Download or read book Fighting for Recovery written by Phyllis Vine and published by Beacon Press. This book was released on 2022-09-27 with total page 410 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An essential history of the recovery movement for people with mental illness, and an inspiring account of how former patients and advocates challenged a flawed system and encouraged mental health activism This definitive people’s history of the recovery movement spans the 1970s to the present day and proves to readers just how essential mental health activism is to every person in this country, whether you have a current psychiatric diagnosis or not. In Fighting for Recovery, professor and mental health advocate Phyllis Vine tells the history of the former psychiatric patients, families, and courageous activists who formed a patients’ liberation movement that challenged medical authority and proved to the world that recovery from mental illness is possible. Mental health discussions have become more common in everyday life, but there are still enormous numbers of people with psychiatric illness in jails and prisons or who are experiencing homelessness—proving there is still progress to be made. This is a book for you A friend or family member of someone with serious psychiatric diagnoses, to understand the history of mental health reform A person struggling with their own diagnoses, to learn how other patients have advocated for themselves An activist in the peer-services network: social workers, psychologists, and peer counselors, to advocate for change in the treatment of psychiatric patients at the institutional and individual levels A policy maker, clinical psychologist, psychiatric resident, or scholar who wants to become familiar with the social histories of mental illness

Download or read book My Fight for Recovery written by Rob Plaskas and published by iUniverse. This book was released on 2020-02-26 with total page 143 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Some would label Rob Plaskas as disabled, while others may call him a victim. Truth be told, he is a survivor and a fighter. “My Fight for Recovery: A Story of Overcoming Life Threatening Brain Surgery” is his first-hand account of the tragedy and terror he experienced, who he was, and what he has become. Over time he learned to confront his circumstances and embrace his new reality. He found courage and strength to reinvent himself and charted his own path to succeed in his new life. This memoir is about his recovery from a brain hemorrhage during brain surgery. It caused the equivalent of a major stroke, leaving him unable to speak, write, read or comprehend, and left him with rightsided paralysis. It caused severe damage to his short-term memory and made him dependent on anti-seizure medicine. His recovery shows how some survivors of severe brain injuries can recover and have a productive life if they work hard at their physical, speech, cognitive, and emotional therapies.

Download or read book na written by and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on with total page 540 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Fighting for Recovery written by Phyllis Vine and published by Beacon Press. This book was released on 2022-09-27 with total page 410 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An essential history of the recovery movement for people with mental illness, and an inspiring account of how former patients and advocates challenged a flawed system and encouraged mental health activism This definitive people’s history of the recovery movement spans the 1970s to the present day and proves to readers just how essential mental health activism is to every person in this country, whether you have a current psychiatric diagnosis or not. In Fighting for Recovery, professor and mental health advocate Phyllis Vine tells the history of the former psychiatric patients, families, and courageous activists who formed a patients’ liberation movement that challenged medical authority and proved to the world that recovery from mental illness is possible. Mental health discussions have become more common in everyday life, but there are still enormous numbers of people with psychiatric illness in jails and prisons or who are experiencing homelessness—proving there is still progress to be made. This is a book for you A friend or family member of someone with serious psychiatric diagnoses, to understand the history of mental health reform A person struggling with their own diagnoses, to learn how other patients have advocated for themselves An activist in the peer-services network: social workers, psychologists, and peer counselors, to advocate for change in the treatment of psychiatric patients at the institutional and individual levels A policy maker, clinical psychologist, psychiatric resident, or scholar who wants to become familiar with the social histories of mental illness

Download or read book Under Our Roof written by Madeleine Dean and published by Convergent Books. This book was released on 2021-02-16 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A congresswoman and her son reveal how he survived a ten-year battle with opioid abuse—and what their family’s journey to recovery can teach us about finding hope amid the unspeakable. “Beautiful and inspiring.”—Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper (Book of the Week) When Madeleine Dean discovered that her son Harry was stealing from the family to feed a painkiller addiction, she was days away from taking the biggest risk of her life: running for statewide office in Pennsylvania. For years, she had sensed something was wrong. Harry was losing weight and losing friends. He had lost the brightness in his eyes and voice, changing from a young boy with boundless enthusiasm to a shadow of himself, chasing something she could not see. Now her worst fears had come to light. Under Our Roof is the story of a national crisis suffered in the intimacy of so many homes, told with incredible candor through the dual perspectives of a mother rising in politics and a son living a double life, afraid of what might happen if his secret is exposed. In this honest, bracing, yet ultimately uplifting memoir, they discuss the patterns of a family dealing with an unspoken disease, the fear that keeps addicts hiding in shame, and the moments of honesty, faith, and personal insight that led to Harry’s recovery. In a country searching for answers to the devastating effects of opioids and drug abuse, Under Our Roof is a ray of hope in the darkness. It is not only a love story between mother and son but also an honest account of a pressing national crisis by a family poised to make a difference.

