Rigmore Galtung: – The worst thing I hear people say

Rijmore Galtung, 54, became a household name when she became one of Norway’s first female comedians.

Many people know her from the comedy scene, as she has been known for numerous celebrity impersonations. She has also shown a commitment to more serious topics, such as mental health.

Among other things, she has been open about the fact that she has bipolar disorder and how it affects her.

Met with prejudice

In many interviews, Galtung has been candid about depression and acceptance.

The 54-year-old told Dagbladet she never had negative reactions to opening up. But she believes people have their biases.

– You better run into prejudice, me He is the disease. Because there are a lot of people who don’t know enough about it, she explains to Dagbladet.

– There was a period after the first time I was really sick, when I was 32 years old. Then I was at the peak of my career, experiencing a breakup and being hospitalized for the first time. I think many, perhaps more at the time, thought: “Dare we let her stand on the stage?”.

He regretted the breakup joke

The first time she opened up to the public about depression was to a journalist. The journalist turned on the tape recorder, and the comedian frankly shared the diagnosis.

– I wrote a very nice story, “It was so terrible, but now everything is fine.” But then I said, “Don’t decorate it.” Go home and listen to it again. Write it as it is. It is unfair to those who are really sick and do not want to know themselves.

Learn to live with it

Why do you choose to be so open?

– I do this because I believe that we, who hear more than others, also have a duty. I think there’s a lot of nonsense, says Galtung.

Have you ever regretted something you shared?

Galtung burst into a short, resounding laugh.

– I regretted it a bit when things broke out between Ludwig’s father and I (Sønnen, magazines .anm.), it was before I got really sick.

Explain:

– He moved and I was going to make fun of leaving me. sank like a stone.

– They (friends in the audience, dailies) came up to me and said: “Rigmore, it’s too early.” We feel so sorry for you.” People weren’t supposed to feel sorry for me.

She laughs again.

– I can just sit and cry. You have to have some distance, you have to be able to come out and get a little bird’s-eye view, and then you can start talking about it and making it humorous.

Norway’s humor lies at its feet. Then Rigmor Galtung was hospitalized due to depression

Worst question

– Do you always have a sense of humor? When you get depressed for example…

– Then it’s completely gone. I’m not joking 24/7. There are those who think that when you’re a comedian, you’re funny all the time. You see humor everywhere.

– How will it be then?

– I stop sleeping and eating, I start thinking about disasters, I don’t believe in myself or anything, everything is black, I feel a lot of fear, I can have delusions and get paranoid. You notice when I’m bad, so to speak.

When Galtung becomes depressed, his thoughts wander in a more dark and philosophical direction. However, she is rarely sick.

– “Are you in a good period?”. This is the worst thing I hear people say. As a rule, I’m fine. If someone with diabetes is admitted to the hospital, “Are you on a good period?”. You don’t say that about the whole person. So I can allow myself to be a little provoked by that, you admit.

It is important to stress the fact that someone who is 54 years old is not, but has a diagnosis.

You can really get sick from pneumonia, but you don’t have pneumonia. As far as I am my depression. But my depressive symptoms are very severe. But I hold back, so I don’t think so. I’m in the hospital or keep to myself some more. She honestly says I protect myself a lot.

– It may be necessary

Galtung explains that bipolar disorder is just a part of her, not who she is.

– It’s something I have and can happen sometimes, like other people who have a seizure or have diabetes. But because it’s on the psyche, in the head, it’s so easy to see the diagnosis, or to think, “Oh my God, it’s totally normal.” Yes, I am not sick all the time. I get sick very rarely.

She specifically highlights humor as an important tool when life can get dark.

– My former psychiatrist told me: “Humor is a stronger defense than repression.” So humor is very important when thinking about what is difficult. It says something about how important humor is in our lives. It can be very necessary at times.

– Look at surgeons or people who take people’s fate in their hands every day, their sense of humor is the worst. But they must get it, or they won’t survive.