Greetings
I am delighted to have been invited to guest blog on this
site. Many thanks to Matthew McKenzie
for the introduction help and support and to Louise and Alyssa for their support and encouragement. Being so proactive in promoting recovery and the role model they offer is a real inspiration. This is my first blog – so it is all new to me
as I move out of my comfort zone. I
hope you enjoy this and find something here helpful.
My intention in this first blog to share something about
myself and my story: to set the scene for more detail in the future. Most importantly I am a mother and
grandmother. I won’t write a longer list but want to mention what I hope is
relevant for this blog.
I am a medical doctor with wide experience including being a
former GP. This makes me a healthcare
professional: an expert by training. I
have also suffered with a mental health problem for over 10 years. I have been
in hospital 4 times, have taken a variety of medications and have been treated
by doctors, psychologists and others both individually and in groups so I consider
that I am also an expert by experience.
Many people have given time and put effort into helping me and trying to
make me better and I know every one of them had the best intention just as I
did when I practiced as a doctor. My
intention was always to help and make someone better and I still believe that
is the reason most people go into healthcare.
Looking back now with the benefit of my experience I can see
that what I though was helpful may not have been. I was seeing things as a doctor - from the
view I was trained to have -and not from the perspective of the patient. What I
now understand is that the doctor may know about the medical condition but the
only person who really knows the patient - the expert in the patient - is the
patient. Everyone has the same intention
- to improve the situation for the patient and probably the most effective the
way to do that is to work together.
I am thankful and feel blessed that I have now recovered. What I feel helped me in my recover y was understanding
and accepting where I was and then taking appropriate responsibility for myself.
I care deeply about mental health and
those suffering but I am passionate
about promoting wellness.
Using my own experience I have developed a program: Aspiring 2 Wellness which is a unique
blend of mindfulness and coaching. Having
a role in the Mental Health Foundation Trust near where I live for the last 4 years
has significantly contributed to my recovery.
I have been involved both as
a “service user” and as a service user representative both on the “ground” working with my peers and as an elected governor
of the Foundation Trust representing
the Trust members. I have
aspired to communicate the views of those I was representing and to facilitate
an understanding of different perspectives with the hope that those delivering services
will start to appreciate the importance of a recovery orientated approach and
that life will get better for each of us.
In this blog I aspire to share some experiences and stories
both my own and those I have seen and heard from others. The views are my own and are shared with good
intention. Thank you for reading this I hope we will come
together in another blog soon and until them I wish you peace and joy.
