The course is really dynamic with multimedia, using video discussions, short extracts, articles and more interactive activity based work. On each page there is the opportunity to post within a forum, expressing and discussing your ideas with others. Each week, there is different material to work with, often poetry but also sometimes thinking about plays and novels. These texts are always explored through discussion alongside the theme for that week. There is also an exploration of the theme every week, consulting a GP on the Physiology of Stress for example.
Starting with stress we looked at how reading poetry might help someone to deal with stress, through its content as well as the rhythm of the poem. We focused on nature poetry as this is often seen as a relaxing escape from the stresses of busy city lives. When looking at the form and rhythm of poetry and how this can be calming or relaxing we heard from Stephen Fry, which was a very fun and interesting perspective to add to the course. There was also plenty to think about in terms of how we individually respond to stress, and we also explored poetry which may be helpful to us personally using the Poetry Foundation website or app and sharing our choices within the forum. I really enjoyed these exercises as it made me think about my own mental health, the way I deal with things and also my reading habits. This is also great because these activities feed back into the University research helping them to see how useful literature is when dealing with these issues.
The next week was Heartbreak and at first I was a little sceptical that this should be included because I didn't consider it as a condition. It was a little difficult as many of the discussions revolved around depression after heartbreak which will be a separate topic, but it became clear that heartbreak on its own could actually be a form of grief. I was very surprised to hear there is actually a medical condition called Takotsubo cardiomyopathy where heart failure can be caused by extreme emotion. It was really interesting to look at the different ways people might deal with this and the different perceptions people might have, using Austen's Sense and Sensibility as material for discussion.
The last week has been about bereavement and this is on a similar tone in terms of looking at how people deal with grief, and whether it is helpful to read something that might reflect the emotions people feel. This was really personal as many of the people commenting in the forums had lost someone close to them but it was also interesting to see the different ways people deal with it. Although I don't read a lot of poetry another Poetry Foundation exercise helped me to find some beautiful extracts which I think will definitely help me with my own experience.
The course has been great so far, it is interactive, interesting and it really makes you think but it's also not too demanding - you can do it at your own pace and take part as much or as little as you want. I am really excited for the next few weeks where we will be looking at more specific conditions such as Trauma and PTSD and Depression and Bipolar and I will do another update when I come to the end of the course!
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