A life in the day
Volume 9 Issue 3 August 2005 © Pavilion
25
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Over the last 20 years I have been in and out of
hospital on a mental health ward because of my
depression. The last time was when I was so
bad the doctors put me on a section, because I
just wanted to die as I could not see any future.
During my stays on the ward, I found them
very boring as there wasn’t anything to do all
day. While I was on a section I was told that
the local college was coming in, and would I
like to go to any of their classes on creative
writing and laptops? At first I said no, as I was
not good at spelling and had never touched a
computer in my life.
The nurse I was under talked me into just
going to have a look at what it entailed, and
now I can say it has changed my whole life. I
was made to feel welcome by the tutors, and
they said it did not matter about not being able
to spell.
As my section was for seven months, I
found myself looking forward to the classes
each week, and enjoyed the work that we were
asked to do. My main pleasure was creative
writing. I was given a word and I found myself
writing a story. Also the laptop course gave me
the chance to type my work and print it.
On leaving hospital, the tutor asked if I
would like to go to college, and I found this a
bit daunting, but said I would give it a try
.
Now, three years on, I have just finished my
first book on my family history, and am hoping
to have it published in the near future. As for
laptops, I took a course in City and Guilds
4242 and passed, as well as a course in CLAIT
.
My husband John was behind me every step of
the way, and it was the first time in many years
that I had not been in hospital. He bought me a
computer so I could work at home.
When my mother died my auntie gave me
three cassette tapes, and on them was my
mother talking about her life. At one point she
was admitted to Winwick – the main mental
health hospital in her day – and from what she
recalls of the time spent there, it was quite
horrendous. She speaks of being in a long ward
with iron beds down both walls, and down at
the bottom of the ward she describes things
like horse boxes, with the top half of the door
open. From one of them came a woman’s voice
shouting: ‘Mow the lads down boys, mow them
down.’ I am glad there have been great changes
in the way people with a mental health problem
are treated today.
Unfortunately
, last year my husband John
died suddenly, and at that point I just wanted to
give up. But for the college and their constant
support, I would most likely have ended up
back in hospital. But now I have just started an
ECDL course and have just passed word
processing and spreadsheets through Learn
Direct.
Finally, I would like to share my poem with
you – I occasionally write poems during my
darkest hours. When you suffer from a mental
illness, a lot of people do not understand
because they cannot see anything, and I found
people would talk to John instead of me. I hope
you enjoy my poem.
All I can say to anyone is
that the college is there 100% for you.
A ray of hope
Josephine Sharples describes how a creative writing and computer course
changed the course of her life