Reflections on the 2024 PAMA International Symposium in London

In July I attended the first International Symposium of the Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA) in London, England. It was my first in-person PAMA event, even though I had been attending online workshops, panels, and networking sessions for the last four months since becoming a member. The first morning, I walked the couple blocks from my hotel to University College London (UCL) excited about all I was going to learn, but nervous about the unknowns a major conference like this entails. As I walked through the double set of front doors, I quickly recognized a colleague from Sweden, Joanna, whom I had only known over Zoom and email until that day, who recognized me right away and greeted me with a warm hello and hug. That moment set the tone for what I would experience over the next few days.

Over the coming days, I attended impactful keynotes, engaging workshops, and informative research presentations. Topics included the impact of artist-centered psychotherapy, trauma-informed care for performing artists, building resilience through vulnerability, managing performance anxiety, educating people in places of power and influence on the mental and physical challenges and issues artists face, recovery from injury, overuse, excessive and exhaustive scheduling, and more (I took lots of notes). There were sessions geared toward musicians, performing arts educators, dancers, circus artists, arts administrators, actors, physiotherapists, psychotherapists, and young professionals across disciplines.

One significant part of this experience was hearing from dozens of performing arts professionals, medical practitioners, researchers, and performers things I had been thinking about since grad school, talking about with other performers and people I was networking with, and oftentimes getting a blank stare or a compulsory statement (before changing the subject) that would leave me wondering “is it just me? Am I the only one thinking about this or seeing issues within the system that need changing?". But now I was in a place where I was reassured that I was not the only one thinking when it comes to mental health and overall wellness “Why do athletes have support and artists don’t?”. Others, people with years more experience and knowledge, were saying it while many of us listening nodded our heads in agreement. These are just a few quotes I wrote down of statements that impacted me, made me nod, or fueled my thinking and curiosity:

· “The world is our global stage”

· “Failure is not a problem”

· “Vulnerability is important”

· “Feed the butterflies so they can help you rather than hurt you”

· “Performance should be an anxiety-free and pleasurable experience”

· And one more time for the people who didn’t read/hear/acknowledge it the last time: “Why do athletes have support when it comes to mental health and wellness and artists don’t?”

An exciting part of this conference was our field trips to local performing arts venues for a behind-the-scenes look. I chose to attend the Performance Lab at the Royal College of Music which was in a word: brilliant.

I came away from this symposium with a list of research studies to check out and study further; a better understanding of the work medical professionals are doing to support performing artists around the world; new connections; and a renewed passion for advocating and supporting performing artists as a mental performance consultant.