Winner, NSW Carer of the Year 2013!
Winner, Certificate of Commendation, NSW Mental Health Awards 2013!
Art from Adversity shines the spotlight on mental illness, in particular, bipolar disorder. It provides an insight into what it is like to become mentally ill, to ascend into mania, free fall into depression, and finally emerge profoundly changed by the experience.
Art from Adversity: A Life with Bipolar is Anne Therese Naylor’s memoir and information guide to mental illness. She provides insights into what it is like to become mentally ill and what it takes to become well.
Her artworks, both on the cover and woven throughout the book, illustrate the creativity that can come from adversity.
With messages demonstrating that everyone knows someone affected by mental illness, and that positive things can be born from adversity, this book encourages all of us that education about mental illness is the key to understanding and freedom.
This book will strongly appeal to lovers of memoir, practical advice, and anyone who knows someone with a mental illness.
Anne raised over $1,200 for mental health research at her Sydney launch!
Various paintings featured in Art From Adversity have been sold as fundraising for mental health research to CADE Clinic in Sydney, and donated to Belmont Private Hospital in Brisbane. One such painting, ‘Landscape of the mind’, has been featured in The Lancet Medical Journal (Vol 381).
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“West Pennant Hills mother of four, carer, special needs teacher, artist and now author, Anne Therese Naylor has recently launched her first published book titled Art from Adversity: A Life with Bipolar. The book is a ‘must read’ for anyone caring for those with mental illness, particularly Bipolar Disorder, and for those wishing to understand what it is like to become mentally ill … The book began as a compilation of poems Anne had written throughout her own ordeal with Bipolar Disorder. Over two years Anne collected the poetry she had written and approached a number of publishers with a view to helping others through their journeys. The book is in two parts. The first Part is Anne’s memoir; the second thoroughly covers Bipolar Disorder and mental illness in general, with sections on Anxiety, Gambling, Drinking and Drugs, Diagnosis and Treatment, Attitudes to Mental Illness, Self Help and Where to get help and Tips for Carers.”
– Bill Aitken, Monthly Chronicle
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“SPP was delighted to get our hands on an advance copy of this book before the official launch in May. We were even more pleased to begin reading it and discover the author’s reference to South Pacific Private right in the opening pages!
Art From Adversity is a very personal story, told honestly and passionately. It feels very natural. It is filled with metaphor and also with gorgeous examples of the author’s art – a literal and visual treat.
This ‘bug’s eye’ view of life with bipolar is fascinating, frightening and also heartening. Anne presents it all – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Her account of the inspiration and drive that she found during her periods of mania, and how this led her to creating visual art, is told with the bittersweet tinge of experience that knows of the fall that inevitably follows.
We were also struck by the real-life moments of discrimination that the author faced. How could you not cringe when reading of a teacher’s response to the request to accommodate an acknowledged disability? It’s a stark reminder of the stigma that persists around mental illness – and to a general ignorance in our society around what it means to have a mental illness, and how to treat people who do.
Anne makes a clear point about treatment in her book. She emphasises the importance of seeking treatment, seeking it early – and then maintaining treatment even (and especially in the case of bipolar) when you are feeling good. The book concludes with a section of very useful resources and ways to access help.
SPP is proud to support the launch of ‘Art From Adversity’.”
– South Pacific Private Hospital Pacific Views Newsletter and Pacific Connections Newsletter
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“Imagine being on a runaway horse with no way of grabbing the reins to take control. This is how local author Anne Naylor describes living with bipolar disorder on a day-to-day basis.
Ms Naylor, who also studied painting and drawing at Sydney Gallery School at Meadowbank TAFE, donated all her profits from the [Sydney] book launch towards mental health research.
The book includes memoirs detailing her struggles with the disorder and information about the condition.”
– Matt Haglas, Hills Shire Times
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“Art From Adversity: A Life With Bipolar is an amazing account of the author’s experiences living with mental illness. It is impossible not to journey with the author through her insightful stories. It is also a celebration of the creativity that can emerge from adversity, and what it takes to become well.
The first part of the book is written as a memoir and is a collection of stories describing the highs and lows of living with bipolar disorder, and the struggles of diagnosis. The author’s artwork is woven through the book, illustrating the creativity that can stem from great challenges. The artworks visually capture the moods and inspirations associated with the author’s journey.
The second part of the book contains practical information for people with bipolar disorder and friends and carers of people with a mental illness. One of the overall messages is that discussing mental illness more openly can help to decrease the shame and stigma attached. Everyone knows someone with a mental illness, and there are many different viewpoints and perspectives which can add to public knowledge.
In a chapter specifically for carers of people with a mental illness (or suspected mental illness), Naylor provides support through her own experience, and a large section of practical strategies and informal advice. There are also many organisations listed which are able to provide support to people suffering from mental illness and their carers.”
– Carers NSW Librarian, Carers NSW Newsletter (June)
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“A beautifully written manuscript. I enjoyed not only the insightful exploration of the subject matter but the way in which the book was written – Anne is able to capture the emotion as well as the facts of her experience.”
– Michael Sluis, Community Programs Manager, Black Dog Institute
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“This is an inspiring book in which Anne has drawn on her own experiences to educate and inform others suffering from bipolar disorder. Her use of narrative, paintings and poetry is engaging and illuminating. It is an excellent addition to the literature on bipolar illness and a brilliant read.”
– Professor Gin S Malhi MB ChB BSc(Hons) MD FRCPsych FRANZC Head, Department of Psychiatry, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“I would just like to thank you for inviting me to Anne Therese Naylor’s [launch of her] book on mental illness, A Life With Bipolar. I would just like to say thank you truly. I have Bipolar, and I found the book very helpful and I am much happier now from reading many parts of the book. I also feel that event [at the Children’s Bookshop, Beecroft] was very positive and useful for me. I appreciated that invitation and that night was truly a blessing in my life.”
– Ritu M
IP (Interactive Publications Pty Ltd)
“This book is written with great courage and amazing creativity, and by telling her stories Anne is leading us out of the shadows towards a stigma free word where mental ill health will be as well understood, accepted, funded and overcome in the same way as physical illnesses like cancer and diabetes. Australia is showing the way in this international challenge and the courage of individual stories like Anne’s if told enough and listened to enough will change the world.”
– Professor Patrick D. McGorry AO, MD, PhD, FRCP, FRANZCP, Australian of the Year 2010 and leading Australian authority on mental health