“This inspiring and valuable collection is a wonderful reminder of the warmth and humanity that underlies the mission of psychiatry. Hugely recommended.”

Sir Stephen Fry
Actor, comedian, writer and presenter, Hon Fellow of the RCPsych,
President of the mental health charity Mind and Patron of Humanists UK.

PERSONALLY SPEAKING AUTHORS AND CONTRIBUTORS

Glenn Roberts

Glenn Roberts was National lead for the RCPsych on Recovery (2006-11) and Academic Secretary to the Faculty of Rehabilitation. His work and publications include explorations of many aspects of recovery-oriented practice, applications of narrative, drama in public health education, burnout, risk and safety, choice, meaning and madness.

Gwen Adshead

Gwen Adshead is a forensic psychiatrist and psychotherapist and Honorary Fellow of the RCPsych. She has written extensively, mainly in the fields of Forensic Psychiatry, Ethics and Attachment Theory and was BBC’s Reith Lecturer, 2024.

Mike Shooter

Mike Shooter arrived at Medicine by stealth – via a History/Law degree, journalism, and many other jobs. He spent forty years working with disadvantaged families in the Welsh Valleys, becoming the first child psychiatrist to be elected President of our Royal College (2002-5).

Ananta Dave

Ananta Dave is a Medical Director and Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Trust. She is Chief Medical Officer for the Black Country ICB, Presidential Lead for Retention and Wellbeing, and Honorary Fellow at the RCPsych. She is also a past and the first female President of the British Indian Psychiatric association, a trustee for the charity, ‘Doctors in Distress’ and a published poet.

Peter Tyrer

Peter Tyrer is an Honorary Fellow of the RCPsych, Emeritus Professor of Community Psychiatry at Imperial College, London and was editor of the British Journal of Psychiatry (2003-13). Among many creative achievements, he developed Nidotherapy as a community-based therapeutic approach, emphasising personal choice and context for people with complex conditions.

Suhana Ahmed

Suhana Ahmed is an old age psychiatrist, Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the West London NHS Trust and chair of the RCPsych London Division. She was previous Director of Medical Education at SWLSTG’s Mental Health Trust and has a particular interest in supporting women as leaders from minority ethnic backgrounds. She talks openly about her experience of postnatal depression.

Adrian James

Adrian James is Medical Director for Mental Health and Neurodiversity at NHS England and immediate past President of the RCPsych (2020-3). Among many leadership roles, as a forensic psychiatrist, he was the first Medical Director of the Devon Partnership NHS Trust and Founding Chair of the School of Psychiatry at the Peninsular Deanery.

Kate Lovett

Kate Lovett is a former psychiatrist and was Dean of the Royal College of Psychiatrists between 2016 and 2021. She is a recent graduate of the Ashburton Chefs Academy and works as a professional chef in Devon.

Chris Cook

Chris Cook is Emeritus Professor of Spirituality, Theology and Health in the Institute for Medical Humanities at Durham University, Honorary Chaplain with Tees, Esk & Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, and a past Chair of the Spirituality & Psychiatry SIG at the Royal College of Psychiatrists (twice). A recipient of the Archbishop’s Canterbury Cross and the APA’s Oskar Pfister Award for work on the interface between religion and psychiatry. His books include Hearing Spiritual Voices (2023) and editing Spirituality & Psychiatry (2022).

Susan Mitchell

Susan Mitchell a graduate of Trinity College Dublin, is a retired general and rehabilitation psychiatrist, latterly Medical Director of The Retreat. She trained at Hackney Hospital and The Maudsley. Since retirement she has volunteered for Freedom from Torture.

Josep Vilanova

Josep Vilanova was born in Lleida, Catalonia, and trained as a psychiatrist in the UK. He was Associate Clinical Director at Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust and now works for his own company, Rainbow Medical. He hosts the Our True Colours mental health podcast and has collaborated with the Rainbow SIG of the RCPsych.

Sheila Hollins

Sheila Hollins is Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry of Learning Disability at St George’s and a Crossbench Peer in the House of Lords since 2010. She is a past President of the Royal Colleges of Psychiatrists (2005-8) and Occupational Therapists (2015-24) and the BMA (2013-14). She spent 30 happy years accompanying neurodiverse people of all ages in the community, co-founded the charity Books Beyond Words with her autistic son.

Russell Razzaque

Russell Razzaque is Clinical Director for Mental Health Transformation and Director of R&D at NELFT. He is an author, political commentator, mindfulness teacher and Bye Fellow at Cambridge University. He is Clinical & Strategic Director at the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health and Presidential lead for Compassionate & Relational Care at RCPsych. Among many academic achievements he is Clinical lead for the ODESSI multicentre trial of Open Dialogue.

