Thursday, 4 February 2010


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporters. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

http://web.me.com/yvonnestewartwilli/Altered_Perception is my website where my podcasts can be found. Enjoy.

I have recently had my e-book Altered Perceptions published.

Here is the link

http://chipmunkapublishing.co.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1547

Tuesday, 5 January 2010

Happy New Decade!


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporters. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

http://web.me.com/yvonnestewartwilli/Altered_Perception is my website where my podcasts can be found. Enjoy.

Happy New Decade, one day at a time!

I have been having a great year so far. Actually it started on Christmas day last year, when my son rang me and spoke to me on the telephone. He reminded me that it had be at least seven months since he had last seen me or heard my voice.

Today, I spoke to his social worker and she told me that I would be able to phone him every other Wednesday, starting from next week.

Today, I also got on with stage one of publishing my Altered Perceptions e-book. Hopefully I will have the paperback version out by the end of the this year.

Sunday, 13 December 2009

Kilimanjaro Presents UB40


This evening, I enjoyed the UB40 Labour of Love 4 Tour at the O2 in Greenwich, London. I had been waiting to attend this concert for months and was not disappointed.

Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporters. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

http://web.me.com/yvonnestewartwilli/Altered_Perception is my website where my podcasts can be found. Enjoy.

Sunday, 29 November 2009

St Paul's Cathedral


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporters. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

http://web.me.com/yvonnestewartwilli/Altered_Perception is my website where my podcasts can be found. Enjoy.

I am not doing much better at waking up. Today was 1pm, and I still wanted to go back to bed for some more sleep. However, I brushed the anti-psychotic medication made tiredness from my mind and got up by making a few phone calls.

At 6pm this evening I watched a beautiful candle lit service at St Paul's Cathedral.

Tuesday, 24 November 2009

Mind Mental Health Media Awards 2009

It has been one week and one day since my final discharge CPA from Elleen Skellen 3 Ward. Thursday I went to a Political discussion evening at my local Dulwich & West Norwood Conservative Party and on Saturday just past, I leaflet dropped and had lunch with them. This evening I accepted my RSVP place at the now MIND Mental Health Media Awards 2009, at BAFTA hosted by Shappi Khorsandi and was yet again delighted with the high quality of media coverage that mental health has received this year. Although in my mind they were all winners, I was pleased to see Alistair Campbell collect an award for BBC Two's Full length TV documentary 'Cracking Up' and an award going to BBC Two's TV news 'Mental Health in Parliament: Newsnight. The special award for More4 / True Vision 'Chosen: True Stories about child sexual abuse was well placed as was 'Eastenders' recognition.


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporters. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

http://web.me.com/yvonnestewartwilli/Altered_Perception is my website where my podcasts can be found. Enjoy.

Monday, 2 November 2009

Dawn


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

http://web.me.com/yvonnestewartwilli/Altered_Perception is my website that has my podcasts. Enjoy

Yesterday Birgit and I were in agreement that I was becoming too serious and in need of humour. She remedied it by exposing me to the following books 'The Control Freak Chronicles' by Sarah Tucker, 'Then we came to the end' by Joshua Ferris and 'The best a man can get' by John O'farrell. I have started to read the latter and my humour is already improving.

Saturday, 31 October 2009

Peter Tatchell



Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

On Tuesday 27th October 2009, during my second three hour leave a day from the locked women's psychiatric ward, I made my way to the Southwark Town Hall. This was to listen to the 'Unfinished Battle for LGBT [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans] Human Rights' talk by Peter Tatchell. I enjoyed the talk.

Today I am getting stuck into the book 'Facing LOVE addiction - giving yourself the power to change the way you love by Pia Mellody with Andrea Wells Miller and J. Keith Miller. This book was a gift for me from one of my visitors.

