Published: December 2022

Keywords:
Paranoa, Meaning, Hearing Voices Movemenr, Collaborative practice Dialogical self.

Nur Sheikh

My name is Nuru Sheikh but I like to be called Nur. I am a mother of a one year old on. I am a survivor of a mental health condition known as schizophrenia. I am also a mental health assistant. I was initially diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2016 after a traumatic and also near death experience. I usually have episodes every two years. Since 2016 I have had two episodes which led to forced hospitalisation and one where I managed to cope well and avert an escalation of my episode and there by hospitalisation. I presently live in Kenya.

Lykourgos Karatzaferis

Lykourgos Karatzaferis was born at Nikoleika Aegion. Without realizing how and why he ended up studying medicine in Alexandroupolis, completed his specialization in psychiatry and a MS degree on Mental Health Promotion-Prevention of Mental Disorders. He worked and works in various contexts and at the moment, he is member of the Social Cooperatice “Psyhi, Logos, Epi-koinonia”. He participates in Hearing Voices Network and in the Initiative for a Polymorphous Movement for mental health. He continues a never ending education at Athenian Institute of Anthropos (AIA) following a Systemic - Dialectic Psychosocial Approach according to which “Anthropos”. AIA along with his neighborhood at Nikoleika and with some people at Leros’ Psychiatric Hospital and the 9th Psychiatric Department of Psychiatric Hospital in Athens actually taught him how to talk and learn.

Abstract

The current article states, among others, a moment of reflection on the writers’ relationship, which started approximately six and a half years ago, through the agency of a sociopolitical forum of support for battered women. One of the writers (Nur) had sought help from the forum during a period of intense experiences described by herself as paranoia, while she was homeless and hearing voices that urged her to constantly flee. Despite the forum’s aid, she did not manage to avoid hospitalization and mandatory medication.