Download or read book The Wellness Community Guide to Fighting for Recovery from Cancer written by Harold H. Benjamin and published by TarcherPerigee. This book was released on 1995 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: More than one million Americans each year are diagnosed with cancer. This guide, prepared by the largest cancer program in America devoted exclusively to providing psychological and social support, presents a unique source of information, guidance, inspiration, and hope for any patient who wants to take an active role in fighting cancer.

Download or read book Wasted written by Michael Pond and published by Greystone Books. This book was released on 2016-01-21 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Psychotherapist Michael Pond is no stranger to the devastating consequences of alcoholism. He has helped hundreds of people conquer their addictions, but this knowledge did not prevent his own near-demise. In this riveting memoir, he recounts how he lost his practice, his home, and his family—all because of his drinking. After scores of visits to the ER, a tour of hellish recovery homes, a stint in intensive care for end-stage alcoholism, and jail, Pond devised his own personal plan for recovery. He met Maureen Palmer and together they investigated scientific alternatives to the rigid abstinence doctrine pushed by 12-Step programs.

Download or read book Fighting Parkinson s and Winning written by Howard Shifke and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2017-11-16 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "After reading this book and following Howard's recipe for some time now, I can only say this book is worth each and every word. It is highly valuable and, by the way, I feel much better now and my symptoms have almost disappear so far. I recommend to anyone who is seeking some alternative path to his treatment on Parkinson's." - Amazon Kunde, Amazon Verified Purchaser. "Howard's Recipe For Recovery is a breath of fresh air; If you do the recipe you will be on the road to recovery, the same road the cured walked before us, six of them so far in the past seven years. How full of hope is that?! The first sign that things were turning around for me was that my sense of smell came back after twenty years. Now where before there was despair I'm so thankful to have hope and the means to make it happen...now there are tears of joy! It's a great book...Don't miss it! Hope fulfilled is priceless and it's in your hand. Buy the book!!!!" - Thomas J., Amazon Verified Purchaser. "This book is the fascinating story of his recovery, and the recovery of others over the years afterwards, using his Recipe...Although there are a few individual, poorly substantiated claims of curing Parkinson's, this is the only one I know of that has cured multiple identified individuals of this "incurable" disease. We owe Howard a great deal of gratitude for his generosity in sharing his Recipe with us here and on his extensive website. His Recipe is likely to be the best cure available over the next decade." - prestonpdx, Amazon Verified Purchaser. Howard Shifke fully recovered from Parkinson's Disease. This memoir presents Howard's story of getting Parkinson's and provides a detailed account of how he won the fight against it. The memoir tells the story of what it was like for Howard to live day-to-day with Parkinson's, getting through the daily challenges and misgivings as well as how he looked toward the future with hope. Howard suffered with internal tremors; extremely poor balance; Bradykinesia (walking -- hunched forward, shuffled feet, arms did not swing); rigidity (arms, legs and upper back were tight and extremely painful); constipation; inability to stand up straight, to get out of a chair without using arms, to go up and down stairs without holding railing; difficulty getting a utensil to his mouth when trying to eat; falling asleep in middle of the day; frozen face; inability to write or to type with two hands; extreme fatigue. In the fall of 2009, Howard Shifke was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. His mother had Parkinson's for twenty-four years before dying in 2007, just two years prior to Howard diagnosis of Parkinson's. Having watched her physically deteriorate from the disease and mentally deteriorate from the medications was difficult and frightening.Howard did not want to end up the way his mother had ended up with the disease. Fortunately, in 1999, Howard had started studying alternative healing and Traditional Chinese Medicine. In the ten years leading up to his diagnosis, he had learned the body has the ability to heal itself. As a result, Howard decided he would endeavor to recover from Parkinson's, and he developed an alternative treatment methodology called his Parkinson's Recipe for Recovery(R). Nine months later, he won the fight against Parkinson's with his full recovery. In Howard's two neurologist visits subsequent to his full recovery, his neurologist put him through all of the tests used for the original diagnosis. Both times, his neurologist documented in Howard's medical records that there were no signs or symptoms of Parkinson's Disease.Howard has been symptom free fully recovered from Parkinson's since June 12, 2010.

