Addressing Mental Health in South Africa Using the Djembe Drum and Storytelling to Open up the Dialogue of Finding, Owning, and Using Your Voice in the Home as a Christian Woman

Abstract

Topics like mental illness, abuse, and chronic physical and emotional stress are not popular in the church, which is one of the biggest tragedies of all (Grcevich, 2018). However, we were recently invited into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Christian domain to run a workshop for their women in addressing the subject of finding, owning, and using their voice as women in the home. The method used to address the above mentioned problem was the use of the djembe drum, together with other musical instruments and storytelling. The purpose of this article is to give a reflective account on the drama processes employed in order to address mental health and promote wellbeing in the context of the church.