In response to the ups and downs of being a carer many of us have said ‘one day I’ll write a book or a play about my life’.  Most of us of course will never get round to it; where would we find the time or would anyone else actually be that interested in the situations from my life as a carer that I have found stressful or hilarious?  Many of us will also put on that ‘brave face’, make light of situations that privately are emotionally tough and tell friends and colleagues that everything is fine in order to avoid unwanted conversations or the fear of becoming upset and embarrassed.

So offering carers the opportunity to work with the lovely Sarah and Naomi from the drama company ‘Fall into Place’ for six weeks is proving to be a great way for carers to share stories from their lives and begin to look at creating and performing some short sketches. It is a safe environment to test out telling others what life is really like or to put on a different mask and become someone else for a while. It’s interesting that in the first few weeks some carers are choosing to focus on and learn about themselves as people and individuals, not necessarily their life as a carer.

Involvement in drama provides an opportunity to form new social contacts and there is much evidence that it can increase confidence and improve wellbeing. Judging from the three sessions that have taken place at Carers Leeds so far it is certainly worth getting involved if you want to have a lot of laughs!

If you want to find out more about Fall into Place, visit their website: www.fallintoplace.co.uk

Siân Cartwright, Health Development Manager