IT'S BEEN said that laughter is the best medicine, and one of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde's mental health teams is proving exactly that.

Sandra Johnston, 36, is a cognitive-behavioural therapist with the Steps primary care mental health team in southeast Glasgow, based at Govanhill Workspace, and is also well known on the Scottish stand-up comedy circuit.

ApastwinneroftheWilkinson Sword Cutting Edge of Comedy prize at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, she has performed all over Scotland.

As part of the first Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival, Johnston isjoiningotherleadingstand-ups such as the Reverend Obadiah Steppenwolf III, David Kay and Gary Little, at a special gig at The Loft, AshtonLane,Hillhead,GlasgowonWednesday, October 10.

The Laff Yer Heid Aff event will also see the launch of a new DVD, combining a mix of humour and health advice about stress, anxiety and depression from a consultantclinicalpsychologist,a Toryglen GP and a professor of general practice, with interviews with people discussing their own experiences with mental health problems.

The event will also feature Raymond Mearns and another well-known face from the comedy circuit, Des McLean, whose character Ronny Connolly is a combination of comedian/actors Billy Connolly and Ronnie Corbett.

Johnston said: "The DVD gives advice about stress control, using comedy to help get the message across.

"It's for people who have suffered from stress and they can watch former clientsoftheservicetalkingabout how it affected them and how they dealt with it."

The DVD was produced by Blindside Productions and will be distributed throughout the southeast of Glasgow.

Johnston began her own stand-up career five years ago. "I'd been to the Stand comedy club and I thought I'd really like to do this," she said.

"I spoke to one of the comedians and he recommended classes, and I had to prepare five minutes of material as homework.

"I found it was something I really enjoyed, and I started playing gigs around Scotland, including appearing twice at the Edinburgh Festival."

Johnston's careful not to use material based on her daytime job. Instead, the act is "based mainly on relationships, dieting and slagging off men".

Introducing humour into her job has been beneficial to her patients. "It's a complete myth that coming to therapy is all doom and gloom," she said.

"It's more about a person making a change in their life, and I find using humourincognitive-behavioural therapy gets the point across a little bit quicker. In fact, I encourage patients to use humour."

Jim White, the Steps team leader and a consultant clinical psychologist, said: "At any one time, one person in five has a problem with our mental health, usually a mix of anxiety and depression.

"The DVD aims to show how common these problems are, how they affect us, and, more importantly, what you can do to get back on top."

For further information about the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Steps service and stress control classes, log on to the website www.glasgowsteps.com.