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4 Goes Mad Season - World's Maddest Job Interview


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Next week, starting on Monday at 10pm, Channel 4 launches a bold season challenging mental health stigma and discrimination. Somewhat questionably titled, 4 Goes Mad, the series will take a look at people's perceptions of mental illness, including programme's on OCD and Hoarding.

Wednesday night's (10pm) programme is a unique experiment, called World's Maddest Job Interview it will explore if a panel of volunteers can disprove stereotypes about people who are living with mental health conditions. Some have had or are still managing significant mental health conditions, others have not had any at all, but all are putting their work skills under the microscope in order to challenge the discrimination that sees one in five workers claim they are eased out of their jobs after telling an employer about their mental health issue. The volunteers are trying to impress a panel of business people, who don't know which of the interviewees have been affected by mental health problems. Can the volunteers prove that those with mental health issues are as employable as those without. The eight volunteers in World's Maddest Job Interview also appear on some of Channel 4's most popular prime-time shows this week, Superscrimpers, Come Dine with Me, Countdown and Location, Location, Location.

One of those featured is friend of OCD-UK, Ben Gander who previously spoke at the OCD-UK conference in Bournemouth and wrote the book OCD & Me. This will also be shown on digital station, 4Seven (Sky 140, Freeview 47) on Fri 27th at 10pm, and Tue 31st at 2:10am, Wed 1st Aug 2:10am.

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Guest -Nizz-

I loved it :D I hadn't paid enough attention to know that it was Ben Gander, but when he was explaining his story I instantly reognised him :). My favourite program of the series so far, I feel so happy right now :) cheering them on. I also told my housemate about my problems with OCD during it, and we had a lovely chat. Explains to him why I have been on about the series so much :p and how I know so much already tehe :).

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I was Tweeting a bit about it earlier, and this was one of my comments towards the end when the narrator used the words 'experienced by madness', this is not changing stigma, the language being used is adding to the stigma.

Why could he not have said 'experienced by mental health'. It's a subtle but important difference.

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Guest nettles585

Hello Im not on here that much anymore as I dont suffer with OCD anymore, a few of you know me and I suffered really badly with OCD, Intrusive sexual thoughts that absolutely crippled me!

I watched this amazing programme The worlds maddest job interview this evening, I highly reccomend it to all of you if you can watch it somehow :)

A group of people were taken in for interviews and had to perform tasks in a group and alone and some had mental health problems some not.

The three employers judging the tasks had concerns about employing people with mental health problems apart from 1.

There were also 2 people involved in the NHS to see if they could see if people had suffered with mental illness.

There were 2 people with OCD that had been a major struggle one had to be sedated and he was in hospital for 4 months and his rituals were taking up most of his day and involving his family a lot. He was in crippling pain with it as you can tell on the programme which also highlights that no matter the type of OCD it can still be as crippling as any other type.Which I had trouble believing in the beginning of my recovery.

The employers saw no problem with him and thought he was a good candidate. He told them they were shocked and said they have changed their views.

There was a top 3 chosen. Out of all 3 people everyone suffered with mental illness 1 bulmia, 1 clinical depression and the candidate they thought the best suffered with seriously dehabilitaing OCD.

This candidate didnt go out for 7 months suffered with instrusive thoughts and if one happened as she went through the door she would have to say another good thought into her head to balance it out, then that wasnt enough to satisfy the ocd so she had to say it out loud and she then became house bound.

They were all so shocked and they didnt know that she had it neither did the two people from the nhs team, and they all changed their views and it was really heart warming to watch!

She cried, I then cried and it shows you that no matter how bad it is you can get through it.

Its really good proof from random people who have suffered that it can get better, and if you do watch the programme pass it on.

I was in hospital on lots of medication didnt go out OCD had taken everything I once enjoyed and loved away from me for the best part of my whole life, I felt i was the only person in the world with it and now I'm 99.999999% better, and I cannot stress enough that OCD can be beaten!

Let me know what you think if any of you have watched it, it should be available on the internet soon enough if it isnt already :)

You are all wonderful people and Im sending you all a lot of love as I forgot until today how hard it was for me and how far i've come, and Im reading posts similar to what I typed two years ago! And id never EVER of thought in a million years I could forget about ocd and getting better but I have, and with correct treatment OCD can be beaten!

I hope you are all well!!

