When Kathy Flaherty first saw “Next to Normal” at the Bushnell in Hartford years ago, it hit close to home.
The Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning rock musical, which runs through May 14 at TheaterWorks in Hartford, centers on a mother struggling with worsening bipolar disorder — a story that resounded with Flaherty, who is in recovery from the same illness.
“I think the play does a good job of making some of the experiences of dealing with the label of a bipolar diagnosis very real,” Flaherty said. “It does capture the challenges that are faced by the family members, the challenges that are faced by the person who is labeled with the diagnosis.”
Flaherty was in her first year at Harvard law school when she received her bipolar diagnosis. During her undergraduate years, she had struggled with anxiety and depression, but brushed off her psychiatrist when she suggested that Flaherty might be in the manic stage of bipolar disorder. When she showed up for one appointment in October 1990, she was confronted by her psychiatrist and her father, who had traveled from Connecticut, and was hospitalized for 60 days.
“[My parents] were worried and confused,” Flaherty said. “It was a side of my personality they had not seen. Between the non-stop talking, really fast talking, not staying on track, incredible irritability. It was just not the person they recognized sending off to school in late August.
“When the doctors at McLean [Hospital] placed a diagnosis, it was a huge relief for them because it was something they could work with.”
Flaherty, along with Behavioral Health Network President Pat Rehmer, were guests on a recent edition the HealthCare Matters radio program on WTIC-NewsTalk 1080. Together with hosts Elliot Joseph and Rebecca Stewart, they discussed the show in light of issues such as mental health, discrimination and the arts.
Rehmer emphasized that stories like Flaherty’s and “Next to Normal” can be a source of hope for others with mental illness or substance use disorders.
“I strongly believe in the recovery model, and people who get these diagnoses, with peer support, can and do recover, and that’s critical,” Rehmer said.
In addition to giving hope, these stories have the opportunity to combat the stigma and discrimination that surround behavioral health.
“I am a cancer survivor, and I can tell you that six weeks after surgery, I had a full dinner brought to my house literally every single night. I can bet that Kathy didn’t have that done for her,” Rehmer said. “It gets back to the fact that people are uncomfortable. They don’t know what to do with this. Part of my mission is always to hit on the issue of discrimination and the fact that people with mental health issues or substance abuse issues are often discriminated in a real way.”
Rehmer and Flaherty discussed the issue of stigma and discrimination in mental health along with the cast of “Next To Normal,” at a Talk Back Tuesday following a recent performance of the show:
The final TalkBack Tuesday will be on April 25. It is entitled, “There Will Be Light: Journey to Wellness and Recovery,” and features Harold Schwartz, MD, Institute of Living Psychiatrist-in-Chief and Hartford HealthCare Vice President, and Karen Kangas, Director of Recovery and Family Affairs, Hartford HealthCare Behavioral Health Network.
Tickets for “Next to Normal,” which runs at Theaterworks/Hartford through May 14, are available by calling the TheaterWorks box office at 860.527.7838, Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information on “Next to Normal,” click here.