The Quiet Room: A Journey Out of the Torment of Madness by Lori Schiller, Amanda Bennett, Amanda Bennett (With)

Product Details

Synopsis

Schiller's gripping, heart-rending and ultimately triumphant story of her journey into madness and back to reality is told through the voices of Lori and her family, friends and doctor, and captures a rare, astoundingly vivid view into the inner life of a schizophrenic. "A stunning story of courage, persistence, and hope".—Publishers Weekly.

Annotation

In the bestselling tradition of The Bell Jar and I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, this is the electrifying story of one woman's descent into madness--and her courageous, triumphant struggle to rejoin the real world. To re-create Lori's harrowing story, coauthor Bennett drew on Lori's personal diaries as well as intimate interviews with relatives, friends, and doctors.

Publishers Weekly

Schiller, raised in a loving, affluent family in a New York City suburb, was 17 when she first heard the ``voices'' that would take over her life. Willing herself to appear normal, she resisted the brutally disparaging voices that urged her towards violence and suicide, and she succeeded in graduating from college. But early in 1982, at age 23 and after a suicide attempt, she was persuaded by her parents to admit herself to a mental hospital. For the next seven years, Schiller's auditory hallucinations worsened, and she repeatedly attempted suicide. Diagnosed with schizo-affective disorder, she underwent shock therapy and was treated with antipsychotic drugs. As the symptoms of her disease waxed and waned, Schiller was in and out of hospitals and treatment programs; her weight soared and she became dependent on cocaine. Entering a program at New York Hospital, she suggested to her therapist that she try a new drug, clozapine, which gradually helped her to cope with her illness. Schiller now works at a halfway house. With Wall Street Journal reporter Bennett, she presents her stunning story of courage, persistence and hope. (July)