'A patient is standing in the middle of the river. He gazes across the
water to the city and the mountain above where the sun is setting. His
back is turned to the hospital. The nurses are waiting for him patiently
on the river bank. He seems uncertain whether to cross the river or to
return. There is no danger. He is on the edge, in an in-between space,
as is the hospital where I have worked as a specialist psychiatrist for
over 25 years.'
For many of us, what lies beyond conventional portrayals of mental
illness is often shrouded in mystery, misconception and fear. Dr Sean
Baumann spent decades as a Psychiatrist at Valkenberg Hospital and,
through his personal engagement with patients' various forms of
psychosis, he describes the lived experiences of those who suffer from
schizophrenia, depression, bipolar and other disorders.
The stories told are authentic, mysterious and compelling, representing
both vivid expressions of minds in turmoil and the struggle to give form
and meaning to distress. The author seeks to describe these encounters
in a respectful way, believing that careless portrayals of madness cause
further suffering and perpetuate the burden of stigma.
Baumann argues cogently for a more inclusive way of making sense of
mental health. With sensitivity and empathy, his enquiries into the
territories of art, psychology, consciousness, otherness, free will and
theories of the self reveal how mental illness raises questions that
affect us all.
