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Historical recovery heroes - Isaac Newton
- Authors:
- WAKELY Elizabeth, CARSON Jerome
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 15(3), 2011, pp.122-128.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Isaac Newton, born prematurely into a poor family, had well publicised mental health problems. This paper reviews existing literature and many of the biographies written on him, to see if he was a mental health recovery hero. Papers have placed most attention on Newton's famous breakdown of 1693, which had been attributed paranoid psychosis. However, this paper suggests that the more likely explanation was depression or bipolar disorder. Personality factors were also critical in understanding Newton – he had a troubled upbringing and problems in relating to others. The latter enabled him to focus exclusively on his research and experiments and may have contributed to his greatness. The authors, from the perspective of professional historian and clinical psychologist, present a unique perspective on the mental health of Isaac Newton.
Historical recovery heroes - Winston Churchill
- Authors:
- WAKELY Elizabeth, CARSON Jerome
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 14(4), November 2010, pp.36-39.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
This article provides a cameo of Winston Churchill, said by many to have been the greatest Englishman who ever lived, largely due to his leadership during the Second World War. Since his death in 1965, much more has become known about his lifelong battle with depression, his ‘Black Dog’. There were many manic features in his behaviour, and it now seems more likely that he suffered with bipolar disorder. Churchill was one of the ‘famous five’ chosen as part of the Time to Change anti-stigma campaign, and in 2006 Rethink commissioned a statue of Churchill in a straitjacket. This article argues that it was because of his mental health problems that he achieved what he did, and that his mental illness in fact led to him being a better leader.