Our Family Was Forged In Fire: Living Through Postnatal Psychosis
Today, Thea Mae – my little warrior child – is three years old. I can barely believe how much time has passed since I first held in her my arms. Yet, it also feels like she’s been with us forever. These past three years have been eventful, to say the least. In addition to the […]
BBC Horizon: Why Did I Go Mad?
This week I was one of three contributors with personal experience of things that often get called ‘psychosis’ (hearing voices, seeing visions and paranoia) on the BBC Documentary ‘Why Did I Go Mad?’. The title, suggested by one of Jacqui Dillon’s voices, was deliberately provocative in order to challenge what we mean by madness and – […]
Radio Times: The Voices in My Head
What’s it like to battle with a dozen people talking inside your head? Rachel Waddingham tells her remarkable story. By Moya Sarner, published in Radio Times Rachel Waddingham sits cross-legged on the sofa and, with the enthusiasm of a children’s TV presenter, talks about travelling the world, the Masters degree she’s doing in psychology and […]
Newsweek: Hearing Voices Movement Special Report
In the Autumn, last year, I met with a lovely young journalist called William Lee Adams in a quaint tea shop in Canterbury. Sat on the sofa, surrounded by shoppers and sightseers enjoying their lunch, we chatted for an hour or two about my experiences of hearing voices and the importance of the Hearing Voices […]
40,000 Feet And One Decade Later
10 years ago today I found the body of one of my closest friends and allies – Susan. Another casualty of a mental health system ill equipped to support voice hearers overwhelmed by past traumas, Susan died before she fully found her wings. Under the circumstances it seems strangely poignant that I’m writing this whilst […]
Boxing Clever – Trauma, Anger & Self Expression
Please note: There are no descriptions of abuse in this, but if you’re feeling sensitive please be careful when you’re reading it. I have some angry child voices that have reasons to be angry. Whilst I’ve always been a fan of creative expression, I’m generally much more comfortable writing a song or drawing a picture […]
Conference: Giving Psychosis A Voice 2
On Thursday 8th March, I was lucky enough to be speaking at a really interesting conference hosted by Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. Giving Psychosis A Voice 2 brought together a line up of speakers that I would pay to see, so to be asked to present alongside some of the great and the good […]
Challenging Stigma on the Jeremy Vine Show
Whilst I really appreciated the chance to challenge popular stereotypes about people diagnosed with ‘schizophrenia’ in The Sun, I felt a little disappointed that I did not have the opportunity to show that the difficulties labelled at ‘psychotic’ make sense in the context of someone’s life experiences. So, when Jeremy Vine’s producer contacted me through […]
Communicating With Voices: Part One
Over the last 12 years, I’ve been struggling to find ways of dealing with the voices I hear. For much of that time I’ve been taking enough neuroleptic medication to knock out a horse. Meds are a bit like putting a giant mattress over the voices – I find it dulled them and often supressed […]
Who am I? – Victim Vs Survivor
“An identity would seem to be arrived at by the way in which the person faces and uses his experience” – James Baldwin Identity is a funny thing. Most of us go around feeling confident that we have one, but rarely feel the need to look inside and define ourselves absolutely. On a personal level, […]
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