Download or read book The Recovery Revolution written by Claire D. Clark and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2017-05-02 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the 1960s, as illegal drug use grew from a fringe issue to a pervasive public concern, a new industry arose to treat the addiction epidemic. Over the next five decades, the industry's leaders promised to rehabilitate the casualties of the drug culture even as incarceration rates for drug-related offenses climbed. In this history of addiction treatment, Claire D. Clark traces the political shift from the radical communitarianism of the 1960s to the conservatism of the Reagan era, uncovering the forgotten origins of today's recovery movement. Based on extensive interviews with drug-rehabilitation professionals and archival research, The Recovery Revolution locates the history of treatment activists' influence on the development of American drug policy. Synanon, a controversial drug-treatment program launched in California in 1958, emphasized a community-based approach to rehabilitation. Its associates helped develop the therapeutic community (TC) model, which encouraged peer confrontation as a path to recovery. As TC treatment pioneers made mutual aid profitable, the model attracted powerful supporters and spread rapidly throughout the country. The TC approach was supported as part of the Nixon administration's "law-and-order" policies, favored in the Reagan administration's antidrug campaigns, and remained relevant amid the turbulent drug policies of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. While many contemporary critics characterize American drug policy as simply the expression of moralizing conservatism or a mask for racial oppression, Clark recounts the complicated legacy of the "ex-addict" activists who turned drug treatment into both a product and a political symbol that promoted the impossible dream of a drug-free America.

Download or read book This Day in Recovery written by Lane Campbell and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book offers a short, daily experience to help bring readers back to their spiritual center in the daily moments of struggle and questioning. The editors have collected daily quotes, reflections, and questions for readers on their spiritual journey of recovery, with each month focusing on one of the 12 steps"--

Download or read book A Common Struggle written by Patrick Joseph Kennedy and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Patrick J. Kennedy, the former congressman and youngest child of Senator Ted Kennedy, opens up about his personal and political battle with mental illness and addiction for the first time. This candid memoir focuses on the years from his 'coming out' about suffering from bipolar disorder and addiction to the present day, and examines his journey toward recovery while reflecting on America's treatment of mental health.

Download or read book Becoming Ms Burton written by Susan Burton and published by The New Press. This book was released on 2019-02-12 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2018 National Council on Crime & Delinquency’s Media for a Just Society Awards Winner of the 2017 Goddard Riverside Stephan Russo Book Prize for Social Justice “Valuable . . . [like Michelle] Alexander's The New Jim Crow.” —Los Angeles Review of Books “Susan Burton is a national treasure . . . her life story is testimony to the human capacity for resilience and recovery . . . [Becoming Ms. Burton is] a stunning memoir.” —Nicholas Kristof, in The New York Times Winner of the prestigious NAACP Image Award, a uniquely American story of trauma, incarceration, and "the breathtaking resilience of the human spirit" (Michelle Alexander) Widely hailed as a stunning memoir, Becoming Ms. Burton is the remarkable life story of the renowned activist Susan Burton. In this "stirring and moving tour-de-force" (John Legend), Susan Burton movingly recounts her own journey through the criminal justice system and her transformation into a life of advocacy. After a childhood of immense pain, poverty, and abuse in Los Angeles, the tragic loss of her son led her into addiction, which in turn led to arrests and incarceration. During the War on Drugs, Burton was arrested and would cycle in and out of prison for more than fifteen years. When, by chance, she finally received treatment, her political awakening began and she became a powerful advocate for "a more humane justice system guided by compassion and dignity" (Booklist, starred review). Her award-winning organization, A New Way of Life, has transformed the lives of more than one thousand formerly incarcerated women and is an international model for a less punitive and more effective approach to rehabilitation and reentry. Winner of an NAACP Image Award and named a "Best Book of 2017" by the Chicago Public Library, here is an unforgettable book about "the breathtaking resilience of the human spirit" (Michelle Alexander).

Download or read book Running Free written by Kate Allatt and published by Accent Press. This book was released on 2011-05-19 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Just amazing and inspirational' Jeremy Vine Can you imagine being trapped inside your own body? Able to see and hear everything going on around you but unable to move or speak - the blink of an eye your only way of communicating. Fell-runner and fun-loving mother-of-three Kate Allatt's life was torn apart when what appeared to be a stress-related headache exploded into a massive brainstem stroke leading to locked-in syndrome. Totally paralysed, she became a prisoner inside her own body. Doctors warned her family she would never walk, talk or swallow or lead a normal life again. But they didn't know Kate. The words no and never were not in her vocabulary. With the help of her best friends and family she drew on every ounce of her runner's stamina and determination to make a recovery that amazed medical experts. Using a letter chart, Kate blinked the words "I will walk again". Soon she was moving her thumb and communicating with the world via Facebook. Eight months after her stroke, Kate said goodbye to nurses, walked out of hospital and returned home to learn how to run again. This is the story of her incredible journey.

