Customer Reviews

The Quiet Room: A Journey Out of the Torment of Madness

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(4)
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when i first heard about this book several years ago, i could not wait to get my hands on it. the story attracted me as it is my own story. and i was not to be disappointed. never before had i read a book that so expressively described my own illness. since it first came out, i have read it many times. this book is honest and direct and tells our story as it needs to be heard, for lori gives the true and painful portrayal of how a psychotic brain manifests itself through behavior. i was glad that she told so forthrightly of her experiences in the hospital. it is because of such honesty that people like us can learn to tell our own stories and demystify society's understanding of mental illness, particularly schizophrenia. through this telling the unfair stigma that has been placed upon us is exonerated. i also liked that the people in her life told their stories as well, for an illness such as this affects all involved. i am grateful to lori and amanda for helping me to gain insight into my own illness and understand better what my family and those closest to me have endured and still endure. i highly recommend this book to anyone interested in gaining an honest understanding of mental illness and the impact on the individual and their loved ones.

As someone who has worked in mental health for almost 30 years, I have read my share of first person accounts, some better than others. This is a very good read and the unique aspect of this book is that it is written, not only from the perspective of the one affected by schizoaffective disorder, but also by her family, friends and psychiatrist. I found it absorbing from beginning to end; I highly recommend it for fellow professionals, family members and patients/consumers.

A must read for anyone with a mental illness or for anyone close to someone with a mental illness. The book really shows the reader how painful and frustrating and heartbreaking life with severe mental illness is. I like that it also gives the perspective of family and friends. It made me even more grateful for modern advances in mental health medicines.

Lori Schiller's story is beautifully written and difficult to forget. What makes this story of a journey through treatment for schizophrenia exceptional is that it is told by several people, not just Lori. Her father, a psychologist, deals with her illness through denial. Her mother faces it with overwhelming sadness. Her brothers are confused and embarassed. Her friends are overburdened. Lori is not the only person suffering due to her mental illness. I was amazed with her strength during her ordeal. How difficult it must have been to live with multiple voices belittling her, constantly yelling insults, telling her she would die, telling her to kill others. After years of misdiagnoses, treatment by indifferent mental health professionals, hospitalizations, halfway houses, overmedication, undermedication, self-medication through cocaine abuse and constant suicidal thoughts, Lori finally comes to terms with her illness and fights to overcome it. With the help of several caring healthcare professionals, Lori learns to live with the voices that will always be a part of her life.

Lori Schiller has done a magnificent job of chronicling her battle with schizophrenia. Horrible, taunting voices drove her to suicide attempts, drug abuse, numerous hospitalizations, and homelessness. Eventually she got the right treatment, the most important component of which was the antipsychotic drug Clozaril. I'd like to see more from her, because this book is Pulitzer Prize-caliber writing.

Could not put the book down. At the end I wanted to know more about Lori. Very good reading.

This book, along with "The Eden Express", is one of the best accounts of schizophrenia. The quality of writing is extremely high, the story is told with good pace, and the ending is hopeful. Lori's description of schizophrenia itself- the disorienting and downright frightening aspects of the disease- is one of the best accounts of the disease that I have read. It's comforting to think that the treatment of this disease has improved substantially since the 1980s due to the advent of the atypical antipsychotics, but I have my doubts as to whether these newer medications are really all that effective. Overall, this book is excellent and should be read by anyone interested in schizophrenia or mental illness in general. Avery Z. Conner, author of "Fevers of the Mind".

This is a beautifully written book about a woman's battle with schizophrenia. She begins by describing her descent into the illness and the confusion she experienced. Somehow Lori Schiller manages to describe her experiences with the illness so that you can always see the person inside the mental illness. This is not an easy feat but invaluable for professionals in the field. The most moving scene, to me, was her description of being in a psychiatric hospital and hearing a baby crying. She was frantic because no one would help the baby-yet the baby wasn't real. This is what mental illness is like and why it is such a painful experience. My favorite part of the book was that she reaches a point where she is successfully living with schizophrenia. Too often we forget that people can live with this illness. Not everyone is forever doomed to a halfway house or psychiatric hospital. This is a book every mental health professional should read, especially if you are considering work with the mentally ill.

Before reading The Quiet Room I knew very little of mental illness and its effect on people. This book has given me a better understanding of a person's world who was dealing with schizophrenia. I could not put it down for one second! I think that it was very well-written and had a lot of surprising twists and turns. This book is especially astonishing to me simply because of the fact that Lori had written it herself. For someone who was once so sick and mentally disturbed, I feel that she was very brave to have lived it all again while informing others of this horrible disease and what it can or cannot cause. This book gets a tremendous two thumbs up from me!

I thought I went through imense things in my life! From trials to victory, Lori Schiller went through one of the most indiscernable mental illnesses in the world. Lori Schiller, a living testimony, fights and goes through distressing moments fighting vulgar words and phrases from the "Voices." It practically hypnosized me-- for the descriptions and all were so reflective and intense. A biography as well as an autobiography, from her perspective to others' perspectives-- it came to the point where I actually felt as if i were her schizophrenic mind. This book almost inevitably made me shed much tears of hurt and anguish and later of joy. I felt as if I were her self-conscience. It is truly the most profound book I have ever read in my life! I truly recommend this book to all, but because of some parts of the context, a mature audience is prefered.