 The
Emerging Into Light image is "a symbol of recovery
and resilience for people who care about mental illness and mental
health." Jennifer Osborn, a consumer and young woman of
considerable artistic talent, created the image because she wanted
to share her story through art. Since July 2000 the Canadian
Alliance on Mental Illness and Health formally endorsed the symbol
and agreed to act as custodian of the image. By CMHA adopting the
symbol we are bringing mental illness out of the dark ages and
into our community -- into the light.Canadian Mental Health
Association/Peel Branch operates on a Recovery philosophy.
Many people believe that it isn’t possible to recover from
a mental illness, but it is. Not to be confused with cure,
Recovery is the point at which a person begins taking that
first step forward as a person separate from his/her illness.
People say this about what Recovery means to them: "I got
my life back!" "Feeling alert and alive," "Knowing I have
tomorrow," "Working with and relating to others," "Having the
ability to work."
Just as a catastrophic event or diagnosis of a serious physical
illness can be frightening, so can be diagnosis of a serious
mental illness. Visions of unemployment, poverty and disability
may go through one's mind. Add to that the stigma that people with
a mental illness face only increases anxiety levels. At such a
vulnerable time, it's important to offer hope not discouragement.
That’s what the Recovery philosophy does.
Three people who know about Recovery first hand are
Daniel G. Cullen, Ray Jansons and Peter Mulcair.
Daniel Cullen, a consumer survivor living in Mississauga, once
lived on the street with multiple psychiatric diagnoses, taking as
much as 3,000 mg per day of medication. He wrote
this acrostic (a poem in which
certain letters form words). Ray Jansons, another Mississaugan,
wrote this poem What
Recovery Means to me and read it at the 2004 CMHA/Peel Annual
General Meeting. Peter Mulcair's recovery is lived out in
his photographs, which are seen at the top of pages on this web
site. Click here for his
bio. |
