Five adults with longstanding histories of psychiatric disabilities were recruited for a ten-week therapeutic horseback riding program. Individuals learned basic riding skills and had the opportunity to bond with a horse. In addition, the riders participated in a post-riding process group that used artistic and creative exercises to promote individual expression. By the end often weeks, the riders reported success in learning basic horsemanship and, in doing so, also reported additional psychosocial benefits, including an augmented sense of self-efficacy and self-esteem. In sum, this adjunctive therapy can facilitate the recovery process.

Stigma has been identified both by people with mental illnesses and by empirical research to be a major barrier to service use and recovery. In addition, research has suggested that the most effective strategy for reducing stigma is personal contact with a person who has a mental illness and who is contributing to the life of the community. This article reports the qualitative findings from a study of the use of the Compeer model to address stigma in undergraduate psychology students. Findings suggest that befriending a person with a mental illness, even when done as a requirement for a college course, can be a useful experience in exposing and challenging stigmatizing perceptions and expectations and in offering people insights into the humanity and life experiences of a person with mental illness. Limitations and implications of this study for future stigma-busting efforts are discussed.Stigma is a relatively common phenomenon today for individuals who are psychiatrically disabled (Corrigan, Edwards, Green, Diwan, & Penn, 2001). Along with the generally negative views held by the public of those with severe mental illness (Crisp, Gelder, Rix, Meltzer, & Rowlands, 2000), stigma creates an environment of hostility and oppression that gives rise to biases and discriminatory practices. In turn, those with severe mental illness become isolated from the community and face rejection (

Recovery from mental illness is a complex journey that is greatly facilitated when client and professional helper collaborate in the decision making process. It is further aided when the latter has an empathetic awareness of the client's experience, especially with regard to the impact of pharmacological treatment. The following article describes one psychologist's experience of being prescribed medication during a period of acute illness. Analysis of this experience is via a narrative, phenomenological approach. Results suggest that even when taken as directed, a medication can augment one's subjective feeling of illness. It further shows how challenging it can be for the ailing individual to assert his or her needs for something other than hospitalization. Although only one case is analyzed, it points to the impact that medication may have on the life of a person with mental illness, reinforcing the importance of collaboration and empathetic understanding of the other's experience.