Friday, 30 October 2009

Peter Tatchell




Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Tuesday, just gone 27th October 2009, was the second day that I could have three hours leave a day from the acute psychiatric locked women's ward. I chose to wait until the evening and spend the time in Peter Tatchell's company with others at the Southwark Town Hall at 'The Unfinished Battle for LGBT Human Rights' talk which Peter gave.

Thursday, 29 October 2009

Chipmunkapublishing


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Today is day two of my six hours a day unescorted leave and day four of having my trifluoperazine (stelazine) reduced to 20mls from 25mls. Then today, joy of all joys, I was sent a contract from Chipmunkapublishing for my Altered Perception diary. This contract will be signed by me on my release from psychiatric hospital.

Sunday, 25 October 2009

Before Night Falls


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

I went for my photo shoot with my local Conservative Party yesterday. It went well.

Today at my request, my friend Birgit gave me some reading materials. Samuel Pepys - The Unequalled Self and The Concise Pepys. For good measure Birgit also threw in Reinaldo Arenas memoir Before Night Falls. She knows that I enjoyed myself on a package holiday in Cuba in November 2007 and now I am eager to read this book and see the Before Night Falls film starring Johnny Depp.

Wednesday, 21 October 2009

Krystal Online Magazine


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Today I got my birthday card from my beloved son laminated. I am so thrilled that I rang and spoke to his social worker about it. After starting to read 'Practising The Power of NOW' by Eckhart Tolle and listening to him on YouTube, Then I read my interview for Krystal http://www.krystalmag.co.uk/ It appeared in the Lifestyle section under the heading Black Mental Health: Never forget that they are there 20/10/2009. I followed this by tuning into [Speaker's Conference] Re: What is the best way to increase the representation of under-represented communities at Westminster? www.parliament.uk Today is also the ward's Black History Month and World Mental Health Day Celebration. Lots of food and drinks and everyone seems to be having a great time.

Tuesday, 20 October 2009

Hi Mum


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Right now, I am wearing a big cheesy grin. It is because I have just been handed an envelope which contained inside a handmade birthday card from my beloved son. No surprises for guessing that the artwork were aircrafts, seventeen in total, some spitfires. The card had his writing: Hi Mum lots of love James xoo xoox and Happy Birthday!!!

My Beloved Son


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Not one single day goes by, without me thinking about James, my beloved son. Today is no different. It has been too many months since I have spoken to him or seen him. It is one of the most heartbreaking things to happen to a parent like me on a locked psychiatric ward. Just what is happening for my dear son, goodness only knows.

At this time of day, and day of week, my son will be at school. I know that he has started to attend a new school because his social worker told me, when she visited me. I am pleased with the choice of school as when he was younger than one year of age he was christened in the same school. It is a Church of England school and now he will be wearing a school uniform and I have yet to hear what he thinks of this.

I love my son and loved him from before he was born. When he was only five days old following a caesarian section delivery both he and I transferred from St Thomas' Hospital to the Bethlem Royal psychiatric Hospital's Mother and Baby Unit. This was just in case my mental health declined. It didn't. In the Mother and Baby unit my son and I bonded further and he took to his breastfeeding routine of hourly feeds day and night.

On further psychiatric hospital admissions, I wished that I could return to a place like the Mother and Baby unit, where I could go with my son. Just like respite care for HIV/AIDS mothers and their children. Unfortunately this type of facility was not available for mental health patients with children older than babies, so my child was placed in foster care.

Each time the estrangement is evermore traumatic for both him and me. Today as the days pass without my knowing when I will be released and able to take up my supervised contact sessions with him [which will lead to unsupervised contacts] I while away the days googling his image. I post cards to my son, in the meantime but I miss him dreadfully.

Monday, 19 October 2009

Joy


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Great joy, I got my equipment back today. So no more mention of you know who.

