Elyn Saks Podcast Interview With Virgil Stucker: 3 Keys To Her Successful Management of Debilitating Schizophrenia

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Elyn Saks Podcast Interview With Virgil Stucker: 3 Keys To Her Successful Management of Debilitating Schizophrenia

by Pete Earley

(7-12-19) Elyn Saks is probably best-known as the author of The Center Cannot Hold, her eloquent best-selling autobiography that recounts when she first heard voices speaking to her as a young teenager, her attempted suicides in college, and ultimately how she learned to live on her own as an adult with schizophrenia in an often terrifying world.

Virgil Stucker is best-known as the former founding executive director of the CooperRiis Healing Community, retiring after a long career working in therapeutic communities. He now runs Virgil Stucker Associates, a private firm that “empowers mental health decision making for families and individuals… advocating for integrative, holistic solutions to the challenges of mental illnesses.”

This week, Virgil interviewed Elyn on his podcast about what has helped her manage her serious mental illness so successfully. (Hint: Great treatment that involves medication and therapy, supportive loved ones, and meaningful work.) They also discuss “Supported Decision-Making” through the use of psychiatric advance directives, and her tireless efforts to eliminate the use of mechanic restraints for persons in crisis.

Elyn Saks Book:

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She doesn’t have negative or cognitive issues and takes Clozapine for her hallucinations. So lucky her.

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So basically she does as well as can be expected for a very highly intelligent person without cognitive and negative issues that happens to have schizophrenia ?

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Saks has a PhD in psychoanalysis, and she receives psychoanalytic psychotherapy 4-5 times per week.

I find that interesting since psychoanalysis seems to have fallen out of favor in psychology.

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One swallow doesn’t make a summer ? In terms of treatment effect.

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I just found that interesting. Maybe that’s how she manages her negatives. Being married also helps a lot, and having a job that gives her a sense of purpose.

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i think i would get on with her, i think we could have a good conversation,

she is extremely intelligent but i like to lighten the mood, idk much about psychoanalysis but if its working for her then thats good

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I just bought her book got it yesterday because I saw an interview with her and I like how articulate she speaks about her experience with schizophrenia.

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She goes to therapy 5 times a week.

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