Friday is the day I usually try and trawl the interweb to try and find resources of interest for teaching or just for interest.
The first item is a short animated film about panic that manages to convey the impact of the experience.
Maybe not as much fun but still of value is a short information film by NHS Westminster talking about the services they provide for people with learning disabilities, in particular around physical and sexual health.
InControl, a national organisation, have produced a video on how people with learning disabilities can take control of their lives.
A couple of items on Radio 4 have been of interest this week. The first, entitled “Kill Factor” examines how soldiers are taught to kill and the psychological effects of becoming a killer. “When soldiers kills someone at close quarters, how does it affect them? This most challenging and traumatic part of a soldier’s job is often wholly overlooked.” Click here to listen (opens a new window). The other looks at the relationship between conditions during early development and the impact on the health of future generations. “The First 1000 Days: A Legacy for Life” can be streamed (opens a new window) or downloaded (right-click and “Save as”) as a podcast
Finally, although not specifically related to psychiatry “NoBody’s Perfect” is a documentary which shows Niko von Glasows search for eleven people who, like him, were born disabled due to the side effects of the drug thalidomide, and who are prepared to be photographed for a calendar. And photographed naked, allowing those people who would otherwise glance furtively at ‘thalidomiders’ to take a good, long look. In the process Niko discovers a range of fascinating characters who have learned to lead an impressively ‘normal’ life, which incorporates their disability.
With black humour, and paying no heed to political correctness, “NoBody’s Perfect” gives a portrait of twelve extraordinary personalities who react with curiosity, enthusiasm or horror (like Niko himself) to the project.