I’m reading the Altered Perceptions anthology, a project put together close to two years ago to raise funds to help Robison Wells with his financial difficulties caused by and exacerbating his mental illness. The collection is made up of excerpts, unpublished chapters, short stories, and other assorted works by authors who struggle with mental illness themselves, know someone who does, or has a keen interest in helping. Each work is preceded by a short essay by the author discussing their experience with mental illness. Those experiences range from being the support for someone who struggles with it, to having mild forms of it themselves, to facing a constant struggle with it.
As intended, the book is an eye opener. The stereotypical views we get of mental illness from entertainment provide a rather limited perspective and downplays the broad spectrum of ways in which mental illness manifests. After exposure to those various forms I can only wonder if don’t experience some mild forms of it myself. (If so, it’s infrequent, mild, and brief, so I’m not considering myself a candidate for care yet.) Beyond raising awareness of the forms it can take, it’s also a solid step forward in eliminating the stigma surrounding mental illness.
The stories themselves are also fun and interesting. In a relatively short period of time I’m getting exposure to the ideas and styles of dozens of authors, and it’s educational and inspirational. I’m also going to be expanding my reading list soon, as some of the excerpts are tantalizing enough that I really want to read more.
The initial purpose was achieved, so the project is now into its secondary objective of providing funds to help other authors struggling with mental illness. If you’re interested in supporting the project or just getting your hands on some interesting reading, it’s still available as an ebook here.