High Tide Low Tide Book Party & Fundraiser

Sunday, November 6, 2016 / 1-5 pm EST

BLUE / 650A Congress St, Portland, Maine / www.portcityblue.com

Join transatlantic best friends Martin Baker and Fran Houston for an afternoon of music, readings and fun, to celebrate their new book, “High Tide, Low Tide: The Caring Friend’s Guide to Bipolar Disorder,” and raise funds for Maine-based mental health nonprofit Family Hope (www.familyhopeme.org).

“We thank all our friends who have come together to make our book, our event, and our way of looking at mental health a different way of being in the world.” (Martin & Fran)

• Martin Baker (via Skype from the UK) & Fran Houston
• Donna Betts, Executive Director, Family Hope
• Phil Divinsky, Master of Ceremonies
• Sherrie Phair, singer extraordinaire
• Kate Beever (www.mainemusicandhealth.com/staff)
• Jason Spooner with Adam Fredrick on bass (www.jasonspooner.com/band.asp)

About the book
We all want to be there for our friends, but when your friend lives with mental illness it can be hard to know what to do, especially if you live far apart. In their new book, “High Tide, Low Tide: The Caring Friend’s Guide to Bipolar Disorder,” Martin and Fran share what they’ve learned about growing a supportive, mutually rewarding friendship between a “well one” and an “ill one,” no matter how far apart you live. Their motto: No one is too far away to be cared for, or to care.

About the Authors
A successful electrical engineer until illness struck, author and photographer Fran Houston has lived with bipolar disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome, and fibromyalgia for over twenty years. Fran lives in Portland, Maine, and is passionate about making invisible illness visible. Three thousand miles away in the north-east of England, Martin Baker is an ASIST trained Mental Health First Aider and Time to Change Champion. A member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Mind, and Bipolar UK, Martin is also Fran's primary support and lifeline.

Facebook event: www.facebook.com/events/1316383898391984

 

A Day in My Head, by Aron Bennett

Aron Bennett is looking for budding diary writers for his project “A Day in My Head,” a collection of diary entries to be written on May 16th 2016 by people round the world who are affected by a mental health condition. If you are interested in taking part, you can contact Aron via any of the links below.

 

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A Day in My Head

This is a fairly new project and I really need the help of fellow writers.

With the aid of a few mental health charities, I am compiling a book which encompasses a day in the life of people living with mental illness. I am looking for 500 volunteers to each write about one particular day: May 16th 2016, which is the start of National Mental Health Awareness Week. I will self-publish the work and all profits will go to charity.

The aim of the project is to end stigma as well as to raise money for charity. It is also a chance for people to get their voices heard and their literary skills recognised by a much wider audience.

I am looking for an array of individuals with different backgrounds, cultures, experiences and mental health conditions. Professionals and carers are also welcome.

In terms of the content itself, I am asking for up to 750 words (it is fine to write less). It should incorporate your current experiences but can draw on past experiences also. I will be editing only to the extent that entries are grammatically correct and “in good taste” (a very loose stipulation, people's experiences should not be censored at all).

If all that suits you, I look forward to working with you!

Aron Bennet

Email: aronjbennett@googlemail.com
Twitter: @Mentalhealthproject
Facebook: A Day in My Head (Public group)

 

Raise your head, raise your heart.

What an amazing week this has been. A week of awareness. A week of passionate and compassionate people making a difference.

I had an opinion piece in the Maine Sunday Telegram and attended two local events; an It Takes A Community public forum for Maine Behavioral Healthcare, and a fundraiser evening for mental health non-profit Family Hope featuring humorist Tim Sample of the Maine Humor Company.

It was hard for me. I don’t do events well. I get social anxiety. I get exhausted. My pain flares. My thoughts race. I can’t hear well. I can’t see well. It costs me. But the reward was gold. Attending these Mental Health Awareness Week events gave me the best gift ever. The reminder that there are people who care.

One soul there had undergone ECT every 2 weeks for 17 years. Forced. We all were riveted. Speechless. Breathless. I met someone who helps those in extreme situations and shared how this affected me. How amazing it is that there are many reaching out to those who can’t. We are all so different, as different as all the mental illnesses there are. Like a diamond. All the facets are needed and beautiful. And a rainbow shines.

Each of us has something unique to offer. Each of us has a part to play that no one else can.

Today is World Mental Health Day! Please take action, raise your head, raise your heart and raise awareness in your community.

Fran