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A review by bookdragon217
Born Into Crisis: A Memoir by Kenneth Nixon Jr., Kenneth Nixon Jr.
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
4.25
"A compassion gap exists where we allow people with severe mental illness to be marginalizednand excluded from the solutions table...These souls are relegated to a life of stigmatization, incarceration and institutionalization."
Born Into Crisis by Kenneth Nixon, Jr. is a timely read for Mental Health Awareness Month. As the world watches the events of the Jordan Neely case unfold, it is an all too familiar reminder that this country and corporate greed in leadership continue to fail the mentally ill. The mentally ill are demonized and left to fend for themselves on the streets, prisons and against their own minds with no support and resources.
Nixon writes about his experience growing up watching his mother battle with Bipolar 1 and paranoid schizophrenia. He shares his trauma and fear about his interactions with her and talks about his own healing journey and self-work to come to a place of forgiveness, empathy and advocacy for his mother and those suffering from mental health issues. He gives an authentic and honest view of what untreated mental illness looks like without lack of wrap around services, such as supportive housing, inpatient beds, and intensive case management and provides resources and solutions throughout the book.
Nixon's memoir is a call to action for advocacy and an aggressive restructuring of the mental health system. He calls for a trauma informed approach which includes intra-faith community organizing, tackling cognitive bias and for active lobbying for funds by politicians and those in power. He also calls for people to examine themselves and how they are complicit in the problem when they don't examine their own biased perspectives, continue to stigmatize mental health and not have open, honest conversations about family members or friends who are struggling. The time for lip service is over as the country faces a mental health crisis of epic proportions. Too many people are suffering in silence. The number of preventable deaths continues to rise due to pushing the narrative that people should just think positive and everything will be OK.
Thank you to @booksforwardpr for the gifted copy. Please read this book & start the change.
Born Into Crisis by Kenneth Nixon, Jr. is a timely read for Mental Health Awareness Month. As the world watches the events of the Jordan Neely case unfold, it is an all too familiar reminder that this country and corporate greed in leadership continue to fail the mentally ill. The mentally ill are demonized and left to fend for themselves on the streets, prisons and against their own minds with no support and resources.
Nixon writes about his experience growing up watching his mother battle with Bipolar 1 and paranoid schizophrenia. He shares his trauma and fear about his interactions with her and talks about his own healing journey and self-work to come to a place of forgiveness, empathy and advocacy for his mother and those suffering from mental health issues. He gives an authentic and honest view of what untreated mental illness looks like without lack of wrap around services, such as supportive housing, inpatient beds, and intensive case management and provides resources and solutions throughout the book.
Nixon's memoir is a call to action for advocacy and an aggressive restructuring of the mental health system. He calls for a trauma informed approach which includes intra-faith community organizing, tackling cognitive bias and for active lobbying for funds by politicians and those in power. He also calls for people to examine themselves and how they are complicit in the problem when they don't examine their own biased perspectives, continue to stigmatize mental health and not have open, honest conversations about family members or friends who are struggling. The time for lip service is over as the country faces a mental health crisis of epic proportions. Too many people are suffering in silence. The number of preventable deaths continues to rise due to pushing the narrative that people should just think positive and everything will be OK.
Thank you to @booksforwardpr for the gifted copy. Please read this book & start the change.