Josie's blog

Josie

My name's Josie, and I've been a member of Rethink since I had a breakdown a few years ago.

A spell on a psychiatric ward in London only worsened my mental state – so atrocious was the 'care' and threatening the environment – and a further stay in a Yorkshire hospital, although more beneficial, underlined how scandalously under-resourced mental health services are. It's for this reason that I've become an activist and media volunteer for Rethink.

Posts by Josie

Come on, Clegg!

27 May 2011 | Posted by Josie | 3 comments
Topics: Campaigns, Someone who has experienced mental illness

When I became unwell, I was lucky enough to have the unfailing support of my family, partner and close friends, and my own savings to pay for CBT, when there were no CBT therapists within my local NHS at the time. Without all of that, I wouldn't be where I am today.
 
But I met many people in hospital who didn't have that support, and considering the sorry state (generally speaking, there are exceptions) of NHS services, combined with the stigma that mental illness carries with it, I've been left asking the obvious question – how on Earth do people without friend and family support (and spare cash) recover?

I believe that this 'pause' in NHS reform is the opportunity to improve mental health services and put an end to decades of neglect – but how do we grab that opportunity and make it work? We can start by getting our message across as often as we can while the coalition undertakes its 'listening exercise' – so I jumped at the chance to go to University College Hospital on Thursday, armed with some questions for Nick Clegg.