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illness’.

Searching for a better world:

Many of us plait stories together as we, in many different ways, start fighting for a better

world. Sometimes these stories are told through our daily lives: bartering for what we
need,

finding cheap and wholesome places to get a meal, managing pensions creatively,

growing

our own food, meeting with others, some of whom have experienced ‘mental illness’ and

increasingly those who have not

Spirituality:

Many people tell their story through their spiritual beliefs and actions. These are not
always

organised religions. Through their spirituality, people’s way of living with emotional

distress changes and new stories emerge, with a stronger core system of values and

beliefs.

Spiritually driven stories often speak of acceptance and grace.

Real Community: Some people tell their stories through community – real community.

Knowing we belong can dramatically change the way we live our stories. The

communities

might be consumer communities but are not necessarily. Peer support helps us to change

our stories from dependence to supported independence or interdependence, from

isolation

to empowering commitment to each other, learning how to challenge and be challenged.

Fighting for freedom: having a ‘cause’, whether it be fighting for our rights as people

with

‘mental illness’ or fighting for new policies to tackle environmental

destruction,fundamentally change our stories and the activities we undertake that tell the

larger community who we are.

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