The Cure for Mental Illness - Paperback

Gordon, Kristine: - I was dead and wrote four books.And no, I am not a zombie.During a hospital visit, I was given an antibiotic that I was allergic to and ended up on life support with a 2% chance to live. While I was in the coma, I travelled to the netherworld and visited my dad, mom and grandmother who had all passed. I remember in the middle of our conversation; my dad suddenly turned and told me to leave as quickly as possible. I remember running and became very short of breath. My children instantly appeared in front of me. I grabbed them and hugged them with all my might. Then, everything vanished.A nurse looked down at me and smiled and said, "Welcome back."My first thought was welcome back to where? When I came to my senses, my thoughts turned to the meaning of my experience. It became obvious that I returned to care for my children. However, there was a nagging sense of urgency that remained with me. What was it? This haunted me.The doctor had forbidden me to return to my job at that time working as a psychotherapist with single moms. In response, I began writing a book about single parenting in a multiracial and multigenerational setting in my myopic condition. I may be a mess but my brain still worked! I figured I could still provide comfort to single moms even if I could not meet with them at the time.I kept thinking back to my visit with my dad and reflecting on the meaning of it. I realized that I had to write his story because when I die his story will die with me. He was a social and political activist and ran for president numerous times. He tread on the toes of the big boys of his era, ex-president Richard Nixon and Nelson Rockefeller. This highly decorated WWII veteran was driven by them out of the country. My nearsightedness did not allow me to see what was a common thread to what was now two books.Onward. The next book was also a social mission. It is a work in progress tentatively titled "The Cure for Mental Illness." My life long dedication to teaching, starting innovative programs and psychotherapy lead to a pressing concern about the quality of mental health services. I needed to get the truth out so the mental health system would "do no harm."The next book came alive when I did a few sketches to entertain a friend's severely autistic daughter. Because she loved Mr. Muffinstuff (my adored shih tzu), it was only appropriate that he have a book of his own. Mr. Muffinstuff began his life as a lost puppy. I came to realize that his story was also the story of many of the kids I had worked with. The book is the story of Mr. Muffinstuff 's trauma and ends with a happily ever after. The book aims to relay a message of hope for these kids.After drafting these books, the mission was clear to me. I often tell my folks in therapy I wish I had a magic wand to fix "it." It became clear that I do have a wand to fix "it." The wand is to share a lifetime of my personal and professional challenges and victories to help the folks looking for hope.Nobody lives long enough to make the changes needed in this world. Perhaps this is by design, but we can at least pass on the knowledge of a lifetime. This was the reason I had a death experience and returned. The time for me to do this is now because my next death experience will not include a return ticket.