Download or read book Crystal Clean written by Kimberly Wollenburg and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2012-12-12 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "There are precious few things in this life of which I am certain. One is the love I have for my son, Andy... The other thing of which I am certain is this: no one wants to be an addict." - from the book. Here's what readers have to say: "Kim's writing style is clear, lucid, revealing, and on a par with the best of skilled non-fiction authors - Thor Heyerdahl, Thomas Thompson, even James Michener or my favorite, Jan de Hartog, and she is able to make the reader relive her addictions - all of them - to the point that I HAD to put the book down several times and "de-tox" myself, or at least breathe normally, before I could return to it. I've never felt so much inside the skin of someone who is going through the horror of addiction as when reading this biography." "Kim has cleansed her soul by once again facing the demons of her past, and I can only imagine how much strength it took for her to reopen her wounds and recount them one by one." "Crystal Clean is a book I couldn't put down about an amazing woman who was once completely immersed in the world of crystal meth. If you didn't know that she made it through the other side (because she is telling her own story), you might not believe she will come out of it alive. Kim lays out her life story, with memories that help show her state of mind as she started using different drugs and then meth. But it's not a "woe is me" story, and she doesn't dwell on the bad things that contributed to her mental state. It is ultimately a story about how a mother's love can overcome the terrible odds associated with this addiction." "This is a well-written, entertaining book. The author's style is light even when when the subject is not. It would have been easy to simply write about the misery that must come with Meth addiction. Instead, the author gives insight into her background and motivations. You can't help but root for the author as she describes her descent into drug addiction "hell," even though she is responsible for all her choices." "Being a mom of a special needs son (only child) and struggling to be everything to that child, while barely hanging on yourself is such a familiar story to me." "While reading this book, it hit home so much I had to stop reading it for moments at a time. So real and writing was so descriptive, I had to separate her feelings from my own in some regard. Thank you for opening up to your readers and trusting us with your story. I picture you kind of like a female "Rocky" winning in the end. Can't help but root for you and Andy!" "What an insightful and bravely written book. What Kim has shared is an amazingly helpful understanding to anyone who has been touched by the outreaching fingers of meth addiction and mental illness. And to those who haven't, a good reminder that not everyone or everything is as it may seem." "A beautiful memoir about one mom's struggle with her lot in life and how she chose to deal with it using illegal drugs. It's told in a brave, clear manner with no careful wording. I loved reading more about Andy and was absolutely rooting for Wollenburg through it all." "At first, you don't understand Kim. Then you love her." "Kim illustrates with graphic detail and genuine emotion the pain of addiction as well as the sometimes circuitous path to recovery. This book is extremely well written. I wish I lived next door to this courageous mother, daughter, and woman of worth." "CRYSTAL CLEAN: A mother's struggle with meth addiction and recovery is an honest and transparent look at the world of meth addiction and recovery. As a reader, I was swallowed up into this world of addiction, pain, anger, and fear. Many times I wanted out -- I wanted to skip to the end of the book and be assured that this young woman was going to be okay. I applaud the author for her obvious courage in sharing her story and exposing her pain and allowing herself to be so vulnerable. The author's writing is superb -- strong imagery and an authenti

Download or read book Total Recovery written by Gary Kaplan and published by Rodale. This book was released on 2014-05-06 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: About 100 million Americans live with some form of chronic pain—more than the combined number who suffer from diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. But chronic pain has always been a mystery. It often returns at the slightest provocation, even when doctors can't find anything wrong. Oddly enough, whether the pain is physical or emotional, traumatic or slight, our brains register all pain as the same thing, and these signals can keep firing in the nervous system for months, even years. In Total Recovery, Dr. Gary Kaplan argues that we've been thinking about disease all wrong. Drawing on dramatic patient stories and cutting-edge research, the book reveals that chronic physical and emotional pain are two sides of the same coin. New discoveries show that disease is not the result of a single event but an accumulation of traumas. Every injury, every infection, every toxin, and every emotional blow generates the same reaction: inflammation, activated by tiny cells in the brain, called microglia. Turned on too often from too many assaults, it can have a devastating cumulative effect. Conventional treatment for these conditions is focused on symptoms, not causes, and can leave patients locked into a lifetime of pain and suffering. Dr. Kaplan's unified theory of chronic pain and depression helps us understand not only the cause of these conditions but also the issues we must address to create a pathway to healing. With this revolutionary new framework in place, we have been given the keys to recover.

Download or read book Recovery of People with Mental Illness written by Abraham Rudnick and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2012-08-30 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It is only in the past 20 years that the concept of 'recovery' from mental health has been more widely considered and researched. This book is unique in addressing philosophical issues - including conceptual challenges and opportunities - raised by the notion of recovery of people with mental illness.

Download or read book Freedom In the Fight written by Scott Abrams and published by . This book was released on 2019-03 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: