Media: Zines
Population: Adolescents/Adults
Condition: Depression symptoms
Our assignment for this week was to create a single page for a collaborative zine on “exhaustion.” I revisited a pile of collage materials which had been languishing for quite some time (true to the theme) and selected items which felt relevant to the current social and emotional climate of the times. But I had a hard time sinking into the theme, as I feared I would get too lost in my own feelings to complete the task at hand. As I was assembling these appropriated images, I felt a significant build up and release of pressure as the image came together. Knowing that the work would be shared with others could have been overwhelming, but I felt liberated by knowing my page would be part of a whole.
Zines can be short and small and portable, but also short-lived in their construction (of regular printer paper) and meanings (which may be fleeting). They can contain myriad art techniques as well as literary content and can be serialized in a way that lets people track progress over time. The nature of a collaborative zine is such that only a small output of individual energy can become part of something much bigger which can touch all who participated. The benefits of youth zines include development of “internal nurturing which helped develop confidence and a sense of community, and external impacts of the zine work that included improved relationships with peers and adults as well as influencing the direction of participants’ ensuing lives” (Mieke, 2006).
Depression complicates the lives of those effected with it. It makes it harder to expend energy and find purpose. Adolescents are already coping with so much and can feel very alone even without depressive symptoms. I posit that zines are a beneficial intervention for adolescents with depression because they offer a bite-size opportunity to express subversive, rebellious, intense feelings in whatever way feels right at the time. They are as adaptable and resilient as our clients can be.
References
Mieke, M. (2006). Zine is believing: The personal growth of five contributors to a youth magazine. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.
