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WINTER 2009
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Featured Articles

» Strangers in a Strange Land

: "…it stands to reason that, since the psychiatric profession calls refusal of reality a mental illness, all of our society is, in fact, mentally ill."

» The Tattered Tapestry

: "If her family’s love and care alone could have saved Kara, she would be alive today."

» The Twenty-Sixth Annual NYAPRS Convention

: "...no standard of excellence is beyond our reach!"

» View All Winter 2009 Articles

Strangers in a Strange Land

Harvey Newman

I just finished reading two books that resonated very deeply with me. One was an old science-fiction book called Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein, and the other was a non-fiction work by Ernest Becker called The Denial of Death. That I happened to read these two books in sequence turned out to be a wonderful example of how synchronicity operates in life.
Stranger in a Strange Land is the story of Valentine Michael Smith who becomes an orphan on Mars and is brought up as a Martian. When a second expedition arrives on Mars years later, they decide to bring Valentine Michael... (Click Here to Read More)

The Tattered Tapestry

A Family’s Search for Peace With Bipolar Disorder

Kara Smith & Kevin Smith & Tom Smith

On Monday, January 13, 2003, a twenty-six-year old pregnant woman with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression, committed suicide. Her name was Kara Smith. This book is a record of a family’s nine-year battle to keep Kara safe and preserve the independence that Kara needed.
Tapestry is a narrative with three voices: Kara’s father, Tom Smith, Kara’s twin brother Kevin Smith, and from Kara in the posthumous publication of Kara’s writings. This book takes the reader through the unwinding threads that lead to Kara’s irrevocable act.
Tom Smith’s narration dominates... (Click Here to Read More)

The Twenty-Sixth Annual NYAPRS Convention

A personal perspective

Paul Chipkin, Senior Peer Advocate, Staten Island Peer Advocacy Center

One needn’t look deeply at the offerings of the 26th annual NYAPRS convention, held at the Nevele Hotel, in Ellenville, NY, to know that there was enough of quality, to serve all appetites. There was so very much fun, rewarding and enlightening, so much richness to reap great satisfaction, from whatever one’s perspective. In the few days was ample opportunity to create one’s own personal “magic carpet-ride.” This is the story of what I found most meaningful---of course, I’m telling my own experience...a hundred different tales are ready to be recounted, thanks to the New York Association of... (Click Here to Read More)