A Divine Dance of Madness:
by M
Colme (Author)
Synopsis
by Mairi Colme This story about my struggle with the Psychiatric System is shot
through by my own spirituality. For spirituality is our "saying Yes to God
whenever we experience Him"; and I experienced God in my madness. When I
was young, "joyous and eager, capable of ecstasy," I had a revelation
about the love of God, which I subsequently called the"Book of the
Beloved." And I have come to understand the meaning of this book, contemplating
on it every day during my years of intense mental suffering, when the emotions
of rage and pain dragged through me like a sea. Now, years later, I can say I
wouldn't want to be without that suffering as it gave me a unique insight into
that love. And I offer the book in the hope that others can espy the Love too,
without having to go through the madness as I did.It is the Love that moves the
stars (which I called "the Star-Love," though you can call Him God or
whatever you choose); the Light-Energy which was in the beginning, "in
every blade of grass, flowing in every stream, and moving the stars,
ubiquitous," "the cornucopia of creativity from whom the worlds
tumbled forth." And this universal Love, according to my Book, becomes the
Lover of the human soul, ie. the Beloved, when she says Yes to him. She is a
"maiden" like Our Lady, but precisely because of her innocence and
purity she believes what is "beyond the credibility of men's bound
minds," and has an inkling of what God can do. So in the crucial Time-span
which was come upon her she did not doubt, but rose beyond herself and
transcended herself. She gathered her soul in cupped hands as she vowed;
"May everything happen to me as Love wants." According to my book
this is the mighty "Fiat" which brings about the birth of the divine
into the human soul, and in Christian terms, the redeeming birth of the
Christ-child into the world of time."Her words became a pulsation, passing
through all the worlds; radiant light-energy pulsed and streamed through her,
gathered, centered, streaming in the one direction, with will." However,
as the first page of the Book of the Beloved makes clear, the implications of
this, for the Beloved, is that she must share, partake in God's own suffering;
just as Our Lady had to share Christ's suffering under His cross. Hence Page
One opens with the words; "the Beloved has received the Star-Love; she has
known the Star-Love's Agony." It is like the imprinting of nails! The Book
keeps returning to the theme of being lost in a cold dark Void, which I
identify personally with the Void of madness; (Madness is the void which is
left when you annihilate the self). She keeps clamouring into the Void;
"Isn't there somewhere a great enough Love to overcome this cold dark Void
of Agony? I cannot reconcile the Star-Love with this Agony; Love is
Absent." It is an absence of Love; she feels her soul is not loved and God
is nowhere!
A Season in Hell
by Percy Knauth (Author)
Percy Knauth, writes about his own depression in this memoir, said that the only way to clear the fog and emerge from a conscious coma is to act. "Do something anything," wrote Knauth. "It really doesn't matter what, as long as it is a positive action." For Knauth, this type of behavior involved three simple activities that he performed every day:
- He got out of bed
- He made some coffee
- Then he made the bed
A Survivor's Guide to Working in Mental Health Services
by Susan Rooke-Matthews (Author), Vivien Lindow (Author)
Synopsis
This booklet outlines the difficulties and
challenges facing user-workers, details recent changes in practice and
plicy, gives good practice recommendations for employers and lists
professional schemes and sources of support for user-workers.
Am I Still Laughing:
by Dolly
Norah Sen (Author)
Synopsis
Author, poet and activist Dolly Sen lives in Streatham, South London. Born in
1970, she had her first psychotic experience aged 14 which lead her to leave
school. After year of mental illness, probably bought on by an abusive
childhood, Dolly decided she should write about her experiences. She was
inspired to write her own story after reading Jason Pegler's autobiography 'A
Can of Madness'. She has since written five books, become a successful
performance poet who has toured throughout Europe and has set up two charities.
Book Extract Writing has always helped me. I found it when I was 22 and it has
kept me alive since then. During my worst depressions, writing gave me a reason
to wake up in the morning. Would I still have carried on writing if I never was
published? Of course I would. One of my favourite writers, Charles Bukowski,
said of writing: 'It is the last expectation, the last explanation, that's what
writing is'. A plain piece of paper won't judge you, criticize you. And above
all it won't lie to you. If you can't say what needs to be said face to face,
write it down. People with mental health problems who are able should think
about either writing their story or at least telling it. Their lives shouldn't
be what they think are dirty secrets they have to hide. One woman at one of my
book signings shook her head sadly and said, "I can't, it's too painful.
And besides, nobody wants to hear it." That's what I thought once. I now
know that to be untrue. People, men and women, young and old, rich and poor,
have taken me aside after reading my book and say, sometimes with tears in
their eyes, "This happened to me too. but please don't tell anyone that it
did." This is painfully heart-rending. Because I think if you don't share
it positively, it'll manifest somewhere else, in your body, in your
relationship to others and the world. For example, it can be seen in some
people's eyes; they try to smile, but their eyes don't believe it. Their eyes
are telling their story - something about their life always will. So you might
as well have some control over it.