Moving swiftly on. I have just received a phone call from my local Conservative Party. I have been invited to a photo shoot possibly this forthcoming Saturday. I have an hour of unescorted leave [which may be increased at the end of this week] so I would be able to attend. In addition to this, during the conversation, the idea was placed in my head that I may have a very slim chance, to be able to be put forward to run, as a possible Councillor for my local Conservative Party. This would be fantastic.

Friday, 16 October 2009

The Love That Dare Not Speak It's Name


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

I have woken up and I am still upset, 'The love that dare not speak it's name' syndrome. I hope that I don't have my equipment confiscated. I will find out later when I speak to my psychiatrist. In the meantime, I am going to see if I can locate Ros Dunning of Dunning & Co Solicitors, in Camberwell.

Disappointment

Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

I have just been told that my one hour un-escorted leave has been revoked and I am now on one hour escorted leave due to writing about Carolyn Cowan HUGO in my 'Heavenly' post when mentioning Kundalini Yoga. I am disappointed and feel harrassed by the psychiatric hospital staff.

Thursday, 15 October 2009

Heavenly


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

I have just attended a Kundalini Yoga class on my locked psychiatric women's ward. It was heavenly. The class took me back to the first class I attended facilitated by Carolyn Cowan HUGO. I feel so relaxed and at peace. Bliss...

I had overslept and missed breakfast, attended a SLaM BME Black History month at the crypt at St Peters Liverpool Grove London SE17 2HH and sung with the SLaM choir. I followed this by being interviewed on a telephone by the online magazine Krystal www.krystalmag.co.uk who wanted to speak to women who have experience of mental health services.

Tuesday, 13 October 2009

Happy Birthday 2 Me


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

I am having a great birthday today so far, mainly thanks to friends and my consultant psychiatrist. I went to a ward round yesterday and my consultant -a woman - said that I can have one hour of un-escorted leave each day [that was subject to clearing it with the police] I am also allowed to have my laptop and ipod touch returned to me via same police clearance. I am allowed to have my 30mls of trifluoperazine reduced by five mls to 25mls. All of the aforementioned started today except the medication which started the same day.

So today, I took the bus to my favourite Marks and Spencer to purchase cake for us patients and a few other bits and bobs. I have been making use of my mobile for the first time in months and included in it's use was a long overdue conversation with my dear old long suffering mum. When we got to the part of the conversation when she told me that she didn't know what had happened to me and then she received my prison letter -I laughed. [Sorry] then we both started laughing. It was such a pleasure to hear my mum's voice and she was so pleased to hear from me [busy as she is with her Jehovah's Witness ministry]

I then spoke to various friends, one of which [when I told her what had happened to me] told me that I seem to be a candidate for SLAA Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous - We both laughed for ages. It's so good to reconnect with the outside world.

Tuesday, 6 October 2009

Letters



Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

Fw: Please can you publish my diary‏
From: jason pegler (jasonpegler@yahoo.com)
You may not know this sender.Mark as safe|Mark as junk
Sent: 06 October 2009 09:36:56
To: yvonnepatriciastewart-williams@hotmail.co.uk
2 attachments | Download all attachments (522.4 KB)
100 word ...doc (20.0 KB), My Daily ...rtf (502.4 KB)


Hi Yvonne, Thank you for your email. I have read your email and will get back to you in the next week or so. Jason Pegler CEO of the social enterprise Chipmunkapublishing www.chipmunkapublishing.com --- On Mon, 5/10/09, Yvonne Stewart-Williams wrote: > From: Yvonne Stewart-Williams > Subject: Please can you publish my diary> To: info@chipmunkapublishing.com> Date: Monday, 5 October, 2009, 2:35 PM> > > > > > Dear Chipmunkapublishing,> > > > I am currently an inpatient on ES3 of SLaM South London and> Maudsley Psychiatric hospital in Denmark hill.This is> following a short spell in HMP Holloway Womens Prison.> > > > Ordinarily, I work in full time paid employment for the> homelessness persons charity Thames Reach as a mental health> floating support worker in Westminster.> > > > I am a black lesbian single mother with a schizoaffective> disorder diagnosis dating from 1993. If you require any> current information about me google Yvonne Stewart-Williams> or e-mail me.> > > > Thanking you in advance> > > > Yvonne Stewart-Williams


