Schizoaffective Disorder Simplified

Book excerpt: DescriptionSchizoaffective disorder is a condition which shares symptoms with both bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, and which affects as many as 1 in 200 people - 0.5% of the population. Surprisingly, there have been few books written about schizoaffective disorder, and even fewer aimed at the general reader. Until now. Schizoaffective Disorder Simplified is your comprehensive and up-to-date guide to schizoaffective disorder, featuring an introduction to the condition, its symptoms, its treatment and various ways that people can learn to manage their illness, as well as a series of helpful worksheets for people with schizoaffective disorder. Aimed at the general reader, whether you have schizoaffective disorder, care for someone with the illness or just have a curious interest in the subject, this book will answer all your questions about schizoaffective disorder, and give you an insight into what it is like to live with mania, depression and psychosis. About the AuthorMartine Daniel was born in York in 1981. From a young age, she knew she wanted to be a writer, and whilst at secondary school she would often be caught scribbling stories in the back of exercise books during lessons. Her dreams of seeing her name in print never dimmed, despite her life being turned upside down by episodes of mania, depression and psychosis during her late teens and early twenties.In 2003 the pressures of a stressful job brought on an episode of psychotic mania, which led to the breakdown that ended her hopes of a career in bookselling, following which Martine was finally forced into contact with local mental health services. With the help of medication and the support of her family, she began to pick up the pieces of her life and started work on her first novel The Fire in Your Eyes (published 2009), juggling work on the novel with her studies with The Open University. Her second novel, Legacy of Lies, the sequel to The Fire in Your Eyes, and her third novel, Wading the Waters of my Mind, were both published in 2010. Martine is a keen supporter of the Time to Change campaign and hopes that her writing can help to put an end to the stigma of mental illness.