Robert Hurst

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to share Victoria Clare's story. Design/methodology/approach - Victoria wrote a biography of her experiences. Robert then asked a series of questions from the perspective of a mental health academic. Findings - Victoria shared stories from her life, and how her experiences have shaped her life and herself. Research limitations/implications - Narratives such as this give us an overview of only a single person's experiences. However, they allow the person with lived experience to explore their story in depth. Practical implications - What Victoria has written will give readers an insight into her life and experiences. Social implications - There is so much to learn from a story like Victoria's, especially in her approach to creativity. Originality/value - This is Victoria's own unique story. The value of this is apparent upon reading it.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to give an overview of existing literature on post-traumatic growth (PTG), particularly in the ways that it relates to grief. Design/methodology/approach This narrative literature review brings together 125 sources and presents them in a readable way. Findings There is a great deal of evidence to suggest that PTG can come from grief. This is not always the case, however. Research limitations/implications This review presents only a selection of the existing literature - the review is not systematic. However, this allows for a narrative to be crafted, to aid readability. Practical implications Suggestions for future research are made throughout, and potential therapeutic applications are mentioned. Social implications This paper discusses stigma, in the form of "disenfranchised grief". In this, social pressures and expectations affect how a person processes their grief psychologically. While movements to increase discourse and reduce stigma are on the rise, more is needed. Originality/value This review guides readers through existing literature, providing a wide overview of the topic of PTG in grief.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to share Robyn Clegg-Gibson's story. Design/methodology/approach: Robyn wrote a biography of her experiences. Robert then asked a series of questions from the perspective of a mental health academic researcher. Findings: Robyn shared stories from her life, and how her experiences have shaped her life and herself. Research limitations/implications: Narratives such as this give us an overview of only a single person's experiences. However, they allow the person with lived experience to explore their story in depth. Practical implications: What Robyn has written is very emotional. Her story will give readers an insight into her life and experiences. Social implications: There is so much to learn from a story like Robyn's. In particular, from her experiences of police processes after a crime. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first time that Robyn has chosen to publish her unique story in the written form. The value of Robyn sharing her story is apparent upon reading it.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to share Laura Scranage's story. Design/methodology/approach Laura wrote a short piece detailing her journey and was then interviewed by Robert. Findings Laura spoke about the difficulties she has faced in life and how her experiences with horses have been deeply therapeutic. Research limitations/implications Recovery narratives such as this give us an overview of only a single person's experiences. However, they allow the person with lived experience to explore their story in depth. Practical implications Laura advocates for more research into how horses can be used in therapeutic interventions. Social implications There is so much to learn from a story such as Laura's, for those who have had similar experiences and for those who work in mental health services. Originality/value This is the first time that Laura has chosen to share her unique story.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to share Danielle Jeffries' story.
Design/methodology/approachDanielle wrote a biography of her experiences. Robert then asked a series of questions from the perspective of a mental health academic.
FindingsDanielle shared stories from her life, and how her experiences have shaped her, including being sectioned under the Mental Health Act.
Research limitations/implicationsRecovery narratives such as this give us an overview of only a single person's experiences. However, they allow the person with lived experience to explore their story in depth.
Practical implicationsWhat Danielle has written is very powerful. Her story will give readers an insight into her life and experiences. Social implicationsThere is so much to learn from stories such as Danielle's. In particular, the way that she speaks about the impact of a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder.
Originality/valueThis is the first time that Danielle has chosen to share her unique story. The value of Danielle sharing her story is apparent upon reading it.

