'Listen to my madness': understanding the experiences of people with serious mental illness.
This article explores the salience of disability theory for understanding the experiences of people with serious mental illness. Drawing on data from a focus group study, we suggest that users experience both impairment (as embodied irrationality) which can, in itself, be oppressive, and also have to manage their lives within a largely disabling society. We outline some of the strategies adopted by users to manage their situation and ensure they access and receive health services, and illustrate how these are a result of the complex relationship between disability and impairment. We suggest that using a framework of the social model of disability provides a useful way of understanding and making sense of the experience of users with serious mental illness.
Lester
Helen
H
Department of Primasry Care and General Practice, Medical School, University of Birmingham, UK. H.E.Lester@bham.ac.uk
Tritter
Jonathan Q
JQ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001294:Attitude to Health; D004739:England; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D028642:Persons with Psychiatric Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D011287:Prejudice; D012649:Self Concept; D012938:Social Perception; D012944:Social Support; D012962:Sociology, Medical; D013222:State Medicine; D013240:Stereotyping