Read what they have to say about their experience of attending the event and making their presentation.

“ Despite anxiety and significant other psychological challenges, we were able to travel, attend with 500 others, network and speak in public. In doing this, we spread awareness of the Cassel Hospital, therapeutic communities and patient-led research. 

“After presenting, we discovered that there is an appetite in the Personality Disorders world to hear more about patients’ experiences, as well as an interest in therapeutic communities. This opened up potential for future co-production and research.

“Those hearing our presentation said they felt we had brought a therapeutic community into the room. We were blown away by the excitement, interest and validation; on Twitter the reach was over 10,000 from various sources. 

 These are some of our quotes:

  “I felt so much pride, considering our histories and what we have just achieved.” 

“The response in the room was striking.” 

“I didn’t finish school, I never thought I’d do something academic again, let alone present at a conference.”  

“The response was completely overwhelming. When you have spent years in a system, being dismissed and unheard and then people want to hear more; I can’t put words to that.”

”I never imagined when I started treatment that I’d ever publicly associate myself with the Cassel, because of the stigma. But I’ve ended up being a cheerleader for the Cassel, and for myself as I’m so proud of what we accomplished.”

If you would like to help fund our ongoing support for Cassel service users through our SUIF fund  please donate here.