Twisted Frequency Harm Reduction Series – Article 2: Mental Harm Reduction
It's not just your physical body you need to think about taking care of in a festival environment - your mind needs some TLC as well! This concluding article contains some tips about looking after your mental health and that of those around you, and information about the awesome resources that Twisted Frequency offers to best look after everyone at our events.
Mental/Emotional Harm Reduction
Not only is it important to look after your physical body for ultimate Twisted Frequency good-times nirvana, but it’s also super important to be mindful and caring of your mental state to get the most out of your time at our event.
Twisted Frequency is an alcohol-free event, as we really believe that you don’t need anything other than yourself and the amazing community environment we enable to have an absolutely brilliant experience. After all, the best way for you to get the most out of your mind and body is to treat both with the respect they deserve!
However we do also understand that it is an individual’s choice of how they best choose to treat their body and mind, and that there will always be those looking to push the limits of individual and social consciousness and to seek elevation of what is already an awesome experience. It is therefore our mantra to provide safety, understanding and top-level care for every single one of our festival attendees without judgement or discrimination :-)
We will always offer our help to any individual who is having a tough time mentally or emotionally at our event. We have a safe zone tent provided by the amazing Psy-Care team for anyone who feels overwhelmed and needs a safe and friendly place to hang out – with well-trained, friendly, understanding and experienced volunteers on hand to chat with. Right next door to this space is our Medical tent, where we have a crew of amazing professionals to help with any issues you may face.
We would be incredibly grateful if attendees took a minute when they arrive to wander over and familiarise themselves with the location of the Psy-Care and Medical tents, to be better prepared to help direct anyone who needs these services to the right place :-)
These values of empathy and support reflect Twisted Frequency’s core festival ethos, and we know that our festival attendees will put the same emphasis on looking after one another! Whether it’s a friend whom you’re concerned about, or a previously unknown individual who you’ve just come across, we encourage you to support them in any way you can – and if you don’t feel you can help them yourself, please make sure you let us know so that we can.
If you do see someone who looks like they may need a hand, ask them if they need help! – Twisted Frequency is an amazing community of awesome people, and we need to look out for each other! If you do find a friend or stranger who isn’t okay, we know you’ll want to do everything you can to help them. You can help us to help people in distress by firstly letting us know – that way we can get them checked on by the right people :-)
Please, please don’t be shy about telling our team all information you know that could help us to help them medically – our team is incredibly understanding, non-judgemental, and we’re just here to help. Additionally, if you think you feel yourself becoming unwell, please do tell a friend what you’ve been up to, so that they can share that information with us and we can in turn provide you with the best level of care.
If you or someone you’re with is feeling overwhelmed mentally, don’t worry. We have Psy-Care on site exactly for this reason – festivals can at times be a pretty overwhelming experience! The Psy-Care team are professionals who are calm, compassionate, and alert, and who treat anyone who comes their way with care, dignity and discretion.
So – please make use of all of these amazing services we’re lucky enough to be able to offer you. We’re here to help you with compassion, and we have a completely non-judgmental approach to minimizing risk. Rather, we feel we have a platform valuable for education, and that it’s our obligation to offer important advice about how environmental factors of a festival such as high temperatures, sleep deprivation, not enough food, and dehydration can impact attendees’ normal partying habits in ways they may not realise.
We really care about our amazing community, and we want you to have all the best possible information and services available to you; so that you can make the most informed decisions about partying mindfully and responsibly to ensure we all have an incredible time :-)
References (Educate yourself!)
http://psychsitter.com/download-manual/
https://dancesafe.org/risk-assessment/
http://www.substance.org.uk/publications/festival-highs-substance-misuse-information-for-festival-goers
https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/7xxwvd/how-do-we-stop-drug-deaths-at-festivals
https://journal.burningman.org/2015/08/black-rock-city/survive-and-thrive/harm-reduction-take-a-smart-approach-to-drugs-and-alcohol/
https://www.utne.com/mind-and-body/harm-reduction-zm0z14uzlin