National Foundation for Giving Voice

Giving Voice - participants' experiences

ARTS AND MENTAL HEALTH COURSES  

"It's about making myself mentally fit - just like jogging is for keeping physically fit."

"It led me to thinking better mentally . I learnt things that I could use afterwards . it's been exactly what I needed. It's given me a lot more confidence. I've halved my dosage of pills [major tranquillisers]. My doctor is very pleased I'd taken the initiative to cut down myself."

"It's affected the way I behave towards my children. I found it easier not to get so irate with them. Previously I'd tried a 'relaxation' tape, which I ended up finding more stressful ."

" GV is such a fantastic resource for me" (person with bi-polar disorder)

Kirklees Arts in Mental Health Course

"I feel I've been given a goldmine!"

"I never thought I could feel like this after just two hours!"

"I've learnt skills here that I've never learnt anywhere else that I can use in my life..."

"The feelings came in waves, and threatened to overwhelm me.  Then, through the singing, I gradually realised I could swim with them..."

"I've got a smile on my face" "I've got a smile in my heart"

"I was frightened so I stopped singing.  Then I could feel the song. Feeling the song dissipated the whole of the fear.  Then I could just start singing again and I could feel the joy of the song..."

" I came away from the last session feeling uplifted and inspired. Things are much better and I'm feeling great.  Thank you!"

"Thank you so much for the session last week.  I came away feeling wonderfully refreshed and much less despondent and have spent the days following in serious reflection and inner growth"

SURVIVORS OF ABUSE 

"My feelings of self criticism have reduced [following the course]. I experienced deep healing ... "

"a feeling of safety that I have not experienced before ."

"I was able to experience myself emotionally more freely and more honestly - somehow . it enabled me to allow myself to release some sort of judgmental restrictions that too often get in my way . today I found myself allowing tears to flow without any self-judgment - Hallelujah!"

"I gained Confidence and Liberation!" "Magical!"

"I feel I have moved on; become more alive ..."

"[My] self-respect is growing daily."

"A lot of negative feelings have been transformed ."

"I overcame some of my resistances ...

I feel more able to cope with all my difficulties (which remain the same)".

"Now I try to find other ways of relieving stress other than drinking or smoking"

"I got SUCH a lot from the course. Inwardly, spiritually, I felt so much better. I got a lot of strength - to carry on. I'm now more aware. And I feel I have more power over my life now"

" GV is a powerful medicine for depression. I think it's a bit like yoga - it brings me peace, and allows Riding through negative feelings ... I feel I have learnt to let go of fearful habits and have replaced them with habits that help me move forward ... me to pay attention to myself. It also feels like something which is mine by right, and has been denied me - unlike yoga, I was surprised at how 'natural' and easy it could feel...

"Through GV , I've found a way through that I never thought possible"

GV AT CONFERENCES

"It was worth coming all this way just to experience this song!" (participant from Seychelles attending short GV session at the International Symposium for Culture, Arts and Health, Manchester 1999 )

'The best event of the whole conference' and 'The best event I've EVER been to!' (participants at a 60-minute GV session held at the 5 th International Conference on Spirituality and Health, 2003)

"The best thing at the conference" and "The only good thing at the conference!" (participants in 20-minute session at NIMHE (National Institute for Mental Health England ) Conference, 2003

"I felt better about myself, more open, and [now aware] I'm on a journey of epic but joyful proportions. Thank you" (40" session, NIMHE (National Institute for Mental Health England ) Conference, 2004)

"I feel I've just been on a week's holiday!" (participant in the inaugural one-day GV conference, 2004)

GV and PHYSICAL HEALTH PROBLEMS

" GV really helps!" (person with severe life-threatening illness after course completion)

"I am [finding] breathing [easier - a life-long problem]" (abuse survivor after course completion)

"I'm so grateful . it's calmed me and eased the spasms" (person with severe MS)

"I enjoyed the [day] and have been able to swim, pain-free, three times this week!! This is incredible, as I have been unable to swim for months because of my back pain. Thank you!

