Finding the Link Between Comedy and Mental Health

I have been doing Improvisational Theatre classes of late, trying to rediscover that spark I feel I once had and lost somewhere along the way. I have memories of chaotic laughs around theatrical lunacy, word play, and physical pratfalls. Something which seems to come with effort these days.

Then, Tuesday just gone, we had a class themed around inspiration and after some reflection, I settled on Dale Jones, Robin Williams and the Goon Show. Their comedy was organic, surreal, and unpredictable. It would catch you off-guard with an incredible notion, or energy.

What they all had in common was some form of mental health issue that involved depression.

Spike Milligan suffered from Manic Depression, which we now call bipolar disorder. There is some speculation that this may have been a result of his experiences in war time.

Petter Sellers had chronic depression, severe insecurities, and a profound loss of personal identity. Famous for his Inspector Clouseau in the original Pink Panther movies between 1963 and 1982, he often claimed that he had no real personality beyond his characters.

Robin Williams was diagnosed with severe Lewy Body Dementia on top of a history of anxiety and depression, among other conditions. His eccentric, manic, and energetic comic style is famous beyond his sad passing.

Dale Jones, while we may not have anything specific on his conditions, if any, he has used his therapy and experiences in his routines. To my mind, he is a red-neck version of Robin Williams.

So, as I made these connections, and we engaged in a few improvisational activities, I was reminded of the very reason I wanted to do Improv theatre in the first place, years before I got a courage, and financial backing to do a course or two. To relight that spark in me that was the source of my off-the-cuff humour. Now I think I know what it is I lost.

It has been about 7 to 8 years since I had a nervous breakdown, in a meeting, in front of my previous boss and co-worker. The last 10 years of my time with that agency was a struggle, and that event in particular was a reflective low point of my time there. I went through multiple therapy sessions (twice the usual quota), used up all my personal leave, which was a lot by that point in time, and had to rebuild my work life over a period of 2 years.

Not to say that I lost everything at that point. It was significant shift in my mentality, a culmination of years of stress, anxiety, and struggling with depression. I will say that in this experience, I learnt a new skill; hyper-stoicism.

I shut down and overcompensated my reactions to the point often appearing detached, and let’s face it, I essentially was. Years later, I began to question where had my spark gone.

Now I think I know and have to now work out if it because I have blocked something, or healed too much, or both. It is a stereotypical understanding that many comedians suffer from some form of depression or mental health. There’s a difference between knowing this anecdote vs feeling it for yourself.