I recently read this book which was co-written by a woman called Linda Caine and her therapist, Robin Royston.... a bit of light holiday reading I thought... not!? Yet what I thought might be a difficult read I found to be unputdownable, as has everyone I've subsequently passed it to! Linda Caine presents as a woman with two children and a loving husband who is admitted to a psychiatric hospital after a suicidal episode. It begins the journey of her depression and the unravelling of her history through therapy. It reads like a detective story as, piece by piece, her memories are unlocked revealing a series of horrific events in her childhood and past. Although I found myself comparing experiences (hers were much more horrific than mine), nevertheless, there was so much that I could identify with in terms of the progression of her illness... dissociation, insomnia, panic attacks, self harm etc It felt very much like a description of my own experience of depression and suicidality. What has been helpful is that by passing it to family and friends, they too have a much greater insight into what it is like for me.... explaining in a way that I never could, the agonies, despair and draining nature of the illness. I don't know if others will find it helpful... but if you've suffered abuse, if you self harm, if you are suicidal and if you want others to have some small understanding of your suffering I would seriously recommend this book!
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