Former patients speak out about recovery

Carlos' Story

“Carlos was quite the handful as a child. Teachers and neighbours complained but his family thought Carlos would eventually grow out of his “high spirits.” His dad looked back at his own restless energy as a kid." Read the rest of Carlos' story.

Mike's Story

"I have the privilege of being bipolar with the added bonus of having periods of total psychosis in extreme situations. So I have highs and lows and I can lose touch with reality. I have symptoms of both schizophrenia and bipolar, which the professionals call schizo-effective disorder." Read the rest of Mike's story.

Marie-Josée's Story

"During my anorexic phases, in a day I would eat the equivalent of two pieces of fruit and a couple of cabbage leaves. When I was bulimic, I would eat and eat and eat, then make myself throw up, repeat the cycle, throwing up sometimes up to 30 times a day. I did not want to drink anything, not even water, because I feared the sensation of fullness..." Read the rest of Marie-Josée's story.

Naomi's story 

Naomi is only 23 years-old when she first presents herself at the Douglas. Her family history is a difficult one. When she was 15, her father killed himself (it is thought that he was suffering from a bipolar disorder). Her mother was extremely anxious and unable to function. Her younger brother had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and exhibited behavioural problems. Read the rest of Naomi's story.

Denise's story (as told by her husband)

When Denise began showing signs of memory loss, I took her to the a medical clinic to see the doctor on duty. By chance, it was Dr. Virmani. In addition to referring us to a neurologist, Dr. Virmani told us about the Memantine clinical trial and we jumped at the opportunity to participate. Read the rest of Denise's story.

Other Patients

Read Anne's story
Read Charlotte's story
Read Joannie's story
Read Sophia's story