Facilitating Recovery

• Experiencing success

The experience of success had a number of dimensions, including finding a specific object of hope, setting realistic goals, accomplishing small daily tasks or changes, and achieving life goals in work. Vicarious experience may also be important. Hearing about the success of other people with the same diag nosis also served to inspire hope. A participant describing his feelings on hear ing Bill McPhee, editor of the magazine Schizophrenia Digest, speaking about his ongoing struggle with schizophrenia (cited in Kirkpatrick et al 2001) was inspired: 'He had come from so far and was incapacitated for a number of years and to be functioning at that level gave me some feelings of hope.'

• Taking control

In various ways, people had been able to understand, and gain control over, problems that had seemed uncontrollable: `I have more control over my illness than I ever realised ... Knowing that gives me more hope because I know the next time when I start to get ill I can turn it around. You don't have to let your illness run your life.' (cited in Kirkpatrick et al 2001).

 

• Finding Meaning:

In a variety of ways people found value in their lives. This sometimes included religious and spiritual beliefs. A participant described ‘.. feeling like there is some purpose in life. I'm not just a person here on earth meant to take, take, take, - but I have something to give'. (cited in Kirkpatrick et al 2001).

 

• Maintaining Relationships:

Aspects of relationships with friends, families and peers that were important in inspiring hope included being there, providing encouragement, showing understanding and giving support: ‘he listens to me and understands I am not well and that there are things I can and cant do, but he always has the utmost faith in me'. (a participant describing his relationship with his brother, cited in Kirkpatrick et al 2001).

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