Jenny Forge

Jenny Forge was a CAMHS consultant psychiatrist for 25 years in County Durham. Having retired from that role, (at the time of writing) she works in NHS Medical Development and as a professional coach. She wrote, ‘Coaching in Mental Health Service Settings and Beyond: practical applications’ in 2022.

John Crichton

John Crichton is a Forensic Psychiatrist and Executive Medical Director at the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland. He is an Honorary Professor at the School of Law, University of Edinburgh and previous Medical Director of the Forensic Network and State Hospitals’ Board for Scotland and Treasurer of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. His many publications include editing, ‘Psychiatric Patient Violence: Risk and Response’.

Sridevi Kalidindi

Sridevi Kalidindi is a Consultant in Rehabilitation Psychiatrist and previous Associate Medical Director at SLaM. She is the immediate past Chair of the Association of Mental Health Providers and National Clinical Lead for Mental Health Rehabilitation with NHS England. She is the Founder of klip Global, Coach, WHO expert Consultant and Fides Network health influencer. Dr Sri was RCPsych, Psychiatrist of the Year, 2017 and awarded a CBE in 2019 for services to Rehabilitation Psychiatry.

Penny Campling

Penny Campling worked for 40 years as an NHS Psychiatrist and Psychotherapist, including many years specialising in work with people attracting the label ‘personality disorder’, and leading the Leicester therapeutic community service. Now, when not playing the piano, singing, dancing or grand-mothering, she works in independent practice. Her books (‘Intelligent Kindness’ and ‘On the Brink’) express her deep concern for troubled services, try to offer perspectives on how to improve them, and serve as an urgent cry for us all to do better.

Dinesh Bhugra

Dinesh Bhugra is Emeritus Professor of Mental Health and Cultural Diversity at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London. Past President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (2008-11), World Psychiatric Association (2014-17) and BMA (2018-19). He is a prolific author, editor of the International Journal of Psychiatry and on many other editorial boards. He was awarded CBE in 2012 for services to psychiatry and the Yves Pelicier award by World Association of Social Psychiatry in 2025.

Helen Smith

Helen Smith has worked as a consultant in the Peninsula forensic services. She is a past Medical Director at Devon Partnership Mental Health Trust and national clinical advisor for Mental Health Safety at NHS England. She is currently a coach on the national Culture of Care programme, and in semi-retirement continues to work with services to improve safety and culture in their organisations.

Caroline Elton

Caroline Elton is an occupational and counselling psychologist, who has worked in a variety of different roles training and supporting medical students and doctors. She has written widely about her work including ‘Also Human: the inner lives of doctors’ published in 2018, which led to invitations to speak and to train clinicians both in the UK and internationally. Her recent book ‘Looking After: a portrait of my autistic brother’ was published in March 2025 and explores the challenges involved in supporting an autistic person through end-of-life care.

Professor Dame Clare Gerada

Professor Dame Clare Gerada was awarded DBE in the 2020 Queens Birthday Honours for services to General Practice. She is a Co-Chair of the NHS Assembly, and Past President Royal College of General Practitioners. She founded and led the NHS Practitioner Health Programme, is Director of the National Primary Care Gambling Service, a patron of Humanists UK and Doctors in Distress and author of ‘Beneath the White Coat: Doctors Their Minds and Mental Health.’

The story continues...

Our book was created with a job to do. ‘Personally Speaking’ invites Psychiatrists, and all those interested in psychiatry, to share in an open and honest contemplation on how we can learn from difficult life experiences in service of our lifelong journey to maturity, and in service of developing compassionate, relational and person-centred responses to mental distress. It carries the hope of being a creative contribution to cultural change in psychiatric training and practice, and our blog updates you on what happened next and how that is working out in practice.

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WONDERFUL!

“These stories are wonderful and exemplify a shift in understanding the powerful therapeutic use of self and how our own stories can provide humanity and empathy. These amazing stories from people who we assume are never vulnerable and have long been taught not to tell their stories showcase how sitting with that vulnerability comfortably can be seminal in changing people's lives. Helping people see that not only are they not alone but that we may all struggle at times in our lives regardless of our position or knowledge. It was a privilege to be able to read these stories and their insights to what that’s meant. Wonderful!!”.

Personally Speaking

Stories from Psychiatrists…on learning from Life's experiences

172 PAGES

22 AUTHORS

18 STORIES