Well, it’s been a while. Longer than I intended, in fact, since I last posted. I usually try to post at least once a week, but this has been a strange week! I wrote earlier about coming off risperidone and last week was the one where I finally came off the last of it. And […]
Why, Lord?
June 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
I hate suffering. I hate it when someone – even me – comes down with depression, anxiety, psychosis; with an illness that is stigmatised and life-changing and will never fully go away. I hate all illness, sickness, death. I hate wars and famine and natural disasters. I hate the evil that man does to man, […]
Ambition
June 12, 2013 by 1 Comment
What did you want to be when you grew up? My earliest ambition was to be an acrobat – which made my mum laugh, as I was an abnormally clumsy child! Later, I dreamt of writing a novel, of being a politician (!), of finding a fulfilling and intellectually stimulating career where I would be […]
The Bible and Medication
June 8, 2013 by 4 Comments
I have been suffering from withdrawal side-effects from medication this week. My doctor was supposed to reduce my risperidone from 3mg to 0 by 1mg a month, as per my consultant’s instruction, however he didn’t reduce it at all for three months, then when I reminded him he reduced it to 1mg last week, and […]
Scrupulosity: Doubt, Obsession and Compulsion
May 20, 2013 by 2 Comments
I have discussed earlier in this blog’s life the concept of scrupulosity, sometimes referred to as religious OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder.) That particular post was a bit of a mish-mash of things I found online, and I felt it had some shortcomings. Nevertheless it remains the most searched-for and viewed article on my whole site. I […]
Mental Illness and my Faith
May 11, 2013 by 6 Comments
Apologies for the essay-like title, but I am writing this post in response to Adrian Warnock’s posts on Patheos (“A conversation about faith and mental illness” and “How has faith shaped our view of mental illness?”) He asks a question, in the light of the publishing of Amy Simpson’s book Troubled Minds and the suicide of […]
If You’re 5 Minutes Late…
May 1, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Well, I had the first day of the Work Programme today. It started at 9am (which I am not used to getting up at any more!) Unfortunately I had an awful night’s sleep, what with coughing (I have a cold) and worrying about being sanctioned, I think I got a couple of uncomfortable hours but […]
The Dreaded Work Programme
April 30, 2013 by 3 Comments
Not a proper article per se, I just wanted to say that I have finally reached that stage of unemployment-whilst-on-sickness-benefits that requires me to attend the Work Programme. According to gov.uk, “This provides support, work experience and training for up to 2 years to help people find and stay in work.” As I’ve mentioned before, I […]
Letting Go of the Past
April 4, 2013 by 7 Comments
I have done lots of things wrong in my life. While I’m not in the same league as Paul (‘the chief of sinners’) I have done things I should not, said things I should not, treated others badly. As a Christian I understand that all sin leads to death – and that therefore I need/ed […]
Believer's Brain 