schizophrenia – Oregon Mental Health Archive

Review: Katie Watkins’ new performance piece, “Schizo,” explores brother’s life with schizophrenia

August 19, 2015

By Jonathan Frochtzwajg, The Oregonian, August 17, 2015 In her new, solo performance piece “Schizo,” which runs through Aug. 29, theater-artist-about-town Katie Watkins explores her brother’s near-lifelong struggle with schizophrenia. Performing on a minimalist set made up mostly of assorted lamps, Watkins, an actor and director with ties to Shaking the Tree, Hand2Mouth Theatre and Portland Playhouse, takes […]

‘Beautiful minds, beautiful hearts’: Nobelist John Nash, wife die in car crash

May 26, 2015

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By Jenny Westberg, Portland Mental Health Examiner, May 25, 2015 John Forbes Nash, Jr., a mathematician who rode the line between genius and madness all the way to a Nobel Prize, died Saturday in a car crash on the New Jersey Turnpike at the age of 86, along with his wife, Alicia, 82. Nash developed […]

Virtual reality machine helps hospital staff understand schizophrenia

May 18, 2014

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KGW.com, May 14, 2014 With the help of a virtual reality machine, Portland’s Adventist Medical Center is teaching employees what it’s like to [have schizophrenia]. “We believe they need to have a better understanding of mental illness so they can provide better care,” said Dr. John Custer. The machine mimics the mind of a schizophrenic […]

Schizophrenia Oral History Project collects voices

May 8, 2014

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The New York Times, May 8, 2014 The psychologist Lynda Crane found that of the many injuries inflicted by schizophrenia, the greatest could be the pain of being forgotten. Just naming the illness somehow erased the person, something she learned when her 18-year-old son’s doctors said he had schizophrenia. Six years later, he committed suicide. […]

First Person Singular: Having schizophrenia — and being part of a group

March 4, 2014

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By Michael Hedrick, The New York Times, Feb. 27, 2014 I still remember the first group therapy session I went to after I got out of the hospital. I was 20 and had been diagnosed with schizophrenia after a road trip that took me from Colorado to the United Nations building in New York City, […]

Melanie Carlson, 23, deals with her voices and unusual experiences with the help of EASA

October 4, 2013

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By Anna Griffin, The Oregonian, Oct. 4, 2013 Melanie Carlson understands how the recent mass shooting at the Washington, D.C., Navy Yard happened. Same with the rampage at Sandy Hook Elementary School last year, and the one at an Aurora, Colo., movie theater two summers ago. Carlson, a pretty 23-year-old with long blonde hair and […]

First Person Singular: A therapist at OSH explores betrayal and voice-hearing

October 2, 2013

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By Pamela Birrell, PhD, Psych Central, Oct. 2, 2013 Note: This story is based on what actually happened in one instance of psychotherapy. Names and details have been changed to protect identities. It was 25 years ago. I was a relatively new intern at a busy inner city community health clinic and working at the […]

‘The Other Side’ – new video shares stories of recovery from mental illness, addiction

July 25, 2013

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By Linda Rosenberg, President & CEO, National Council for Behavioral Health, June 21, 2013 Ever wondered what it’s like to live with a mental illness or addiction? Is there hope? Is help available? The Other Side ― an award-winning 5-minute film marking the 50th anniversary of the Community Mental Health Act passed by President Kennedy […]

Though unhoused, John Wedell is a well-known figure in Forest Grove

July 23, 2013

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By Stephanie Haugen, The Portland Tribune, July 21, 2013 “How fast can you really turn your life around to be the way you want it to be? “I can completely change my life in three years. Three hundred and sixty is the number of angles in a circle and close to the number of days […]

Prejudices, misconceptions about serious mental illness creep into medical treatment plans

May 26, 2013

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By Lauren LeBano, PsychCongress Network, May 23, 2013 Prejudices about individuals with mental illness play a role in many healthcare providers’ treatment decisions involving physical conditions, a randomized trial suggested. When providers of all types — even mental health professionals — were presented with hypothetical vignettes of patients with medical conditions such as obesity, the […]