Is There No Place on Earth for Me?

I've read and re-read Is There No Place on Earth for Me at least a dozen times since it's publication. I bought a new copy when I couldn't find the first (after Hurricane Katrina it was easy to forget what was lost and what was saved). I have 2 paperback copies and now the Kindle edition, which was updated by Sheehan and makes it worth the purchase.Sylvia Frumkin is one of the most irritating, obnoxious, imperious, often (unintentionally) hysterically funny, and tragic people I've ever read about, including fictional characters. The book covers some of her childhood and troubled adolescence, when her first major psychotic break occurrs, and describes the endless cycle of hospitalizations which consumed the rest of her life. Through her journey we learn a great deal about the history of treatment of mental illness in the USA (especially New York state, where she lived and died) and witness her futile struggles to accomplish goals most adults take for granted, like having an apartment and a job.Some reviewers stated they learned more than they wanted to know about mental health treatment and facilities and Sheehan is very thorough in that regard, but she provides a broader understanding without losing focus on one individual's fate. It's painfully clear Frumkin, and too many others, might have had a slightly easier time if the numerous psychiatrists who treated her had paid attention to her history, especially with medications. The background information shows how the landscape changed over the years, as more foreign, non-English speaking psychiatrists took jobs in state institutions because U.S. doctors could find better-paying jobs elsewhere. This is crucial to understanding some of the problems Frumkin and others deal with as they are misdiagnosed or simply unable to communicate adequately with someone who doesn't speak/understand English sufficiently and lacks cultural familiarity with a foreign country (i.e., the USA). One doctor diagnoses her as manic-depressive because he doesn't realize her wild references to Mary Poppins and other fictional and real people demonstrate typical schizophrenic symptoms.What's more disturbing is the almost whimsical way her medications are prescribed and administered. Under-dosing occurs constantly, failing to note which drugs and doses are more beneficial, and inexplicably lowering doses or switching to another drug without compensating for the dosing requirements/adjustments between the two contribute to Sylvia's problems instead of helping them.Sheehan's unflinching portrayal of the Frumkin family shows the agony of living with a deeply troubled child/sibling while demonstrating how much her parents contribute to her problems. Mrs. Frumkin is too self-involved to realize the antagonistic remarks she frequently makes to Sylvia only make the situation worse and Mr. Frumkin lives in a constant state of denial that blinds him to the fact his daughter will never be "well." Joyce, Sylvia's older sister, is the most sympathetic family member but she cannot curb her parents' behavior any more than she can control Sylvia, and she has her own demons to battle (almost entirely due to Mr. Frumkin's treatment of her from childhood as an overachiever, never quite meeting his expectations).There is so much more I haven't covered I could write 20 pages and still not be done. It is often funny as hell due to Sylvia's absurd behavior (at times obviously meant to draw others' attention) and particularly non-stop monologues that juxtapose references to her real life, hallucinatory thoughts, and a cast of characters from Paul McCartney to Captain Kangaroo to the "best friend" she ever had, Camilla Costello, "Abbott and Costello's daughter."Is There No Place on Earth for Me is exceptional and one of the most moving and enlightening books about schizophrenia, and mental illness treatment, I've ever read. That I frequently laugh out loud probably explains why I can re-read it again and again.

Susan Sheehan's work is not only brilliant, it is a masterpiece. I have read Is There No Place countless times as I have cooped with my own SMI and survived the rejection that accompanies discrimination against us. I never thought I would survive because I was very, very like Sylvia Frumpkin in so many ways that it frightens me to day. It is impossible to describe what the experience of craziness is because so many physical and mental factors are involved. Sheehan captures the irrational, conflicting, and colliding energies of the acute phases of some forms of major mental illness so well that I can imagine how my family felt. Sheehan is a true witness. We need more of them. Without banging any drums she lays bare the devastating role that money, never rationally invested, goes in decreasing the chances ouir chances of recovery. Tolerating us is not an accurate indicator of the resolution of the stigma against us.

While looking for Tom Sheehan, I found the wrong Tom Sheehan and discovered his wife Susan, a Pulitzer Prize winner. Her story is that of Maxine Mason, code-named Sylvia Frumkin. What began as extended monologues involving delusions of grandeur and non-sequitur rambling was framed by Sheehan as part of a 16 year narrative which was begun near the end of late 1970s New York. While I was reading, new thoughts that occurred to me included why people read: it’s for information, suspense, or ambient setting. The suspense was hardly worth it because schizophrenics are not cured; I could only look forward to more “Joycean monologues” that the author eventually gave her credit for having, but I don’t see the literary value of repeatedly referencing Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney as past husbands. I also don’t see the point of discussing Frumkin’s weight, since now nobody thinks twice of weighing 175 pounds at 5, 4. Her parents were driven crazy by their sick daughter. Her sister Joyce was too, eventually, and then disingenuously blames hospital staff for not looking after Sylvia’s every need. As for ambient setting, late 1970s’s New York is full of old, ugly, Technicolor cars, rising crime, anarchy, and radiators. It’s not a good time to read about New York anyway. It’s easy to see Frumkin’s riotous illogic as the current police protests staged by criminals and the misinformed. As for information, I learned about drugs, but they are drugs designed to hold mental disease at bay. “A hundred milligrams of Mellaril is the equivalent of 100 milligrams of Thorazine, and 50 milligrams of Serentil I the equivalent of 100 milligrams of Thorazine. Most neuroleptics are high-milligram-potency drugs; thus, 10 milligrams of Trilafon or Moban is the equivalent of 100 milligrams of Thorazine.” In other words, this is good literature after bad. I call it exploitative reporting that was celebrated by the Pulitzer committee because of goody-goody sympathy. What else was happening in New York in the late 1970s?

I found many interesting things in the book, but what jumped out at me most was to see that some of Sylvia's doctors and her parents couldn't separate out the person from the illness. Sylvia's violent, disrespectful behavior wasn't the illness, but I think the illness made it more difficult for her to control herself; many times it appeared she could control certain things if she WANTED to - she appears driven not just by the illness, but by her emotions, as well.Having had a child with issues, I had to understand the "issues", but still discipline him and provide necessary boundaries so he knew how far he could go with me and the rest of humanity despite his challenges. I think it's helped him to grow into a person who can actually live in the world with all of it's rules and standards. If I hadn't disciplined him and had merely medicated him and with sentimentality let him away with everything, he'd be locked up today, somewhere.

This an interesting book as a case study of Schizophrenia, but I have to admit it seems somewhat 'dated' since it's original publishing in 'New Yorker' Magazine as a column, in the 8o's. It is highly original as a work and allows the reader to enter the world of the patient/out-patient Sylvia Frumkin. A lady who suffered greatly with the illness.This book is a challenge to read and in my opinion, there are better books on the subject: "The Day The Voices Stopped", 'Recovered Not Cured', 'The Quiet Room' and 'The Centre Cannot Hold' are all far more interesting and more updated versions of similar subject-matter.'Is There No Place on Earth For Me' however is well-written and at times deeply fascinating but realistically it seems that hopefully the treatment of Schizophrenia has advanced massively since this book was written.

I love this book too. So wonderful she is so feisty and belligerent. I love it. Does wonders for the female schizophrenia ladies amongst us. Girl power! I love her! 🥰

I love this book. It's the best account of someone living with schizophrenia that I have ever read. And I have read tons of them and I should know as I have schizophrenia too.

AWESOME