Finding Hope in the Lived Experience of Psychosis

Author: Patte Randal
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000608786
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 231

Book Description
This book offers first-person accounts of the experience of psychosis from the inside and the outside, through the eyes of two doctors, one of whom has experienced psychosis and both of whom have worked for decades in the field of psychiatry. Underpinned by rigorous academic analysis using an evocative duo-ethnographic approach, the book explores the cultural and subcultural influences from childhood onwards – both traumatic and resilience-building – that have shaped their lives. Both authors reflect on strategies they learned early in life for dealing with challenges, each managing to function at a high level while avoiding awareness of their vulnerability. They reflect on the potential dangers of using their expertise and position of power in psychiatry simply to diagnose mental illness and prescribe medication. The differences and similarities in the authors’ stories provide a productive tension highlighting the complexities of this paradigm shift that is happening in psychiatry. Written in the form of two interacting memoirs, this book is of great interest to researchers, clinicians, and practicing psychologists, as well as a general audience with interest in psychosis.

Reconceptualizing Schizophrenia

Author: Sarah Kamens
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 0429619316
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 197

Book Description
This volume presents a novel, international research study that reconceptualizes schizophrenia through an investigation of ways in which the first-hand experiences of those with a diagnosis differ from conventional diagnostic definitions. Offering insight into the history of psychiatric taxonomies in general and the invention of the schizophrenia diagnosis in particular, Reconceptualizing Schizophrenia maps the emergence of uncertainties about the empirical and conceptual status of contemporary diagnostic systems. Particular focus is given to the heterogeneity problem, or the problem of wide empirical variation within and between disorder categories. At the heart of this book are interviews with mental health service users with psychotic-disorder diagnoses in New York City and Jerusalem. Through a detailed portrait of their existential and socio-institutional worlds, the book unveils a way of being-in-the-world characterized by the experience of feeling profoundly vulnerable and unsafe in an inhospitable world as well as foreclosed from belonging to one or more human communities. As this psychological portrait of urhomelessness unfolds, the reader becomes slowly aware of the relationships between psychotic experiences – often thought to be bizarre or ‘un-understandable’ – and the timeless ways in which all humans seek to dwell in the world. Making an important contribution to the phenomenological-existential literature on psychosis, and demonstrating interdisciplinary and transcultural approaches to understanding anomalous experiences, this volume will be of great interest to researchers and scholars of transcultural psychiatry, clinical psychology, and critical theory.

Soul Connection with Horses

Author: Suzanne E. Court
Publisher: John Hunt Publishing
ISBN: 1803415827
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 295

Book Description
Working with horses as equal partners in the equine-assisted space while respecting their intuitive wisdom leads to life-changing psycho-spiritual understandings, learning and healing. Soul Connection with Horses: Healing the Mind and Awakening the Spirit through Equine Assisted Practice introduces concepts of awakening and spaciousness as understood in many spiritual traditions and demonstrates that horses effectively model awakening for humans. Through this approach horses help re-establish natural bonds and intuitive ways of knowing that have become obscured by conditioned thought and ineffective individual narratives. Horses show us that we can trust our intuition and learn how to live from the soul while making meaningful connection with ourselves, other people, animals and the natural environment. By considering how horses experience the world through their senses, how they process emotion and how they express their needs, we see that they live through the same social, psychological and spiritual paradigms as humans. Following equine assisted therapy and learning practices through to their logical conclusions, horses naturally lead us to questions of “who am I?” and “what is life?” They help us transcend non-functioning personal stories as we step out of ineffective ways of thinking and being and discover connection and wholeness. This book invites equestrians, equine assisted practitioners and seekers of spiritual connection, to walk in the hooves of the horse, to experience the horses' worldview and to access your own soulful wisdom.

Living with Psychosis

Author: Hugh Peter Hardin
Publisher: owubooks
ISBN:
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 130

Book Description
"Living with Psychosis: Finding Light in the Darkness" is my story—a journey through one of the most difficult and confusing experiences of my life. My name is Hugh Peter Hardin, and I’ve lived through the disorienting, terrifying, and often isolating world of psychosis. This book is not just about what I went through, but about how I found my way out of the darkness and began to heal. I still remember the day reality started to slip away. It wasn’t sudden, but gradually, I found myself trapped between two worlds—one rooted in reality, and the other a chaotic, distorted version of it. The thoughts, the paranoia, the fear of losing control were overwhelming. But as terrifying as psychosis was, the hardest part was not knowing how to make sense of it all, or if I would ever feel like myself again. In "Living with Psychosis", I share my experiences with raw honesty. I open up about what it’s like to live through psychosis, the fear, the confusion, and the struggle to find a way back to reality. But more importantly, I talk about my recovery—how I learned to manage my mental health, rebuild my life, and find light in what felt like an endless darkness. This book is for anyone who’s going through a similar journey, whether it’s you or someone you love. It’s for those who feel like they’re drowning in their own mind, unsure of where to turn next. Through my story, I hope to offer not only understanding but hope. You’re not alone. There is a way forward, and healing is possible. Along the way, I share the tools and strategies that helped me, from mindfulness and emotional regulation to the importance of a strong support network. I also offer advice for caregivers—those who want to help but may not know how to support someone living with psychosis. This journey has taught me that recovery isn’t a straight line, but it’s possible. And through it all, I’ve learned that even in the darkest moments, there is light. "Living with Psychosis: Finding Light in the Darkness" is my way of reaching out to those who feel like there’s no way out, and I hope my story can serve as a reminder that you are stronger than you think and that healing is within reach.

