Section:GDN 1J PaGe:10 Edition Date:190731 Edition:01 Zone: Sent at 30/7/2019 16:24 cYanmaGentaYellowbl
- The Guardian Wednesday 31 July 2019
10
- The Guardian Wednesday 31 July 2019
10
In Denmark, a pilot scheme to
encourage jobless people with
depression to participate in
the arts is having a profound
infl uence on their lives, writes
Helen Russell
The Upside
I
n a whitewashed studio in northern Denmark,
11 unemployed strangers are embarking on a
hearty rendition of Yellow Submarine. Jonas
Thrysøe is not one of them. At least, not yet. The
36-year-old has agoraphobia , rarely leaves the
house and can’t think of anything worse than a
group singalong. And yet by the second chorus
he is putty in the choirmaster’s hands. “I swore
I’d just stand at the back and listen,” he sa ys. “ But the
mood was infectious .”
Out of work and in his second year of sick leave
because of anxiety and panic attacks, Thrysøe had
become isolated. “I’d avoid situations where I thought
I’d get anxious , until I ended up avoiding all situations.
It was a vicious circle ,” he sa ys.
With a master’s degree in European studies, Thrysøe
had dreamed of a career in Brussels or the Danish
government. “But things got so bad I couldn’t even
leave the house. It was ... a kick in the groin ,” he sa ys.
Then the Kulturvitaminer (culture vitamins )
programme came along, off ering Thrysøe and other
unemployed people in Aalborg with stress, anxiety or
depression the chance to go on a crash culture course.
Partly funded by the Danish health authority, and
administered by the local jobcentre, the municipalities
of Aalborg, Silkeborg , Nyborg and Vordingborg set up
pilot schemes to encourag e cultural participation for
those unemployed or on state sick leave.
Mikael Odder Nielsen , the Aalborg course leader,
sa ys: “We wanted to see if we could make people’s
mental health better, reduce social isolation and help
them get back into the labour market via culture .”
Participants were invited to go on two or three
cultural excursions a week for 10 weeks. This appealed
to Thrysøe. “It was an activity that would get me
out of the house , something that wasn’t a medical
appointment, where I was treated as ‘normal’. Because
I am not my anxiety , I’m me. And the course helped me
feel like ‘me’ again ,” he sa ys.
Evy Mortenson, 49, was working in a kindergarten
in 2013 when work-related stress resulted in
unemployment, followed by periods of ill health and
chronic insomnia for the next six years. “Before I wentdown with stress, I would often go to concerts and
museums,” she sa ys. “But then I stopped. Nothing
made me happy or even made sense any more.”
After several temporary contracts but no
improvement in her health, Mortenson’s caseworker
at the jobcentre enrolled her for Kulturvitaminer. “As
soon as I walked into the welcome meeting, I felt a
sense of relief. It was a shared experience and there
were no expectations , we were just all there together in
a judg ment-free space ,” she sa ys.
This was key, because many participants have not
taken part in cultural activities for years, if ever, sa ys
Nielsen. “If you are depressed, culture is often the fi rst
thing you don’t bother with , you’re too preoccupied
with getting through the day. My role is to get them‘I am not my
anxiety, I am
me. Singing
helped me feel
good again’
I’d like to see the
whole world taking
their culture vitamins ...
I listen to classical
music every day now
A series in which Guardian journalists look for the silver lining
Above:
participants
Jonas Thrysøe
and Evy
Mortensen with,
right, Aalborg
course leader
Mikael Odder
NielsenRight: Aalborg’s
Symphony
Orchestra allows
participants
to watch its
rehearsals
MAIN PHOTOGRAPH:
KRISTIAN FÆSTE/
THE GUARDIAN.
RIGHT: ULLA JENSENРЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
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