of each month at someone’s house and keep the support group gathering every Tuesday in the COMM 307 Lounge @ 3pm.
Word Defining and Reclaiming - Below is a list of words to springboard discussion and definition. Please feel free to add onto this list by posting a response to this blog or during the discussion. We do not intend to cover every word. We do want to create a safe, non-judgmental space for people to discuss these words, where we can openly express our ignorance while hold each other accountable for growth in perspective and conscientiousness.
List:
Mental Health
Mental Illness
Empowerment
Facilitator
Self-Destruction
Disorder
Dysfunctional
Disease
Spiritual
Patient
Therapy
Doctor
Monoculture
Anarchy
Radical
Support Group
Dangerous Gifts
Queer
Gender-Neutral Pronouns
Autonomy
Involuntary Treatment
Popular Education
Anti-Oppression
Madness
Crazy
Advocacy
Harm Reduction
Informed Consent
Check-Outs - From now on, meetings will be 2 hours long AND ten minutes before the 2 hour mark we will do check-outs. This is an opportunity for everyone to go around the circle and voice what did not work and how to execute it better next time. HOWEVER, of course, those who want to continue the dialogue after two hours are up are welcome to stay in the lounge or migrate to another space.