Schizophrenia From Four Perspectives - One Complete View

Oct. 5, 2010 - PRLog -- Bridgeross Communications has now published three books on various aspects of schizophrenia as well as a recent documentary film. All have received praise from many sources.

Schizophrenia Medicine's Mystery - Society's Shame by Marvin Ross is described in the preface as a "commendable book (and) a survey examining schizophrenia in the United States, Europe, Canada, and Australia. As he writes, the mentally ill of many western countries are not faring as well as they might have in 1960 or 1970, despite our advances in knowledge, treatment, and our nations' wealth"

Blog Critics described it as "an easily understood guide that is highly relevant". SZ Digest Magazine said "a powerful resource for anyone looking for answers and insight into the world of mental illness." Dr. Jean Desclin, a Belgian physician, described it as a  "critical and lucid review" . The book is recommended by the World Fellowship For Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders.

Susan Inman's memoir, After Her Brain Broke: Helping My Daughter Recover Her Sanity has received much praise since it came out in the Spring of 2010. Dr. E Fuller Torrey, author of Surviving Schizophrenia wrote, "one of the best accounts I have read of serious mental illness as told by a mother" and "Highly  recommended"

Daniel Kalla, MD, ER Physician, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver and International Bestselling Author of Pandemic, Rage Therapy, Blood Lies, and Of Flesh And Blood had this to say of the book:

"After Her Brain Broke is a harrowing, heart wrenching, and ultimately triumphant story of one family's struggle with a child's mental illness. It's impossible not to be moved by Susan Inman's honest and touching account of her daughter's sudden descent into mental health turmoil and the family's long hard battle to overcome it. A must read for families coping with a mental illness, and a wonderful eye-opener for those of us lucky enough not to have been affected."

The very popular website psychcentral said "Inman’s engaging story provides parents and family members of individuals with severe mental disorders with hope and ideas for coping with the strain that comes with helping their loved ones recover."

Today's Parent blog said "If you parent a child like Molly, read this book for support and validation. And even if your family isn’t affected by mental illness read this book. You’ll gain awareness and understanding of an illness still so shrouded in stigma. And you’ll read about a parent who, like you, will do whatever it takes to help her child."

In September, the book was recommended by the US based National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and by the European Federation of Families of People with Mental Illness (EUFAMI)

My Schizophrenic Life: The Road to Recovery From Mental Illness was released in September 2010. Vancouver artist, Sandra Yuen MacKay who wrote the memoir, has an abnormality of the brain - a disease called schizophrenia. As she says, "My life is schizophrenic because I have schizophrenia. It will always be there."

Much of her life has been a struggle to cope with the symptoms of the disease (now rediagnosed as schizoaffective disorder) and the side effects of the medications required to keep those symptoms in check.

Early in her life, Sandra started to exhibit the typical symptoms of this disease, which came as a surprise to her unsuspecting family. Her book chronicles her struggles, hospitalizations, encounters with professionals, return to school, eventual marriage, and success as an artist, writer and advocate.

"Remarkably compelling" is how Library Journal describes the book. It goes on to say "she illuminates the ways in which schizophrenic delusions can hijack one's life. MacKay vividly re-creates her world of schizophrenia, introducing readers to a whole new stratum of perception. Significantly, MacKay finds her salvation through art and writing, as she learns to capitalize on creative insights gleaned from her bouts with mental illness. Verdict MacKay's enlightening portrayal of her illness, hospitalizations, relationships, therapeutic activities, and quest for recovery will hold readers captive..."

Julie Holland, MD author, Weekends at Bellevue: Nine Years on the Night Shift at the Psych ER., New York city said "There are precious few people who have experienced psychosis and can convey it accurately, clearly,and concisely. Sandra MacKay's story is an important one for all of us in the mental health field --doctors, patients, and their families. It is imperative that we take in the lessons she is imparting to us all, on how to manage, and in many ways, triumph, over chronic mental illness."

A review on Blog Critics said "MacKay’s writing reveals so much about her experience, not only in the stories she tells, but how she chooses to tell them. Anyone interested in mental illness, particularly schizophrenia, can learn from My Schizophrenic Life. Its value is in its candid look into what is going on in the mind of the sufferer."

The Brush, The Pen and Recovery is a 33 minute documentary film on the Cottage Studio art program for people with schizophrenia. The artists at the Cottage Studio had the opportunity to prepare for and hang a show of their work at an opening at the Gallery on the Bay in Hamilton at the end of June 2009.

The documentary deals with their preparation for the show, the show itself, and in-depth  interviews with three of the artists. While the story is about the preparation for a serious gallery opening for these artists culminating in the opening itself, the interviews will explore the very issue of schizophrenia, the lives of the people it affects and the role of artistic expression in their recovery.

"I loved this film. Without shying away from the realities of having a serious and persistent mental illness, three courageous people talk of their struggles, their dreams and their hope. Educational, accurate, human, and compelling."

Dr. Peter Cook,  Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Neurobehavioral Sciences, McMaster University

"great moments that really land the idea of the  place art can have in recovery, the pride people get from their work and the  identity as 'artist'."  Bruce Saunders, Founder, Movie Monday, Victoria, BC

For more information about Bridgeross Books please visit http://www.bridgeross.com

All Bridgeross books are distributed by Ingram and are available on Amazon (including Kindle), Barnes and Noble and other retailers. It is also available in various e-book formats on Smashwords. To purchase all three books together with a 25% discount (plus shipping) or to purchase the documentary film, please contact Bridgeross.

Enjoy the trailer of The Brush http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4loR-bAKbuQ



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Also available from Bridgeross is The Adolescent Owner's Manual by Dr. David Laing Dawson - A highly readable guide for parents of teens