Re: Hey There‏
From: lindasma12@aol.com
Sent: 02 October 2009 17:23:39
To: Yvonne Stewart-Williams (yvonnepatriciastewart-williams@hotmail.co.uk)

Thankyou for that I hope you are able to go to a meeting soon x
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Yvonne Stewart-Williams
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:29:13 +0100
To:
Subject: RE: Hey There


Hi dearest Linda,

Thank you for your e-mail.

I don't know how long I am going to be in hosptal. I have been here since 20th August 2009. My line manager and manager are going to physically visit me on Friday 2nd October 2009 and my friend Birgit is going to visit me on Sunday 4th October 2009.

I have my suspicions that I will still be in here for my birthday on 13th October 2009. But hopefully I will be released soon after if not before. I am desparate to get to a meeting.

Much love

Yvonne

RE: What's happening?‏
From: Yvonne Stewart-Williams (yvonnepatriciastewart-williams@hotmail.co.uk)
Sent: 02 October 2009 18:36:21
To: peter.revesz@thamesreach.org.uk

Hi Peter,

Thank you so much for your e-mail. I really do appreciate you taking time out to write.
I hope that you and yours are all okay.

Me, I am taking time out here in SLaM following a spell in HMP Holloway. What can I say!?! Except that you are probably lucky that you didn't have ME for a blood sister! However, I really miss you and your excellent sense of humour, straight forward logical approach and compassion.

I have just started reading the Eckhart Tolle book 'The Power of NOW' and I am hoping that it is going to clarify things for me. It may seem like quite an odd thing for me to be saying following a prison experience bolted on to time in a psychiatric hospital but, I have never felt so much love in myself as I do now, despite my few down days!
Mind you, I have been visited by Ken and Emma this afternoon and told earlier that I will be getting a phone call from my son via social services.

You never guess what Peter? ES3 ward has asked me to try to contact Frank Bruno to do a talk for mental health day - we a celebrating it here on 21st October. Imagine that? What can I do, when I couldn't even produce Frank for Thames Reach.

Anyway when you find a little time, please work your feel good healing magic and, contact me again.

Give Paris and big hug

Much love

Yvonne



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Peter.Revesz@thamesreach.org.uk
To: yvonnepatriciastewart-williams@hotmail.co.uk
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 2009 11:36:57 +0100
Subject: What's happening?



Hi Yvonne,
Just a quick one to say how's it hanging?
Long time no hear.
I hope you are ok?
Best wishes,
Peter.

Peter Revesz
Practical Support Worker

Thames Reach
Westminster Mental Health Floating Support Scheme
23-33 Strutton Ground
London SW1P 2HZ

T 020 7084 6832

M 07725 823 905
W www.thamesreach.org.uk





ΓΌ Before printing, think about the environment


This message and any attachments has been sent by Thames Reach - decent homes, supportive relationships, fulfilling lives. Thames Reach Housing Association Ltd is an Industrial & Provident Society registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965, Register No 24377R and is an exempt charity. This message is intended solely for the addressee(s) and is co


Southwark Mind LGBT project‏
From: Denise McKenna (denise.mckenna1@btopenworld.com)
Sent: 28 September 2009 17:21:51
To: flavio.silva@pacehealth.org.uk
Cc: Yvonne (YvonnePatriciaStewart-Williams@hotmail.co.uk)

Hi Flavio,

We spoke earlier today about an LGBT project/group which users at Southwark Mind are wishing to set up. The idea of the project emerged from a small user/survivor group called the Rainbow Resource which started in a day centre in Southwark a few years ago and which eventually linked up with Southwark Mind although it has been dormant since then, unable to continue without a paid worker.

