RESOURCES
Here are a few of the many books and web sites that I have found useful in my advocacy and support work thus far. I welcome your suggestions.
History, Stigma, and Policy
Corrigan, Patrick W., Ed. (2005). On the Stigma of Mental Illness: Practical Strategies for Research and Social Change. Washington, DC, American Psychological Association.
Gilligan, James (1996). Violence: Reflections on a National Epidemic. New York, Random House.
Powers, Ron (2017). No One Cares About Crazy People: The Chaos and Heartbreak of Mental Health in America. New York, Hachette Books.
Sareyan, Alex (1994). The Turning Point: How Persons of Conscience Brought About Major Change in the Care of America’s Mentally Ill. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press.
Torrey, E. Fuller (2014). American Psychosis: How the Federal Government Destroyed the Mental Illness Treatment System. New York, Oxford University Press.
Wahl, Otto F. (1995). Media Madness: Public Images of Mental Illness. New Brunswick, NJ, Rutgers University Press.
Whitaker, Robert (2010). Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America. New York, Crown Publishers.
Advocacy Strategies
Stein, Miriam (2012). Make Your Voice Matter with Lawmakers: No Experience Necessary. Another Look Publications.
Memoirs and Narratives
Casey, Nell, Ed. (2001). Unholy Ghost: Writers on Depression. New York, HarperCollins.
Earley, Pete (2006). Crazy: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness. New York, G. P. Putnam’s Sons.
Greenberg, Michael (2008). Hurry Down Sunshine: A Memoir. New York, Other Press.
Jamison, Kay Redfield (1995). An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness. New York, Alfred A. Knopf.
Neugeboren, Jay (1997). Imagining Robert: My Brother, Madness, and Survival. New York, William Morrow.
Raeburn, Paul (2004). Acquainted with the Night: A Parent’s Quest to Understand Depression and Bipolar Disorder in His Children. New York, Broadway Books.
Saks, Elyn R. (2007). The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness. New York, Hyperion.
Schiller, Lori and Amanda Bennett (1996). The Quiet Room: A Journey out of the Torment of Madness. New York, Grand Central Publishing.
Solomon, Andrew (2012). Far from the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity. New York, Scribner.
Stossel, Scott (2014). My Age of Anxiety: Fear, Hope, Dread, and the Search for Peace of Mind. New York, Alfred A Knopf.
Styron, William (1990). Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness. New York: Random House.
Guidance for Family and Friends
Amador, Xavier (2010). I Am Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help! How to Help Someone with Mental Illness Accept Treatment. New York, Vida Press.
Boss, Pauline (1999). Ambiguous Loss: Learning to Live with Unresolved Grief. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press.
DeLisi, Lynn E. (2011). 100 Questions & Answers About Schizophrenia: Painful Minds. Boston, Jones and Bartlett.
Jamison, Kay Redfield (1999). Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide. New York: Knopf.
Kehoe, Nancy (2009). Wrestling with Our Inner Angels: Faith, Mental Illness, and the Journey to Wholeness. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Karp, David Allen (2001). The Burden of Sympathy: How Families Cope with Mental Illness. New York, Oxford University Press.
Lowe, Chelsea and Bruce M. Cohen (2010). Living with Someone Who’s Living with Bipolar Disorder: A Practical Guide for Family, Friends, and Coworkers. San Francisco, CA, Jossey-Bass.
Mueser, Kim T. and Susan Gingerich (2006). The Complete Family Guide to Schizophrenia: Helping Your Loved One Get the Most Out of Life. New York: Guilford Press.
Sederer, Lloyd I. (2013). The Family Guide to Mental Health Care. New York, W. W. Norton.
Solomon, Andrew (2001). The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression . New York, Scribner.
Websites
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
Fact sheets on many aspects of mental illnesses, as well as links to state chapters and local support groups and educational programs
Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
Free webinars on research topics and articles by researchers
NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health)
General articles on mental health topics and blog by Director Thomas Insel on research advances
MGH (Massachusetts General Hospital) Patient & Family Resource Center
Online information and free one-day educational programs on major mental illnesses