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Drawing upon mind power
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He specialises in tackling the imaginary and real fears of man. His technique is to make people draw upon the energy within themselves to come out of a crisis. In a talk with C. Maya
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A COUNSELLOR and psychologist, a professional actor, spiritualist, a management trainer... the roles that Lee James assumes in his daily life are many.
But he finds it quite easy to slip from one role into another because, as he says, counselling, theatre and spiritualism are all about the mind and its effect on an individual's behaviour.
"In theatre, I use my spontaneity to elicit reactions from the audience. As a psychologist, I encourage people to look inwards, draw upon the energy within them. Mind is everything and once we learn to manage our mind and thoughts, we will move forward regardless of the changes around us," says Lee James.
Lee James, a specialist in trauma psychology and a researcher in spirituality, has been working with the UN for several years now, in the fields of palliative care, disaster management and emergency preparedness, hostage negotiations, post-trauma counselling and therapeutic theatre. He was in the city recently at a management workshop organised by the Brahmakumaris Iswariya Vidyalaya here.
Brahmakumaris
In 1983, a chance meeting with Brahmakumaris, a spiritual and educational institution, changed his life forever.
"I was a popular and wealthy actor and revelling in the fame that I enjoyed when I joined Brahmakumaris. I found myself changing my approach to life and liking it also. I also discovered how theatre can be a marvellous medium for therapeutic workshops, especially for youth," he says.
He began practising yoga and meditation and also did intensive research on the healing powers of mind on body, stress management and spiritual empowerment. He has been involved with several international projects for the UN and WHO in post-trauma counselling, working with emergency crew and victims after social or natural disasters. His notable missions include post-trauma counselling at Ground Zero in New York in the aftermath of September 11, 2001 tragedy, at quake-ridden Kobe and Iran, rehabilitation of landmine victims in Cambodia, suicide intervention/prevention in Japan and Korea, hostage negotiations at Indonesia in 2003, among many others.
Ground zero
"I was at work at Ground Zero on September 11 afternoon itself; the rescue workers too needed a lot of support to help them take right decisions. I could not afford to be sentimental, I had to be detached and take the role of a problem-solver if I wanted to assist people to get back to life," he says.
But the environment was torturous and by day three, he was drained emotionally and physically. "By the third day, America's reaction had moved from shock to intense anger and all around me there were heated discussions. Those were moments when I had to struggle to renounce my socio-political beliefs and concentrate on getting people to pour out all their anguish and pain. This went on for nine days," James says.
He also did a therapeutic theatre workshop for people. The relatives of the victims put up a play, in which they tried to portray the last thoughts of the victims. At the end of it, everyone in the audience was crying. But for the actors, they had finally put the tragedy behind them.
He feels that every educational institution should invest in giving their students training in life skills and a value education. Youth today should be taught how to overcome their feelings, to cope with changing environment and to move on with the tide.
"They claim that they are under `stress', but stress is a creation in our mind. We are always trying to justify and prove that it exists. Go through a process of self-reflection and you will find that even stress has positive affirmations," says James.
Photo: S. Mahinsha
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Life
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
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