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to share Kirsty Lilley’s story.
Design/methodology/approach
Kirsty wrote a biographic piece detailing her journey, then shared a creative piece of writing about trust before being interviewed by Robert.
Findings
Kirsty shared stories from her life and how her experiences have shaped who she is. In Trust, she gives the reader an intimate insight into her internal and psychological experiences.
Research limitations/implications
Recovery narratives such as this give us an overview of only a single person’s experiences. However, they allow the person with lived experience to explore their story in depth.
Practical implications
Kirsty writes evocatively – her stories will connect with readers.
Social implications
There is so much to learn from stories such as Kirsty’s. For those who have had similar experiences and for those who work in mental health services.
Originality/value
This is the first time that Kirsty has chosen to share her unique story. It is also the first time in Remarkable Lives that a piece of creative writing has been included alongside a biography.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to share Ella Vadasz's story. Design/methodology/approachElla wrote a biography of her experiences, including two poems. Robert then asked a series of questions from the perspective of a mental health academic. FindingsElla shared stories from her life and how her experiences have shaped her. She talked about the emotional impact of a custody battle. Research limitations/implicationsRecovery narratives such as this give us an overview of only a single person's experiences. However, they allow the person with lived experiences to explore their story in depth. Practical implicationsWhat Ella has written is very emotional. Her story will give readers an insight into her life and experiences. Social implicationsThere is so much to learn from stories such as Ella's, in particular from her critique of social services in Scotland and England. Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first time that Ella has chosen to share her unique story. This paper features two poems written by her - a first for Remarkable Lives. The value of Ella sharing her story is apparent upon reading it.

The purpose of this paper is to review the 16 published non-student Recovery Heroes and Remarkable Lives accounts published in this journal, using the CHIME (Connection, Hope, Identity, Meaning and Empowerment) framework.
All 16 accounts were rated independently by four researchers and evaluated in terms of whether each account met the five criteria for the CHIME model.
All accounts met the criteria for the CHIME model, with the exception of one, which still met four of the five criteria. Evidence was presented which suggests that the model can be extended to C-CHIME, to incorporate creativity.
While a certain level of subjectivity is required in deciding how each account meets the CHIME criteria, there were high levels of inter-rater reliability within the research team. Creativity had a central place in all the accounts.
While a certain level of subjectivity is required in deciding how each account meets the CHIME criteria, there were high levels of inter-rater reliability within the research team. Creativity had a central place in all the accounts.
The recovery model privileges both professional and lived experience perspectives on recovery. The current review highlights how much we can benefit from the wisdom contained in first person accounts.
The recovery model privileges both professional and lived experience perspectives on recovery. The current review highlights how much we can benefit from the wisdom contained in first person accounts.

Both meaning in life (MIL) and perceived self-competence (PSC) have been linked to a sense of calling, and better well-being. To the authors' knowledge, no study has examined MIL or PSC in counselling students. Current counselling students (N = 292) were asked whether studying counselling brought them MIL, and completed the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, and an adapted Perceived Competence Scale for Counselling Students (PCS-CS). Results showed that students with a higher sense of MIL had a higher level of PSC. Over 95% of participants found meaning in their study of counselling, implying that many found it to be a calling. The PCS-CS was found to be reliable, and implications include its potential usefulness in future research on PSC in counselling populations. With MIL and PSC being linked to better workplace wellbeing, this study implies that trainee counsellors have high levels of these protective factors, with further research warranted to establish whether this is also the case for counselling professionals.

The aim of this paper is to review the 20 Remarkable Lives student accounts published in this journal. These Recovery Narratives (RNs) are examined first in terms of whether they meet the five elements of the CHIME Model of recovery, and then in terms of what makes each account remarkable.
Two Excel spreadsheets were created. One had each author’s name and the five elements of the CHIME model, the other the features of a remarkable life.
All 20 accounts fulfilled the criteria for the CHIME Model, independently validating this model of recovery. Hence, each account showed evidence of Connectedness, Hope, Identity, Meaning and Empowerment. A number of additional characteristics stood out from the accounts, such as the importance of motherhood and of education.
All 20 accounts were only reviewed by the two authors, who may be subject to bias. To reduce this, the first author did the bulk of the ratings. This paper shows the importance of education for recovery.
Some 15/20 accounts reported problems with mental health services, mainly around waiting lists. Must mental health always remain a Cinderella service? More value needs to be accorded to education as a means to recovery.
This is the first attempt to synthesise this particular set of recovery narratives, entitled Remarkable Lives. These accounts show the richness of the recovery journeys embarked on by many sufferers, and these are just drawn from one University. Like the authors of these stories, we too as recovery specialists have much to learn from their inspiring accounts.