The Psychosis Survival Handbook

Author: Cherry Johsnton
Publisher: Istone books
ISBN:
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 68

Book Description
The Psychosis Survival Handbook offers a compassionate and practical guide for individuals experiencing psychosis, their families, and caregivers. This comprehensive book walks readers through the early signs of psychosis, emphasizing the importance of timely intervention and providing strategies for long-term recovery. Featuring real-life examples, expert advice, and actionable steps, it... The Psychosis Survival Handbook offers a compassionate and practical guide for individuals experiencing psychosis, their families, and caregivers. This comprehensive book walks readers through the early signs of psychosis, emphasizing the importance of timely intervention and providing strategies for long-term recovery. Featuring real-life examples, expert advice, and actionable steps, it equips readers with the tools to manage psychotic episodes, prevent relapses, and build a supportive environment for recovery. Whether you're navigating the complexities of psychosis for the first time or seeking to improve long-term care, this guide provides the roadmap to stability and hope.

Recovery in Mental Health

Author: Michaela Amering
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470997966
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 280

Book Description
Winner of Medical Journalists’ Association Specialist Readership Award 2010 Recovery is widely endorsed as a guiding principle of mental health policy. Recovery brings new rules for services, e.g. user involvement and person-centred care, as well as new tools for clinical collaborations, e.g. shared decision making and psychiatric advance directives. These developments are complemented by new proposals regarding more ethically consistent anti-discrimination and involuntary treatment legislation, as well as participatory approaches to evidence-based medicine and policy. Recovery is more than a bottom up movement turned into top down mental health policy in English-speaking countries. Recovery integrates concepts that have evolved internationally over a long time. It brings together major stakeholders and different professional groups in mental health, who share the aspiration to overcome current conceptual reductionism and prognostic negativism in psychiatry. Recovery is the consequence of the achievements of the user movement. Most conceptual considerations and decisions have evolved from collaborations between people with and without a lived experience of mental health problems and the psychiatric service system. Many of the most influential publications have been written by users and ex-users of services and work-groups that have brought together individuals with and without personal experiences as psychiatric patients. In a fresh and comprehensive look, this book covers definitions, concepts and developments as well as consequences for scientific and clinical responsibilities. Information on relevant history, state of the art and transformational efforts in mental health care is complemented by exemplary stories of people who created through their lives and work an evidence base and direction for Recovery. This book was originally published in German. The translation has been fully revised, references have been amended to include the English-language literature and new material has been added to reflect recent developments. It features a Foreword by Helen Glover who relates how there is more to recovery than the absence or presence of symptoms and how health care professionals should embrace the growing evidence that people can reclaim their lives and often thrive beyond the experience of a mental illness. Comments on German edition: "It is fully packed with useful information for practitioners, is written in jargon free language and has a good reading pace." Theodor Itten, St. Gallen, Switzerland and Hamburg, Germany "This book is amazingly positive. It not only talks about hope, it creates hope. Its therapeutic effects reach professional mental health workers, service users, and carers alike. Fleet-footed and easily understandable, at times it reads like a suspense novel." Andreas Knuf, pro mente sana, Switzerland '"This is the future of psychiatry"' cheered a usually service-oriented manager after reading the book. We might not live to see it.' Ilse Eichenbrenner, Soziale Psychiatrie, Germany

Finding Hope in Hopelessness

Author: Anthony P. Acampora
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1666738972
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 101

Book Description
Eric Oakes and Anthony P. Acampora tap into their many years of experience in the mental health and addiction-recovery industry. They provide powerful insights on overcoming adversity by providing numerous strategies from a clinical and faith-based perspective. This conversational platform puts into focus the hearts of two seasoned professionals who see things differently but are willing to listen and collaborate for the mutual goal of helping people find hope in seemingly hopeless situations.

Recovering from a First Episode of Psychosis

Author: Chris Jackson
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1315460718
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 388

Book Description
Despite years of research, debate and changes in mental health policy, there is still a lack of consensus as to what recovery from psychosis actually means, how it should be measured and how it may ultimately be achieved. In Recovering from a First Episode of Psychosis: An Integrated Approach to Early Intervention, it is argued that recovery from a first episode of psychosis (FEP) is comprised of three core elements: symptomatic, social and personal. Moreover, all three types of recovery need to be the target of early intervention for psychosis programmes (EIP) which provide evidence-based, integrated, bio-psychosocial interventions delivered in the context of a value base offering hope, empowerment and a youth-focused approach. Over the 12 chapters in the book, the authors, all experienced clinicians and researchers from multi-professional backgrounds, demonstrate that long-term recovery needs to replace short term remission as the key target of early psychosis services and that, to achieve this, we need a change in the way we deliver EIP: one that takes account of the different stages of psychosis and the ‘bespoke’ targeting of integrated medical, psychological and social treatments during the ‘critical period’. Illustrated with a wealth of clinical examples, this book will be of great interest to clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses and other associated mental health professionals.

Moving On

Author: Roz D'Ombraine Hewitt
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 042991637X
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 243

Book Description
About one person in a hundred will be diagnosed with schizophrenia at some time in their life. The condition can be severe and debilitating with symptoms such as delusions, hallucinations and the loss of concentration, motivation and social skills. But schizophrenia is not a degenerative or life-threatening condition and in recent years improved knowledge and understanding, psychological treatments and more tolerable medication have greatly increased people's ability to manage their symptoms and live a 'normal' life. This straightforward, accessible and inspiring guide provides information on: - The myths and misconceptions surrounding schizophrenia- The possible causes and how the illness is diagnosed- Medication and other treatment options; sources of support- Improving health and well-being- Employment - paid and voluntary- Complementary therapies - Counselling and psychotherapy The guide also includes the latest research findings and personal accounts of recovery by people with the diagnosis.

Personal Recovery and Mental Illness

Author: Mike Slade
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521746582
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
Focuses on a shift away from traditional clinical preoccupations towards new priorities of supporting the patient.