Hope and Personal Effort as Key to Recovery

Over the last few years I’ve been very impressed whenever I have heard parts of Eleanor Longden’s story.  Recently I obtained a video of her telling her story in detail, and I was even more impressed.

Her story is amazing partly I think just because she is so articulate:  she really knows how to bring out the moments that were the turning points, both for bad, as she descended into a hell of psychosis, self harm, and persecution and mistreatment by others, and then again for good as she turned toward recovery.

Her story is not one of being rescued by in depth therapy, but more a story of people sharing hope and helpful ideas, until Eleanor decided to take what was being offered and to make the recovery happen.  One psychiatrist does play a key role, but the main thing he did was offer hope and do things like help her reduce medications when she decided that is what she wanted.  This psychiatrist moved away before she accomplished much of her recovery.

Eleanor is currently working on her PhD in psychology, and she also works for an early intervention in psychosis program.

Anyway, I would like to see the showing of this video or videos like it, if there are any, on a regular basis at psychiatric hospitals and other institutions where people treat “psychosis.”  I think the mental health system would have to change, and people would learn not to believe the doomsayers.