A very happy nettles585 (who was once in the same position as a lot of you guys on the forum! )

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Guest sarah1984

I haven't had time to watch yet but I did catch a trailer at the end of 24 hours in A&E. Wasn't at all impressed by the trailer's reference to "8 people, all of whom have been declared mad". Ok, it draws viewers in but I found it unnecessarily sensationalist. No-one else uses the terms 'mad' or 'insane' any more - we refer to people with mental health issues - a much better description because it's not derogatory and reminds others that we are people first and foremost and we aren't solely defined by our mental health problems.

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Guest mummywithocd

Really really really enjoyed this program. The participants were so brave in disclosing their mental illness and their roads to recovery so inspirational.

It however made my skin crawl when the narrator said that all 8 had been "touched by madness" ludicrous and offensive remark....and very typical of Channel 4.

All in all though a very moving and educational show.

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Guest sarah1984

Hi Nettles,

I've recorded the programme and I'm looking forward to watching it later. Did you see Tuesday's episode on OCD? Thank you for returning to the forum to let us know how you're getting on. It's great to hear that you're so much better and it gives hope to all those forum members who're currently struggling. Stay strong & I hope you can really start to enjoy life again.

Sarah

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Guest FobicFairy

This is the tv link so you can watch it on demand 4.

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/ruby-waxs-mad-confessions/4od

Her psychiatrist at the Priory says that mental pain is 1,000 times worse than any physical pain. I can relate to that having a depressive flavour of bi-polar.

This one is about OCD and the specialist NHS treatment centre in London.

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/jon-richardson-a-little-bit-ocd

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I didnt like the term mad being used...thought it was very offensive. I couldnt believe the narrow mindedness of the employers at the begining of the programme, saying that they wouldnt employ someone who had a mental health issue, they were proved wrong for sure werent they..i think that the people were very brave to go on the programme to show that people who suffer from mental health issues can be competent and capable of doing excellent jobs. really enjoyed the programme. Red

Edited by red
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im glad they changed there mind about employing people with mh just proves that we are still employable. ive had my cv round a few agency's over last few years and you get 1 call asking stuff about you and there voice drops when they hear ocd or read it. I think this will help to show employers pre conceived ideas are not always right.

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Guest nettles585

Hi Sarah I agree the term Mad and insane isn't used a lot anymore and it was very unfair to use that term.

And it hit home when I watched it and i thought, I wasn't mad!!

But never the less it was still a really amazing programme!

I will watch the OCD one as phobic fairy has been very kind and given us all the links, thank you! x

What do you think on the OCD one?

And I'm really enjoying my life, I have a job in engineering which is unusual for women, Im learning to drive and I have lovely people around me. Having OCD made me appreciate the little things in life more as I felt I was loosing my life to it as I was really, so now every day every little bug or bird or flower I see is special! So really having OCD made my life a struggle but I appreciate that struggle as I can apply everything I learnt from therapy into everyday situations.

1 thing I will admit, I still criticise myself and I see the negative in things, but all overcomeable, nothing is impossible :D xxx

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Guest nettles585

Mummywithocd I completely agree with how inspirational these people were, the terms used were unfair and can cause a lot of upset to everyone. It should have been changed, but I must be completely honest now , if it hadnt of said the worlds maddest job interview it wouldnt have caught my attention and Im sure it wouldnt of caught a lot of other peoples attention also, this is NO EXCUSE to use the terms used, but it also did have a positive as a lot of people wouldn't have watched this programme otherwise.

It would be nice at the end if they changed the word mad to mental health or something else to make another big point that this word shouldn't be used x

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Guest nettles585

And Red, I completely agree it was almost sickening to see how the employers felt about mental illness!! But saying that a lot of people aren't educated about certain illnesses and a few only understand until they have suffered themselves.

And i think its great how honest the employers were because slating any group of people on television is a great risk, but what an AMAZING outcome! The man who was most against employing people with mental illness came out completely changed after he saw what the people could do.

A lot of us like to see before we believe, and even though it was extremely offensive most of us have judged people before and for views to change on mental health we need to be patient, which is a shame but theres no other way but educating people and being patient :) x

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Guest sarah1984

I still haven't had the chance to watch this one yet but I was under the impression that it was a two-parter. I was expecting the second part to be on at 10pm last night according to the TV guide but it was a repeat of Wednesday's 24 Hours in A&E. Does anyone know when the second part will be shown? Some people were asking the same question on the Channel 4 website.

Thanks,

Sarah

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Guest struggling!

Just watched this and think it was so nice to see that people have overcome their difficulties in such a positive way - inspirational!

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