INTRODUCTION
During my early teen years I developed a mental illness. Since then, my life has taken many turns, some towards recovery. I have written about my experiences so that the lives of others who have a mental illness might be improved. I hope that my insights will stimulate new thought concerning the meaning in psychoses, the forces of stigmatization, and the search for survival. My experiences and attitudes have implications not only for the psychiatrically disabled, but also for those who support the ill: their families, therapists, and physicians.

Best Wishes,
Marcia A. Murphy
[About Me]

Part I  An Integrated Approach

The resources in this section are evidence and support for an integrated approach to psychiatric care in treating the body, mind, and spirit. Through my writing I explain how spirituality, alongside of biology and other factors, is an integral part of recovery and is essential for healing the emotional, psychological, and physical suffering inherent in illness. Research has shown that spirituality in particular or, religious faith, play an important role in the recovery process.

Book

Allbooks Review Editor's Choice Award for 2011 Finalist

My memoir, Voices in the Rain: Meaning in Psychosis, is the story of my experience with mental illness through which I find spiritual meaning and, ultimately, God. As a person who has experienced severe psychiatric illness and landed on my feet, I believe I offer a unique first-person perspective. I tell what such illness is like, its symptoms, stigmatization, hospitalizations, and daily life. I take you into my world where I found insights into the spiritual meaning of my illness. My story may give desperately needed hope to others who are ill, their families, psychiatric professionals, as well as to those who know someone who is ill. Available at Wild Rose Books, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and Amazon.com.

Articles

Grand Rounds, Schizophrenia Bulletin (internet advance access May 4, 2006), Vol. 33, No. 3, 657-660 (2007). This short story is a work of creative nonfiction and is based on real events from my life. Dr. Gingerich (a pseudonym), my psychiatrist, put on a Grand Rounds on the topic of recovery from schizophrenia. During the Rounds, I am interviewed and I talk to an audience of mainly psychiatric professionals, i.e., medical students, psychiatric residents and psychiatrists. I give my view of my experience of schizophrenia and what I believe brought about recovery.

First Person Account: Meaning of Psychoses, Schizophrenia Bulletin, Vol. 23, No. 3, 541-543 (1997). In First Person Account: Meaning of Psychoses, I address the scientific community. I encourage mental health professionals to go beyond the biomedical model of brain dysfunction to consider the devastating impact of psychosis. I describe the psychotic symptoms I experienced as a young adult, problems I've had over the years, and factors that led to improvement in my condition.

[Coping With] The Spiritual Meaning of Psychosis, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, Vol. 24, No. 2, 179-183 (2000). In the second article, [Coping With] The Spiritual Meaning of Psychosis, I present a thematic analysis of the meaning of psychosis. This is based on interviews I conducted on individuals who were taking part in a rehabilitation program. In this article, I ask the psychiatric community to consider these persons' interpretations of psychotic phenomena. And I urge counselors, therapists, and doctors to recognize how spiritual attitudes and lifestyles give direction and meaning to the lives of those with psychiatric disabilities.

Rejection, Stigma, and Hope, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, Vol. 22, No. 2, 191-194 (1998). Next, Rejection, Stigma, and Hope describes the pain caused by stigmatization of the mentally ill. I share my own experience of stigma as well as the experiences of those at the rehabilitation center where I conducted interviews. I also give examples of discrimination and prejudice. To conclude the article, I tell of how I found hope in the face of rejection, and how I believe mental health professionals and organizations can restore dignity to the lives of those with psychiatric illness.

Psychiatric Illness from the Religious Perspective. Unpublished manuscript (1997). Psychiatric Illness from the Religious Perspective was written with the intention of promoting spirituality in medicine. Using a combination of personal account and theory, I describe the transformative impact of psychosis. Standing alone, I feel the biomedical model of psychiatric illness is reductionistic. Instead, I believe a holistic view of mental illness is needed that merges secular psychiatry and religion. This validates the interconnectedness of body, mind, and spirit. I describe how adopting this perspective brought healing to my life.

Before I Started to Serve. In Sharon Kutz-Mellem (Ed.), DIFFERENT MEMBERS ONE BODY: Welcoming the Diversity of Abilities in God's Family (pp. 27-28). Louisville, KY: Witherspoon Press (1998). The last article, Before I Started to Serve, is an essay published by the Presbyterian Church, (U.S.A.). In this one, I state what any psychiatrist will tell you that schizophrenia does not involve split or multiple personalities. This misconception has been fueled by the media and Hollywood. I explain that schizophrenia is a term that covers many kinds of symptoms, such as, thought disorder, hallucinations (auditory or visual), delusions, apathy, and withdrawal. A person can have some or all of these and individual cases vary enormously. This essay also provides examples of activities I undertook in the church which led to fellowship and a sense of well being. By involving myself in the religious community, I found that the love of Christ—through the Christian people—counteracts stigmatization that often breaks the heart and crushes the spirit of those with psychiatric disabilities.

Part II  "Come now, let us reason together...." Isaiah 1:18a

In this section I hope to encourage rational thought and discussion about controversial topics with the hope that such reasoning and communications will result in greater understanding.

Christian Apologetics and Postmodernism: A Rebuttal (2009). With this paper I hope to clarify various theological and philosophical positions that divide religious communities. Opposing camps often sit side by side on church pews. When we say we worship God what exactly is the focus of our worship? Can it matter to God as to who or what we think He is? Should it matter to us? This composition is just a brief preliminary sketch of a more complicated debate that I may develop elsewhere.

Copyright © 2012

Any comments you may have are welcome. Contact me at murphyma@mchsi.com.