Southwark Mind is run entirely by users/survivors of mental health services or people who have experienced mental distress although they may never have found themselved in the psychiatric system. All of our paid workers are survivors and we run loads of successful projects, do lots of campaigning work etc. One of our projects is the Southwark Users Council which consists of 14 users/survivors who represent the veiws of other users/survivors in projects throughout the borough, including the in-patient psychiatric wards, to service providers. We also have representatives who sit on the Mental Health Partnership Board for Southwark. The User Council is at the forefront of user involvement on Southwark and is invariably consulted by service providers, however there is no LGBT representative on the User Council and this is one of the things that our new project could address, although the purposes and goals of the project have yet to be decided, this will be up to the potential users of the group and I envisage that mutual support and friendship would be an important feature of the project.

Initially we have identified that we need a development worker to work 2 - 2 1/2 days a week to set up and maintain the project. Although Southwark Mind would be managing the project, for a number of reasons I think we should be looking beyond the mental health survivors community towards the LGBT community to support this project. For one thing any development worker outreaching into places like day centres and psychiatric hospital wards can be subject to some quite nasty homophobia (I know, I've tried it!) and although Southwark Mind has excellent anti homophobic policies I doubt if we are expert in supporting a worker who may have to confront this in their work, and such outreach would be an important part of the worker's role.

The idea is that Southwark Mind would manage the project but we would be interested in making a joint bid for this project with another organisation. Although it would be a Southwark project, I don't envisage that we would be too rigid about who could access it, for example, Southwark Mind has strong links with Lambeth Mind and Lambeth users who migh also want to use the project.

Having given you some background to this project I have two questions to ask: Do you know of any organisatioin, perhaps even Pace, who might be interested in co bidding with us for this project?

My second question is this: Do you know of anyone who can help us put a bid together?

Southwark Mind has limited resources to help with this project at the moment although the Executive Committee, of which I am part, are committed to setting it up. Notwithstanding that, it falls on a few unpaid LGBT users, including myself, to get this project up and running and we could use all the help and support that you could offer us.
We hope to have a focus group, which would be paid for my Southwark Mind (we don't envisage it would cost much) some time in December to establish the need for the project for the purposes of any bid and wonder if you might be able to provide us with any help in setting this up, if only in the form of advice and planning?

We would be very grateful to hear of any support you could give us in setting up this project and any thoughts you might have about it.

Thanks and best wishes
Denise McKenna
Southwark Mind

Saturday, 3 October 2009

Johnathan Livingstone Seagull


Heathen Massive UK, Gospel Dance Music for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Supporter. Feel free to donate to www.aidsmap.com

I paused in between reading 'The Power of Now' to watch the film 'Johnathan Livingston Seagull' which I had previously downloaded from itunes, on my ipod classic. I remained in the now and was truly satisfied.

Yesterday produced a catalyst for change which has continued today. Earlier, this fine day, I visited the forces store on Walworth road accompanied by a nurse from the ward and purchased a few items. It was good to be out with everyone else.

Today I again got in touch with deep seated feelings of LOVE and just now the LOVE feelings was experienced by me again. I believe that I am experiencing an advanced enhanced me and LOVE is a key point to my being. It sounds a bit woolie and particularly when I consider that I am on a locked psychiatric ward, and not too long ago I was locked up in HMP Holloway. But it's true.

To be quite frank, it was hard for me to watch 'Johnathan Livingston Seagull', as I felt as if I was with Johnathan on his journey. A bit like one of the 'Outcasts'. I suppose what I am saying is that learning to not develop a fear of the future is going to be very important process for me. I must return to society, but the longer this is delayed the harder it seems. What I am trying to convey in my writing is that the possibility of my becoming institutionalized is an ever present concern in my mind. However, one day at a time, I continue reading the power of now and remembering that I am human and not Yehweh.

Just for today, I am a seagull. Johnathan Livingston Seagull [I hope].