Hindley, S and Collier, E 2011, 'Learning from the past: one carers story' , Mental Health Practice . (In Press)

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Abstract

This paper shares the story of Judy through the experience of her husband and carer Steve. Judy killed herself in 2006 after a lifetime of mental ill health. Her story and that of Steve who lived alongside her struggle from the day they met in 1966, provides us with some stark reminders of the weaknesses in the mental health system and a powerful motive for an individual commitment to active lifelong learning where we listen to such stories and ensure we learn from them and re-evaluate our practice based on them. For Steve, this story is still ongoing, and although it looks back over time, it demonstrates the importance of a biographical approach to practice where distress and distressed behaviours in the present can be understood by looking into the past. Inevitably when condensing, in Steve’s case, a 60,000 word account into a few thousand, much detail is lost but an attempt has been made to maintain the integrity of Steve’s story and the key messages he wants to share.

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