Along Came A Spider, A Personal Look at Madness
is the true story of a woman's descent into insanity and her successful struggle to reach sanity. Based on intimate diaries this SPIDER gives a rare glimpse of the hell that is insanity and offers strong hope for recovery. A must for any one who has ever suffered from mental illness or loved someone who did.
When Maryanne was twenty-three, she married Lennox Raphael, a handsome playwright whose love made her life joyful. They spent an entire year exploring the United States, Mexico, Central and South America and decided to settle in Brazil. Then the bliss was shattered when Maryanne suffered the first of many nervous breakdowns. She was an inmate in asylums for the insane on three different continents. Lennox struggled to get her free. He visited her every day and brought her everything she asked for. In the end his desire to protect her from her madness drove them apart, but not before they had a wonderful son they named Raphael Raphael. When Maryanne began taking Lithium, her illness got under control and she was able to live a better than average life. She wants to share her story with people who are facing the terrors of mental illness to let them know there is a way out and light at the end of the tunnel.
Excerpt
"One stormy night it got to me and I began to hear the thunder calling my name. "Your time has come!" it seemed to say, "Decide now where you wish to spend eternity!"
Professional Reviews
Alliance for the Mentally Ill
Another beautiful mind gives us a rare opportunity to experience the torments of hallucinations, delusions and anxieties a biochemical brain disorder can bring.
In her most recent book, ALONG CAME A SPIDER; A PERSONAL LOOK AT MADNESS, author Maryanne Raphael shares with us her intimate feelings, deepest pain and eventual recovery.
Her words are not the usual definitions and descriptions found in mental health literature but those of a lifelong journal keeper as she endures hospitalizations and the periods in between.
She shows the universality of mental illnesses as she keeps writing through her crises in Brazil, Morocco, New York, California and Hawaii.
And finally she gives us hope that those suffering from a mental illness can live a stable and productive life. From her home base in Carlsbad, CA Maryanne now travels the globe, continues her writing career and is an inspiration to all.
Thelma Hayes, Founding President and Advocacy Chair, NAMI NCSDC, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, North Costal San Diego County
The Free Preview includes excerpts only. The full print edition is available from Barnes and Noble. Both the print and electronic editions are available from the publisher's Web site ("Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited").
The Narcis
