Earlier this month, we were delighted to receive a visit from HH Sayyida Basma Al Said at our offices on 34 Sackville Street. Sayyida Basma made time from her packed schedule to drop in and update us on her current projects and future plans.
It was a real highlight for our current intern, Asma Ibrahim, to meet and host a Q&A with Sayyida Basma. Hear some of the highlights from their discussion below:
You came to London for the Global Women Magazine Summit, but I understand you have also had lots of other meetings and events. Can you tell us a bit about what you have been up to on this trip?
Yes, I came here for that, but I also came here for two other reasons. I came here for the Diana Award, as I’m one of the judges, the only Arab judge. Thankfully the timing coincided well as I needed to be here for the Summit and for an event at the House of Lords too. I met Lord Simon Woolley from Cambridge, we were talking about change, and I was very lucky to be in a room with people all around the world discussing this topic.
Could you tell us a bit more about the Summit? How did it go and what did you speak about?
My talk was about the art of acceptance. It was about mental health, women and accepting things. When we should and shouldn’t accept things. Thinking about control also. Do we need to be in control in certain situations? And why is that control important for us if it is. And what emotions come with control. Essentially thinking about the emotions that come with acceptance and control.
Also, emotions regarding acceptance. When you’re confronted by something difficult and you don’t want to accept it, you might get angry and frustrated. I want to look at those feelings. Let’s say you’re in a bad relationship and you can’t accept the other person is leaving you. Then you need to start thinking, is it because you feel everyone in your life is leaving you? Do you feel insecure? Do you feel sad? The moment you work on that, then you can move on.
I’m not talking about situations of abuse, bullying etc and thinking ‘I need to accept that’. Not at all. It’s about understanding how you truly feel, and that can change a lot of things around you. That was the focus of my speech. The need for control – why might we feel that way?
Something else that I’m grappling with is language that suggests women are always victims. This can happen in spaces like a women’s summit. I tried to change the narrative of the story a little bit. We have power, we can do things. I don’t like words like empowerment because I think we are born empowered. We have power. Think of Cleopatra, the Suffragettes etc. We have made huge changes in history, we have started and ended wars.
Last time you spoke with us for the podcast in 2020, you were talking about your mental health clinic in Oman. Could you tell us about it?
Yes, it was the first clinic of its kind. We use new methods, techniques that might not be used here or in the US. It looks like a home; I’ve tried hard to make sure it feels like that. I went through the process – if I had to go to a clinic, how would I want it to look? I visited clinics in different places and combined different elements. I’ve been on this journey for 24 years.
Regarding your time in the UK, what are your thoughts about what we do worse/better or where do you see exchange happening?
I’ve concluded that we’re all the same. It’s not about religion, not about culture, it’s about being human. We go through the same things; we need to learn from each other. When we don’t, we presume things are different. When I sat down today with the Mental Health Foundation, which started in 1949 or so, when we talked, it was clear we had the same limitations. Mental Health is not an easy topic. It needs to be talked about with easy and accessible language. We need to use art, music, cinema etc to speak about it. When we talk to the youth, we need to have these tools with us. With adults, we don’t have patience. We are becoming less patient as a society. People have stopped reading. We are becoming illiterate; in some ways, we are going backwards.
We need to collaborate with others. When things happen, we say ‘it’s not here, it’s there’. I believe things like the pandemic reminded us that we are all in the same boat. If we don’t care about others, understand that it might happen to you. You need to have that kind of emotion for others. That will make you more balanced. We’re teaching people about belonging. Remember where you belong – if you don’t have a sense of belonging then your mental health will not be okay. Belong to a country, vision, foundation, team – if you think you can survive alone then you’re wrong. It’s something we do a lot for youth in Oman. We have a convoy that travels around Oman which focuses on mental health, belonging and our history.
You touched on social media and attention span. I remember seeing you speak about non-specialists that have platforms like social media who talk about mental health. I’ve seen plenty of people talk about mental health online – what is your take on that? Especially for young people who will see that content before they make it to a clinic.
A lot of people talking about mental health on social media don’t know anything about it. They’ve not studied anything. Yet some people will want to listen to an actor/actress or influencer talk about their mental health rather than a psychologist. They see it as dry and boring. But this can be a huge deal. If you’re talking about something very messy, you can impact someone for a long time. Sometimes people are talking about their own personal experiences, what they say might not be applicable for you. Someone might have taken a short course, but that doesn’t mean they’re qualified to look after you. We’ve been studying for years, and we are still studying. It’s a journey and social media can be both an advantage and a disadvantage in this situation. It allows for great reach – I reached out to the Society through social media for example. But it can also be a disadvantage if the wrong people are talking, and that’s not just about mental health.
What’s happening in Oman now? What’s your programme?
I work with people of all age groups but there is a slightly stronger focus on young people. We are thinking of doing some work with schools. We’ve signed agreements already but it’s taking some time to sort things. I want to open a proper women’s centre. I’m working on a written proposal to the Ministry of Youth and Sports to provide mental health support to athletes. They need that support also. I’ve written to the Ministry of Tourism to organise mental health retreats. I’ve sent out a lot of proposals. I forgot to say, we work with the police. We redecorated the room they use when children are being questioned. It used to be a bare room, but we’ve changed that. We work on social development, dealing with cases of abuse etc.
Essentially, I try to tell everyone that mental health is important.
Embed it in lots of different areas?
Exactly. We’re working with a youth centre – we gave them 100 free calls for therapy. We were paid for it, but it was a free service for young people. We’re working with the new museum, Oman Across Ages, to put together an event soon too.
They say the wellness sector is growing and will be huge in the future. It makes a lot of sense to move in this direction.
Yes, it’s something I spent time talking about a lot. Oh, of course, I also work with the Ministry of Health. We’re talking about doing some more mental health hotlines. We do it in our clinic. We did it during Covid-19, but we’ve also done it internationally – for Palestine, for Turkey etc.
What are the barriers to getting things done?
It’s the process. If it’s governmental, it’s the time taken. I’ve decided once I’ve done my bit, that’s it. I’ve handed in my proposal then I’m done. I don’t want to tire myself out, I want to enjoy life too. Years ago, it was so hectic. I was constantly trying to do things but now I’ve reached a point where if something works, it works. Some people say it’s because I don’t work in government, but I don’t want to work in the government. I’m still here, I’m still able to do many things.
Sometimes it’s about timing. Things might align better next year or some other occasion.
Yes. And one thing that is great is Sayyida Jalila. She gave me an award. Now I’ve received awards internationally, but getting something from your country, from Sayyida Jalila – that’s her telling people that mental health is important. I’m so glad that we have someone, a lady especially, who values it. I was very happy about it. His Majesty is also very wise for his emphasis on the youth and investment. Insha’Allah the future ahead will be bright.
To wrap up, what are you most proud of achieving?
One of my greatest achievements is having a name that is associated with mental health – locally and internationally. I want to do more international talks. I practice, but I also have an amazing team and I want them to grow. The clinic is something I’m also very proud of.
On this topic, what do you do to relax?
I love singing and dancing. Currently the place I’m staying at is near Abbey Road, I wanted to see it for myself. I enjoy travelling, though I don’t enjoy flying as much. I love meeting people and connecting with them. Going to the Summit was partially motivated by my wanting to connect with people. And I also just try to live in the moment.
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