Beyond Bedlam:
Contemporary Women Psychiatric Survivors Speak Out
by Jeanine
Grobe (Editor)
From the
Publisher
Personal tales of abusive psychiatric incarceration
The torture of people who have been labeled "mentally ill" is not a
thing of the past. It is happening now. *Beyond Bedlam* is upclose and personal
writing by women who have survived psychiatric abuse on psychiatric wards and
in mental hospitals in the US, Canada, England, and Mexico.
According to editor
Jeanine Grobe, "Society blindly regards psychiatry as safe medicine, a
position that is very comfortable since people who reject it are likely to wind
up with psychiatric labels themselves." Challenging the safety of that
position, Beyond Bedlam amplifies the voices of women who've been locked up on
psychiatric wards, and the terrifying truths they have to reveal.
In *Beyond Bedlam*, more
than two dozen contemporary women write about their experiences as inmates at
psychiatric institutions: how they were mistreated, how they escaped, how they
live now, and what can be done to change the system that abused them. They
survived the abuse, and here in their own words—in letters, personal
narratives, and diary excerpts—they describe how they did it. Their voices rise
above the clamor of psychiatric jargon, treatment, and therapy.
Includes bibliography,
index, and a list of organizations and other resources for psychiatric
survivors.
"Could be the book
that awakens the world to the ugly reality of loony bins. . . . It’s a book
we’d like to publish in our pages, month after month, telling not just of
shipwrecks on the ragged shoals of psychiatry but of reconstructing meaningful
lives in the aftermath." —Mouth
"An immensely powerful
contribution to the contemporary psychiatric literature." —Dendron
"Twenty-five voices
loud with anger. . . . They belong to artists, writers, musicians, academics,
blacks, whites, Native Americans, Hispancis, Christians, Jews, the poor, the
middle-class, lesbians, heterosexuals, survivors of incet. They belong to women
who have lived through being committed to psychiatric institutions, often
against their will, medicated, put in seclusion, put in physical restraints! ,
given electroshock treatments, even raped by staff in the institutions. . . .
The essays, memoirs, and poems collected here can bring home the pain of being
mentally ill." —The Women’s Review of Books
"It is very
encouraging to read about the powerful spirit of women who have been trampled
by the system, yet survive to write so eloquently and pass on wisdom to help
others." —Counterpoint
Beyond Stigma:
Experiences of Mental Health Survivors
by Barry Tebb (Editor)
Synopsis
Features mental health survivors' stories and poems.
Cry of the Invisible:
Writings from the Homeless and Survivors of Psychiatric Hospitals
by Michael
A. Susko (Editor)
Michael Susko has edited a powerful and poignant book,
written by people who are homeless or who have been homeless, or who have been
in mental hospitals. In spite of the fact that some of the writers have died
and that the others have faced terrible problems, there is hope in this book.
There is vitality in the personal accounts of experience, and in the poetry and
drawings. The book is particularly useful for helping people understand more
about what it feels like to be a homeless person, or a person in a mental
hospital. This understanding will help improve the chances of strong
legislation and government funding for help for homeless people. It also will
improve the mental health professional's ability to be empathic with his or her
patients.
Depression and How to Survive It
by Spike Milligan (Author), Anthony W. Clare (Author)
Synopsis
Spike Milligan
reveals the dark side of his life in this book which is co-written with
his psychiatrist Anthony Clare. He recalls the traumas of his
childhood, his highly-strung mother, his largely absent father, the
cruelties of a colonial upbringing and of sadism towards animals, the
break-up of his first marriage, the mortar bomb which blew him up in
Italy and the overwork which gave him a mental breakdown during the
"Goon Show". This book charts the development of this depression
and his strategies for dealing with it were improvised, as both when he
would get drunk with Peter Sellers, and clinically in his discussions
with Clare. Spike
Milligan's previous books include "Silly Verse for Kids" and "Where
have all the Bullets Gone?". Anthony Clare is the author of "Psychiatry
and General Practice" and presents the BBC Radio series, "In the
Psychiatrist's Chair".
Desert Flower:
by Waris Dirie (Author)
Synopsis
Waris Dirie, whose name means "desert flower", was
born in Somalia of nomadic parents. She underwent extreme female
circumcision at the age of five, and when she was 13 her father sold
her into marriage with a 60-year-old for five camels, at which time she
ran away. She was discovered by a fashion photographer in the United
States whilst working as a janitor at McDonald's, and became a model
who has been used to promote Revlon skin-care products. She also speaks
on women's rights in Africa and travels the world to give lectures on
behalf of the UN. This is her autobiography.
About the Author
Waris Dirie is an internationally renowned
model and a face of Revlon skincare products. She was appointed by the
United Nations in 1997 as a special ambassador for women's rights to
eliminate the practice of female genital mutilation. She lives in New
York. Virago will publish her new book in 2001.
Diamonds Behind My Eyes
by Nicola Pagett (Author)
Synopsis
Nicola Pagett was acting in a Joe Orton play when
manic depression took over and she had a breakdown. In this book she
spares herself nothing in her determination to explain, openly and in a
manner that mirrors her condition, what happened to her and how she was
cured.
