Author: Yeiser BS, Bethany
Number Of Pages: 272
Release Date: 09-02-2024
Details: Schizophrenia has been called “the worst disease affecting mankind.” It is also arguably the diagnosis which carries the greatest degree of stigma. For many years, the condition was untreatable. Medications introduced in the 1950s offered hope, but left many people with either lack of efficacy or intolerable side effects. Today, thanks to newer antipsychotic medications, and clozapine for treatment resistance, full recovery from schizophrenia is possible for many. People living in recovery from schizophrenia enjoy healthy and fulfilling lives. They are a vital part of the normal flow of life we call community. Bethany Yeiser, President of the CURESZ Foundation, recalls the multiple times she was told that persons living with schizophrenia never recover. Two days following her diagnosis, her family was told she was permanently and totally disabled. But thanks to adherence to the rarely prescribed medication called clozapine, for treatment-resistance, she experienced her own “awakening.” Her symptoms have been in full remission for fifteen years. In Awakenings, she shares her quest to prove recovery is possible and sustainable and has identified others who are also thriving despite being diagnosed with schizophrenia. Awakenings tells the stories of 28 of these remarkable “Survivors,” who are recovered and thriving despite schizophrenia. People featured in Awakenings include a law student, a librarian, a musician, a computer programmer, an athlete, a university faculty member, artists, authors, poets, and homemakers. But their journeys have not been easy. Many suffered from homelessness, repeated hospitalizations, and countless medication trials before finding an effective and life-changing treatment plan. Once they received the right treatment, each of them experienced a personal, social and functional “awakening.” Today they have returned to their baseline, or nearly so, and live meaningful and fulfilling lives. Awakenings also features resources from the CURESZ Foundation. We highlight our treatment checklist, with information everyone with schizophrenia should know on day one, but many are never told. The book provides information on cutting-edge and underutilized medications, general essays on schizophrenia, and a synopsis of CURESZ Foundation programs including our caregivers mentoring program, support group, on-campus clubs, and Ask the Doctor events. As you read Awakenings, we hope you will be moved by the journey you take deep into the minds of young individuals who are paranoid, delusional, afraid, confused. What it would be like to have excelled in school, but suddenly no longer even be able to pass. However, the journeys take a turn for the better, and through treatment adherence, healthy lives are reclaimed, relationships rebuilt, and long-standing goals and dreams are once again possible. Through the success stories in Awakenings, struggling persons with schizophrenia and their families will realize that there is always hope for healing, recovery and many “Awakenings.” From Dr. Robert Laitman: "Awakenings details an important new concept in the world of schizophrenia. Meaningful recovery is not only possible but more likely than not if the most effective antipsychotic is used in a timely and appropriate manner. For many, the “gold standard” medication clozapine remarkably improves outcomes. This book details the stories of many remarkable individuals. My hope is that this book helps move the needle from the nihilistic “good enough” care that assumes inevitable disability, to optimal care, with lives full of purpose and meaning."
EAN: 9780990345244
Languages: English
Binding: paperback
Item Condition: New