Next to normal
May 2, 2023 |
“Want to see a musical with me on campus this weekend? It’s called ‘Next to Normal,’ and it portrays a family coping with mental illness and crisis.”“Ugh. That sounds far too much like real life.”
I wonder whether mine was the only household where this conversation played out last week.
Directed by Stephen Skiles, the great cast of Xavier Theatre’s production of the Tony- and Pulitzer-winning musical delivered an impressive – by which I mean gut-punching – performance.
Bipolar disorder. Depression. Mania. Anxiety. Self-medication. Suicide. Treatments proffering uncertain benefits at unacceptable costs.
Yeah. I recognize all those. Add a spectrum or two and the odd borderline personality, and it describes my own family and close friends pretty well. Maybe yours too.
It also describes our students. Mental illness certainly isn’t new, but its prevalence on campus is more visible than ever.
How can we deal with that? Here’s where cura personalis gets particularly challenging. It’s true: few of us are trained to deal with mental illness.
We do have local experts, though, and resources. Check out Xavier's Counseling Services or Psychological Services for starters. Watch too for upcoming training sponsored by the Dean of Students' office.
Concerned now about a student’s mental health? Submit a Concern Report.
Last weekend’s production reminded me: that no one said being in solidarity for and with others would be easy. And that “next to normal” sometimes seems like an ambitious goal.
My teenage daughter also got an unlooked-for gift from the Xavier actors: new insight into a grandfather she never met, whose own long struggle ended in suicide before she was born.
For that too, I thank the cast, crew, and sponsors of “Next to Normal.”
