Mental Health Week

 

This week is International Mental Health Week.  In honour of this, Ms Joanne Christie (Head of Riley) had some wise words at Monday's Assembly.  Please enjoy Ms Christie's insightful speech below.

Good afternoon Mr Thompson, Ms Davis, Mr Martin, colleagues and students,

When I was asked to address this assembly, I was asked to talk about something inspiring.  Easy, I thought.  Every day I see colleagues and students doing inspiring things. I read inspiring stories; all I would need to do is to talk about one of my many passions, maybe one of my top five and that could be inspiring and form the basis of this speech.

So my top five passions, in no particular order, are the Western Bulldogs, my Drama Tribe, Riley House, my children.  Books - especially Pride and Prejudice.

In deciding which passion I was going to share with you, I reflected on the previous Assembly speakers you have heard, both teachers and Prefects. These leaders shared with you insights and stories that I hoped resonated with you.  Stories of hope, resilience, joy, accomplishments, and that perceived missed opportunities were actually blessings in disguise. 

I have so many stories I could share that I was struggling with where to start, so I consulted the expert - Google. I researched the web for how to tell a good story and found out some exciting things.

One, we are all storytellers.

We are storytellers when we share with a family member about an adverse event that happened at school. We are also storytellers when we describe meeting new friends or speaking of the great movie we just saw or the fantastic meal we cooked last night.

We are storytellers when we talk about events, characters, actions, themes, feelings, and ideas.

We share stories with others more often than we realise.

The second thing that I learnt was how storytelling benefits mental health.

My research led me to a lady called Annie Brewster, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School who is the founder of a non-profit organisation called the Health Story Collaborative.  This organisation helps patients and families make sense of trauma and various mental and physical health challenges through exchanging stories.  She believes that stories connect us and help us heal and grow.

You’ll be pleased to know that further internet searching found many other positive gains for your brain when you’re involved in storytelling. We are doing something good for our mental health by telling stories, listening to stories, and sharing stories.

Here are just a few more benefits.

Storytelling boosts listening skills and fosters imagination.

You become an active listener when you focus with all your senses and give complete attention to stories. Becoming a better and more active listener is also a great social skill.

You also develop your imagination and expand your thinking by reading stories in books. You can use reading to exercise your brain’s health and fitness. A good imagination can sometimes enable people to weather life’s stressors better.

Storytelling increases empathy and memory retention.

When we connect with the characters in a story, our brain releases oxytocin. Oxytocin is associated with empathy; a building block in helping us connect and deepen our relationships.

In addition to increasing empathy, another benefit we derive from storytelling is improved memory. Jennifer Aaker, a marketing professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, says that people remember information when it is weaved into narratives “up to twenty-two times more than facts alone.”

Food for thought.

Another point is that storytelling increases positive emotions.

According to recent research in positive psychology, how we tell our stories controls our mood and self-image. Stories can uplift us and change our moods. 

A reasonable amount of positive emotion and optimism allows us to cope better with adversity and meet the obstacles we face.

In a study done with hospitalised children in intensive care, one storytelling session led to an increase in oxytocin, a reduction in cortisol and pain, and positive emotional shifts in the children.

And finally, storytelling can help us build from success and failure.

Changing your narrative in response to success and failure can have positive effects. In research with adolescents regarding persistence and academic achievement, scientists found that new narratives can self-motivate in positive ways.

Success narratives can remind people how they were effective in goal achievement, thereby increasing their self-esteem and motivating them to aim for success again.

On the other hand, failure narratives are also powerful. When told in a new way, they can enable people to appreciate their attempts, give themselves credit for getting through their challenges and encourage them to see they’re better prepared to deal with challenges in the future.

So, in a nutshell, telling stories helps us connect to others, make meaning, organise our lives into a coherent narrative and immerse ourselves in others’ tales. While we share stories, we are also improving our mental health and wellbeing.

And like the sneaky parent I was, hiding vegetables in my children’s spaghetti bolognaise, I have sneakily shared with you passion number six, which really should be closer to the top of my passion list, my passion for social and emotional learning.  

So on this World Mental Health Week, I hope something I have spoken about has resonated with you and will help you think about and develop narratives with family and friends.

I will end with a quote from Aristotle, a Greek philosopher.

Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. 

Thank you.

Ms Joanne Christie 

Head of Riley