DCI News Network Host Dan Potter, took some time to catch up with a former Field Pass podcast interviewee, Dr. Jacob Levy, who was one of the featured speakers at the recent Activity-Wide Health, Wellness & Safety Summit.
A former marching member with The Cavaliers, Dr. Levy is an Associate Professor and Program Director of Counseling Psychology at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. After advising drum corps organizations and hundreds of marching members for more than a decade, Dr. Levy encourages current drum corps participants to prepare both physically and mentally for the drum corps season.
While performers love being on tour, the physical rigors of the daily schedule and the pace of the tour can exacerbate underlying emotional and mental health issues. Being away from a familiar environment and not having sufficient time to unwind can lead to depression, increase anxiety or serve to amplify other personal challenges.
Dr. Levy’s insightful presentations to directors, staff and drum majors focused on how corps members at all levels can watch for signs of potential problems while on the road, effectively manage their responses and how they can help others by showing sincere concern for each other’s well-being.