Recently my son’s high school had a Summit Day – student lead, driven, and organized. Some of the students taught passion classes and others took them. My son had friends that lead classes like Futsal 101 and O-Line for Anyone. He quickly figured out they were not taking attendance so after two classes indoors he spent the rest of the beautiful spring day outside on the football field taking his friends sports classes.
One of the classes he took inside the building before bolting was Improv. I know that I was more excited about it than he was but only because 1. I was a dance/musical/theater geek 2. There is a ton of research about the benefits Improv has on managing anxiety, adversity, and uncertainty.
If you don’t know about Improv here are some links Play Your Way Sane – Psychology Today to articles and websites. Mental Health Benefits of Improv
Robin Williams, one of the greatest improvisational comedians of the 20th Century is said to have suffered with depression. In fact many comedians report anxiety, depression, or major trauma in their life. But what makes these folks turn ‘that frown upside down’? Laughter. Making people laugh, making them feel good, and maybe forgetting their troubles for a little while. I don’t need a lot of research to see a pattern here.
There is a Documentary on Comedy Central called Call Your Mother. I really appreciated how open and honest all the comedians were about their parents, their past, and their struggles. Not just the struggle to make it as a comedian, but to make it at all. (SPOILER – there is a lot of strong language if you are not a fan skip this one) Does struggle make them funny? Or when faced with the choice to say, “Yes and” or “Woo is me”, they choose YES AND!
There is one more reason I made the anxiety to improv leap. Years ago I read a book about managing anxiety and in it the author suggested that when you get the What if’s – play along! Even better, one up ‘um. What if my heart beats out of my chest? Yes and What if it flies across the table and takes out my teachers eye! What if my legs turn to Jello? Yes and What if it’s Cherry, everyone’s favorite, and they are all fighting over it and you don’t even get any!
You get the idea – be as ridiculous as the thought Anxiety is planting in your head. Play along only better. It was the only tool that I had for a while and it was very effective. It got me through some crazy stuff – the funeral of a beloved grandparent after which I got on an airplane by myself! Two of the most terrifying things you could ask me to do. It’s not a cure all – but it can be fun. So try it!! Yes, and……
anxietyoholic 