Losing a Child
by Linda Hurcombe (Author)
Synopsis
This book gives an understanding of how grieving
for a child can affect every member of the family, and the
relationships between the surviving members. It goes on to explain the
different types of support available, and how they can be accessed. A
special chapter deals with sudden or violent death.
Pin Down:
by Teresa
Cooper (Author)
Book Description
Thrust into care at six months of age because of an alcoholic father and
mentally ill mother, Teresa Cooper's life began in a less than perfect way.
Teresa spent an unsettled childhood in a variety of children's homes before
being sent at thirteen to Kendall House in Gravesend, Kent, which would become
her prison and worst nightmare. Teresa found herself a victim of a terrible
regime; being injected with dangerously high doses of drugs and sexually
abused. This cruel and vicious treatment, accompanied by punishments such as
163 days spent in solitary confinement, meant that it was not long before
Teresa began to harm herself and even attempt to take her life. After three
years of hell, Teresa thought her nightmare was over but another was about to
begin.
About the Author
Teresa Cooper is a survivor. Fighting against a corrupt social care system, she
has taken her case of abuse and drugging to parliament, and is fighting to
prevent many more children from suffering at the hands of unethical doctors and
abusive foster parents.
The extraordinary story of how a young girl fought against the most evil of
abuses to become the survivor she is today...
Teresa Cooper's life began in a less than perfect way. But little did she know
that things would only go from bad to worse. Teresa spent her unsettled
childhood in a variety of children's homes before eventually being sent to
Kendal House in Gravesend, Kent, England which was to become the prison in
which her worst nightmares would come true. Before her first day within these
prison walls had ended, Teresa found herself a victim of the terrible
'pin-down' regime, during which she was injected with dangerously high doses of
drugs and then raped and seriously abused. This cruel and vicious treatment,
accompanied by punishments such as 163 days spent in solitary confinement,
meant that it was not long before Teresa began to harm herself and even
attempted to take her life."
"For too long we have been unheard and the government needs to make
many changes where child abuse is concerned."
Searching for Mercy Street: My Journey Back to My Mother, Anne Sexton
by Linda Gray Sexton (Author)
SynopsisAn unsparing account of the anguish and fierce love between Linda Gray
Sexton and her brilliant, unstable and ultimately self-destructive
mother, Anne Sexton.
Anne taught Linda how to write, how to see, how to imagine; and only
Linda could have written a book that captures so vividly the intimate
details and lingering emotions of their lives together. Searching for Mercy Street speaks to everyone who admires Anne Sexton and to every daughter or son who knows the pain of an imperfect childhood.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Soul Survivor:
A Personal Encounter with Psychiatry
by Mary
Maddock (Author), Jim
Maddock (Author)
This is a harrowing story written by my parents of their disturbing encounter
with the Irish Psychiatric system.It is a story of hope and encouragement to
all those who are suffering from emotional turmoil, and will hopefully offer a
glimmer of light to many who can only see darkness in their lives. It is not
only for those who are suffering and their loved ones, but should be read by
all those who are connected to the complex world of Psychiatry. It is an honest
and revealing story written directly from the heart and will suprise many who
would not be so brave to reveal such a personal insight into their lives
"If there was any doubt that we urgently
need to hear the voice of the survivor in order to challenge the abuses of the
psychiatric system, this book dispels them. Mary's journey through hell
contains lessons for us all"
Lucy Johnstone
"The Myth of chemical imbalance lost Mary
Maddock twenty years of her life. If there is any consolation for this tragedy
it is that out of it has come a wonderful book"
Dorothy Rowe
Survivors:
Stories and Strategies to Heal the Hurt
by John
Preston (Author)
Synopsis
This book looks at the lives of four people who've gone through some rough
experiences. Sharon, Dale, Katherine and Gary are quite different, yet each of
them is plagued by some form of significant emotional despair. These are not
cases of mental illness, but examples of ordinary human beings living through
painful times. Their stories show that all human beings have an inherent
capacity to heal from deep emotional wounds.
The Eden Express: A Memoir of Insanity
by Mark Vonnegut (Author)
Book Description
"Most diseases can be separated from one’s
self ... schizophrenia is something we are." So begins Mark Vonnegut’s
depiction of his descent into, and eventual emergence from, mental
illness. As a recent college graduate, self-avowed hippie, and son of a
counterculture hero, Vonnegut begins to experience increasingly
delusional thinking, suicidal thoughts, and physical incapacity. In
February 1971 he is committed to a psychiatric hospital. The Eden
Express, an ALA Notable Book first published over 25 years ago, is his
honest, thoughtful, and moving account of the illness of schizophrenia.
This edition features a new foreword by Kurt Vonnegut and a new preface
by the author. "Required reading for those who want to understand
insanity from the inside." — The New York Times
The Loony Bin Trip
by Kate Millett (Author)
Synopsis
The author of "Sexual Politics" explores the
question of madness, mania and depression, from her own experience. She
tells of her struggle with the stigma of mental illness, her forced
hospitalization by family and friends, and her decision to prove her
sanity by going off prescribed medication.
