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The voices in my head | Eleanor Longden
She was told her diagnosis was a dead end. She became a psychologist instead. Not "what's wrong with you" but "what's happened to you."
Who it's for
Longden tells a story that starts where many viewers with a psychiatric diagnosis feel stuck: a frightening experience, a label, hospital, and a professional telling her the outlook was bleak.
Feelings it meets
What it is
A TED2013 talk in which Eleanor Longden recounts hearing voices that began during her college years, initially as innocuous narration, which over time became hostile and led to a schizophrenia diagnosis, hospitalisation and medication. She describes how the standard psychiatric approach initially failed to help her and credits her recovery to learning to listen to and understand her voices.
Where to find it
YouTube, official TED channel (free). Transcript on TED.com.
Before you start
Heads up: Self-harm and sexual abuse references.
Age: Ages 16+
I’ve got out at last,Charlotte Perkins Gilman, The Yellow Wallpaper
