'Out of the Madhouse' tells of Michael's journey through the mental health system whilst he battles his own mental health issues. As someone working in mental health I always find these kinds of books extremely enlightening and useful for me as a professional. What I really appreciated about this one was that interspersed with Michael's diary entries were recollections from Michael's father, Ian, as well as advice and tips from Michael to others experiencing mental ill health as well as those supporting individuals suffering from mental ill health. These tips, as given from someone who has first-hand experience, are invaluable.

I found this a really emotive read, as Michael's story is somewhat turbulent, but was really happy to read at the end that Michael goes on to share his story with others through conferences and suchlike, and ends up in a career and friendship circle which seems to be making him very happy.

As a perinatal mental health advocate and as the author of a book about postpartum bipolar disorder, I found "Out of the Madhouse" to be a compelling, worthwhile read. The book depicts co-author Michael Maitland's quest for healing as well as his father Iain's reflections about his son's recovery journey. Michael stays at the Priory, a place that my British psychiatrist friend told me is one of the top institutions for mental illness treatment. It's an inspiring story as Michael Maitland evolves into a mental health ambassador— the book is also practical as it contains pointers for better mental health that can apply to people with a variety of mood disorders.

This book documents Michael’s journey from 2012-2017. Through that period he suffered from severe depression and anxiety which led to him battling with anorexia.
It is written mainly using diary entries from Michael written at the time, but also with entries from his father, Iain. It is Iain’s entries which make this book so different from the norm in that they are a mixture of accounts of how the family dealt with the situation and, exercises and tips on how to cope and manage with depression and anxiety.
Although Michael had a long battle, it was amazing to see that he came through without the prolonged use of medication (although it was recognised that this is not the right approach for everyone).
This is a really interesting and different read on the subject of mental health. I would recommend it for anyone with mental health issues, anyone helping someone dealing with these issues or just someone who wants to know more about the subject.
My only slight criticism of the book is that Iain’s advice is a bit repetitive at times, but I understand that can be helpful for advice to be repeated so that it sinks in.
Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I found this book an interesting read and it gave a lot of good advice and information for families of a person suffering from mental health issues . It was also interesting to read the insights of Michael as he battles his illness.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.

Michael’s struggles with mental illness were laid out in this book in an informative and loving manner. The authors did an amazing job of ensuring that the reader emphasized with Michael while providing crucial information to assist others struggling with mental illness. As someone suffering from depression and anxiety, I found this book to be extremely empowering.

Michael's experiences with depression, anxiety and anorexia including the time he spent in a mental health hospital. You also hear from the perspective of Michael's family, in particular his sad Ian. There are many self help books on mental health now, but i have never come across one like this. Written jointly by father and son, it covers a 4 year period of crisis in the life of a young man whilst doing his MA. His story is covered by using a diary he wrote at the time.