"I noticed my balance has improved" (person with MS)

"The pain [has] eased ... This is the first time I've had an experience like this. Gardening, I've been surprised how less bad my back's been. And I'm standing taller because I'm less hunched up with pain, and it's since my experience with this song! it means I keep hitting my head on the kitchen cupboards - the first time ever (I've had them 15 years!)" (person with severe, long-standing Fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis)

"I've given up smoking!" (several people, including someone who smoked 40+ per day and is still 'smoke-free' after three years)    

PROFESSIONALS and GV 

"I have found that those in most need have found amazing peace and acceptance through listening and absorbing the tape. Thank you". (Nurse therapist 1999)

I've witnessed being with a true leader for the first time in my (long) life." (GP)

"I find it impossible to describe just how much you've helped me and I learned a lot just being in the group and experiencing her way of leading it" (Psychotherapist)

"Words fail me. I'm so delighted with what I've discovered I can do ..." (Teacher )

Giving Voice is something that can be integrated along with medical knowledge. It's not whacky, off-beat or feel-good nonsense: it's integral to a holistic approach. It's a response to illness and is responsive to it. It's holistic in itself but perhaps more importantly, being truly holistic, it can be integrated into other areas and disciplines - whether medical, spiritual or artistic. It can meet us where we are, and take us to a new vision." (Nurse/Counsellor)

"Wow!" (Music Therapist)

"A Wonderful day of voice and music, breath of love and joy. [To Jill] You are a great teacher with a wonderful voice and even greater spirit. Thank you!" ( NSPCC Therapist)

"Astonishing!" - GP

"Jill's singing brought a calm stillness to our school act of worship. The silences in between the songs were beautiful - a perfect beginning to a dull January morning" (Head Teacher)

"The [one-hour session] allowed me to access an Inner harmony and to give and receive support . This experience developed a sense of ease, trust, intimacy and authenticity with others which I am still experiencing over a week later" (Therapist) 

"I've been using what I learnt in the session. I'm amazed how it helps me..."

"I felt as if I'd been opened inside and given a generous oiling all over. Very calm and relaxed when I left. Thank you." Head Teacher, Manchester Day 1996

"Thank you for challenging some of my defences and walls!! Looking forward to singing with more inner truth and light" Singer, Lewisham day, 2000

"The most peaceful I've ever felt" One-hour workshop

GV IN THE WORKPLACE

Below are the 'before and after' comments of 10 people following a 60-minute Giving Voice 'taster' session for library/IT service staff at a large institution in Sheffield: -

RESIDENTIALS

Residentials offer the most profound and life-changing opportunities currently offered through GV , perhaps other than the 'advanced' courses. They are nurturing, exhilarating, moving and thought-provoking. Here are some illuminating comments (though it's important to remember that many people find it impossible to put into words what they've gained, and most of those that do feel that the words they've found are inadequate!)

"A Breath of Fresh Air"

"REALLY LIVED UP TO THE BLURB!!"

"I still feel it changed my life - and that's 5 years ago! I've never done any Giving Voice since, but I still talk about the residential - it remains so fresh"

 "[I realised something about GV 's] huge scope - how it can benefit infinite people/situations simultaneously"

 "I discovered what it is like to be accepted as an equal in a group ."

"[I've discovered] a huge amount . (e.g.) strength, staying power, ability to transform myself .and to be gentle towards myself and others".

  "When I couldn't sleep, I lay awake for a while and forgot [what I'd learnt]. Then I remembered, and feel asleep within minutes!"

"I experienced nurturing others through my own singing, and this was an extension of the last residential when I realised how I could support others without taking their pain inside myself"

  "[I experienced] a greater acceptance that I can allow good feelings to pass because they will return and so I don't have to try to cling onto the good things . [and] I think [the residential] has made me realise with more clarity that (as with all tools) GV needs to be used regularly to gain skill with it"