Drug free healing from depression, anxiety, bipolar, schizophrenia, etc…

 Stories of healing and transformation

This post may be cut and pasted in its entirety and shared without further permission.

These are all stories of recovery (or the word I prefer is transformation) that involve freedom from drugs/medications. Most everyone on these pages were told they would need psychiatric drugs for the rest of their lives and proved psychiatry sorely wrong.

There are MORE healing/transformation STORIES HERE — specific to extreme states such sometimes labeled psychosis, with accompanying books and websites for further reading.

Are you recovered? What is your survivor mission? —Inspiring pieces from Pat Deegan’s life (also recovered)

Recovery Stories listed below:

New stories are now added at the top of  list so if you visit again they’ll be easy to find

Monica’s story: the aftermath of polypsychopharmacology – this is my story up to 2012, when it was published on Dr. David Healy’s website. The transformation has continued.

This is mini memoir at Mad in America: Everything Matters: a Memoir From Before, During and After Psychiatric Drugs — from a few years  ago now. Healing has since snowballed. 

• Thirty Months Off – Renée is drug free and getting healthier everyday
• Benzodiazepine withdrawal story. Through hell and out the other side
• It feels so great to be off psych meds: a recovery story by Corinna West
•  Psychosis, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Story as a Vehicle of Healing
• Pray, cry, scream, kick, write, whatever it takes, do not be silent, let it out. Benzodiazepine withdrawal recovery story
• Remember my friend Amy who was close to death? She is now thriving
• Jazz in Pieces Medication Madness — Epilogue and update: BIPOLAR off meds success  NEW — the epilogue, that is (Jazz is UNDIAGNOSED by the MD)
• The beginning of emergence for Susan, finding faith and hope…she was not permanently broken
• Withdrawal from antidepressant leads to spiral into polydrugging, until Molly realizes that drugs are the problem and emerges victorious
• The Power Behind my Bipolar Part 1 and Part 2
• A recovery from benzos–into severe benzo illness and out
• The following is by a blogger called BipolarLife. He is currently happy and med free.
• Hope, Time and Love; three guardian angels, Alternative Routes to Recovery — Grainne Humphrys
• Ted Chabasinski’s story of survival
• Caty’s Story–a recovery story through peer support and the Freedom Center
  
• Decolonizing our minds: Freeing our spirits  — Guest Blogger Leah Harris
• Cindy’s Story of Recovery —A journey of healing through food and Chinese Medicine
• Recovery through mind training —a journey of meditation in Buddhism—By Sally Clay
• Jim Gottstein’s recovery story —The story of a successful human rights attorney
• Another Cindy’s Story of Recovery — (Long term benzo addiction which led to other drugs) Journey of nutrition, holistic care and energy work
• Jim S Story of Recovery
• Will Hall’s Story of Recovery
• “undiagnosed’s” Story of Recovery—more stories by the same author here.
• Shelby’s story of recovery
• Mania as Spiritual Emergency
• Sean’s youtube odyssey of recovery from a spiritual emergency — (bipolar or waking up)
• To hell and back–Thor Nystrom’s story of psych drugs treatment as a teenager
• A method of recovery discovered by Jayme — How I Deal with Mental Breakdowns
• The Wind Never Lies —  Steve Morgan’s Recovery Story
• A Catalog of Recovery Stories

Here are some more recent posts on the author’s healing journey:

Psychiatric drug withdrawal: preparation for before you begin

• Detoxification (which is really about balancing the internal ecosystem): healthy living for body/mind/spirit

• Forms of dissociation are common to all human beings

• Chronic illness is trauma embodied

• healing is about letting the wisdom of the body re-emerge (and other reflections)

• Surrender more. Seek less.

• Working with “parts” and “subpersonalities” as we come to consciousness and heal

• Stop. Trying. To. Fix. Yourself.

There are MORE RECOVERY STORIES HERE — specific to extreme states such as psychosis, with accompanying books and websites for further reading.

New video: Coming Off Psychiatric Drugs: A Harm Reduction Approach | Will Hall

See also: the “It Gets Better” Series if you’re sick and in the midst of psychiatric drug withdrawal

More posts on psychiatric drug withdrawal:

*it is potentially dangerous to come off medications without careful planning. See: Psychiatric drug withdrawal and protracted withdrawal syndrome round-up

For a multitude of ideas about how to create a life filled with safe alternatives to psychiatric drugs visit the drop-down menus at the top of this page.  

 ●  Online Support in Withdrawal

See also: Peer support? This is the real thing. Free of institutionalization. (psych drug withdrawal)

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