EDINBURGH 2023: Review: I'M HAVING DISTRESSING THOUGHTS, TheSpace @ Surgeons Hall
A theatrical and hilarious look at the road those in mental health crisis travel in their quest for recovery (dodging inspirational quotes as they go).
Sadia Gordon’s I’m Having Distressing Thoughts is a one woman show that delves into the ridiculous scenarios the chronically mentally ill and traumatised seem to end up in time and time again. Poking fun at the mental health system (and sometimes lack thereof) and how patients with complex trauma and diagnoses are left to spin through it on repeat, Gordon plays multiple characters from her own life story.
Anyone who has travelled a similar road will find this relatable, with a sense of hilarity and déjà vu as the realisation hits that you’ve had that exact conversation before.
The way Gordon flits between characters at speed is both impressive and hilarious, her theatrical (yet not altogether far from reality) portrayal of services from A&E, therapists, and police managing to highlight the awkwardness of these interactions from people who should really know better.
Gordon highlights the expectation to answer the same questions on repeat to quantify distress into neat little packets for clinicians to sort through and the ludicrous juxtaposition of the environments that are supposed to keep those in crisis safe (whilst the few dedicated services remain unavailable or stuck at the end of huge waiting lists). All of it is laid bare in I’m Having Distressing Thoughts in a brutally funny look at her own experiences of mental health crises.
The dark elements of the show fuel the humour rather than slow it down; it’s an energetic performance laced with the real emotion at the material’s core. There are several moments where Gordon’s vulnerability shines through the entertaining veneer so it’s nice to see the show moves from hilarious character comedy to a place of recovery. It’s hard and at times impossible to see but I’m Having Distressing Thoughts shows that sometimes there’s comfort in the clichés and sometimes we just need to be reminded of how far we’ve come.
I’m Having Distressing Thoughts is a spectacularly funny look into the absurdity of the environments those in crisis are expected to navigate to recover, and a message of hope for when the Instagram quotes become downright nauseating.
I’m Having Distressing Thoughts runs Aug 22-26.
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