Ben Behind His Voices: One Family’s Journey from the Chaos of Schizophrenia to Hope

Randye Kaye is a national voice talent and actress, also currently heard as part-time newscaster and classical music host on NPR affiliates WSHU-FM and AM. Prior to that, while raising her children, she was a full-time morning personality for a top-rated Connecticut radio station in addition to her voiceover, on-camera and theatre work. During that time, her son Ben was going through confusing and often terrifying changes: what she later learned had been the symptoms of gradual-onset schizophrenia. So at work, her job was to make people laugh – but her "hobby" became mental illness. She finally found education and support through NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and became a teacher and the Connecticut State Trainer for its Family-to-Family educational course.

After leaving Morning Radio (and the 3:15 AM wake-up calls) behind, Randye was asked to write about Ben's illness and recovery, and how it had affected her family. The result is "Ben Behind His Voices: One Family's Journey from the Chaos of Schizophrenia to Hope" (September 16, 2011, Rowman and Littlefield Publishers). Randye speaks frequently to professional providers and families about the process of coping with the challenges – including stigma – when mental illness strikes a loved one.

http://benbehindhisvoices.com/blog/

Ben Behind His Voices is the gripping story of one family's challenging experience when their firstborn is gradually struck down by schizophrenia – and how they learned to love and support him throughout his eventual steps to recovery. This page-turning narrative will inspire and educate any family going through hard times with the mental illness of a loved one. It also provides valuable insight for others who want to understand how families are affected when mental illness strikes.

http://benbehindhisvoices.com/

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Ben-Behind-His-Voices-Schizophrenia/dp/1442210893/