If you're old enough to remember and enjoy (as I did)
the 1980 improvisational tv show "Whose Line Is It Anyway?", the name
Tony Slattery has probably been imprinted on your brain forever.
I remember marvelling at the time at the lightening
speed of the stand-up comedians who enthralled us with their creative
genius. Many - such as Sandi Toksvig and Paul Merton - have gone on to become household names in the UK.
What is less well known is that Tony's mental health
declined over the years, and the reason for it.
So serious
hats off to Tony and Mark Hutchinson - his partner
of over 30 years - for allowing the BBC to follow them to film a Horizon documentary about what might be causing Tony's
depression, alcohol dependency and addictions over the years.
There
was lots of discussion about the possibility of him maybe having undiagnosed
Bipolar Disorder, and having been repeatedly sexually abused as a child.
What's unfortunate is that the documentary
didn't explain that it's known that childhood abuse (also known as Adverse
Childhood Experiences - ACES) can have adverse effects on victims as they get
older, including having an effect on their health and wellbeing.
ACES
(and abuse as an adult) also happens to be quite common amongst people with
hoarding issues.
What's
peculiar is that there was no mention in the documentary of any possible
underlying neurodiverse conditions (eg. ADHD or Autism/Aspergers) - especially
when you consider that other creative celebrities have these diagnoses.
For example, British comedians Shappi
Khorsandi and Rory Bremner (who famously made another documentary with the BBC
about getting his ADHD diagnosis as an adult), or the American comedian Jim
Carrey - who also has experienced prolonged periods of depression, which he
describes as "the body's way of having deep rest - from the character
you're trying to play".
Hopefully
there will be a follow-up programme about Tony where they will dig deeper to
find answers, but in the meantime we hope that by talking about the issues it
has unlocked something that can begin to help him on the road to recovery.
Tony,
Mark - thank you for bravely sharing your experiences with us during Mental
Health Awareness Week, we wish you all the best for the future.
#MentalHealthAwarenessWeek #HoardingHelp #HAW #SpeakYourMind
WARNING: The documentary contains references to
childhood abuse which viewers may find upsetting.
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