The Living with Psychiatric Medication Group: “Drug Company Advertising Amnesty” 4 th February 2009

We are very pleased to be invited here today to talk about this very important project!

How did it all start? Following a MIND ‘coping with coming off’ conference, a group was set up in Shropshire to talk about medication Network For Change (a voluntary mental health project in Leicester) held a discussion evening with members of the Shropshire group There was an identified need to set up a similar space in Leicester Aims are guided by group members – our group is not exclusively about ‘coming off’

Why was the group needed? Lack of information about medication Medical staff don’t always give adequate information during consultations Somewhere to challenge and question information about drugs We all ‘live’ with psychiatric medication in various ways

Why was the group needed? Lack of space to think about alternatives to medications- some medical staff not willing to discuss this So that we’re not just taking medication without question To share experiences about taking psychiatric medications

Our Group Framework Aware of Speaker who has been invited What’s discussed stays in the room We shouldn’t talk over each other Feel free to vacate the room at any time (Let the Group know) Mobile phones on silence Respecting other peoples contribution Lets stick to time Group closed after Please respect other peoples boundaries i.e. it is ok to say” I don’t want to talk about that” Speaker to be named to the Group including which service they are from Speakers to present for 45 minutes. We will ask them if they prefer questions during or after they have spoken Speaker to attend from to11.45 Minutes to be taken by the Group and remain confidential to the Group The Speakers to be sent a list of hopes and fears and ground rules so that they can get a feel of the Group Facilitation and other jobs to be shared – it’s ok to say “No” All Group members are valued and are part of the group whether they do a job or not.

Group Framework We changed the ‘ground rules’ into a ‘group framework’ to make it feel more democratic and less dogmatic Ensures the speaker and group isn’t disturbed Keeps the group on track with its ethos

Facilitation Group members participate in any way they feel comfortable, for example some of us act as facilitators: –get everyone to speak –Make sure everyone feels comfortable –Makes sure no-one dominates the group –Keeps an eye on the time –Makes sure the group runs smoothly Other roles (keeping us on time, reminding us of the group framework, taking minutes) are shared out at each group Whether people take on a role or not, they are valued in the group

Projects We are involved in a lot of projects For example: –Presentation at a national conference –Writing articles ie Lamp Post, Open Mind –Drug advertising amnesty –Becoming an independent, constituted group –Being part of the training for Clinical Psychology students interested in group work

Drug advertising amnesty –We worked with a local arts based mental health project to collect items with psychiatric drug company advertising on them –We made new designs for the mugs, pens, post-it notes etc that we collected

Drug advertising amnesty –We’ve brought some of these things along with us today

Why did we hold the amnesty? We wanted to take action following the refusal of several drug company representatives to come and speak with us about their role.

Why did we hold the amnesty? We wondered why it was ok for them to advertise their drugs on items we see regularly but why it was not ok for them to have a conversation with us.

Why did we hold the amnesty? We wanted to challenge and open up a critical dialogue about drug company advertising.

Why did we hold the amnesty? We wanted to highlight the drug representatives interest in selling drugs.

Why did we hold the amnesty? We also wanted to explore the relationship the Trust has with drug company advertising.

What did the Amnesty achieve? We were asked to present our amnesty project at the Asylum conference in Manchester, at the ‘Psychosis in Context’ conference in Nottingham and here today! We are hoping that we inspire others to do engage in similar projects

Feedback from the Asylum conference “A very dynamic, welcoming, passionate group. Keep up the good work” “Superb. Direct action that is both fun and makes a strong political statement about the influence of the pharmaceutical industry” “I thought this kind of action wasn't happening any more” “Fantastic exhibition. You should be at all mental health conferences...including mainstream ones to shake them up. Thanks!”

An evolving group We have become more active as a group and are requiring funding to keep on with the projects that inspire us We have become a constituted group and have elected a committee. Our mission statement: “The aims of the group shall be to gain knowledge, ask questions, find answers, challenge assumptions and spread awareness about psychiatric medication in a supportive, relaxed atmosphere. We provide a safe environment which promotes us to make our own choices, decisions and thinking critically about living with psychiatric medication”

Thanks for listening…. We feel it is important that our group and the projects we do inspire others Please have a look at the posters, art work and report we have brought along Thanks for listening!!

Please feel free to ask us any questions!!