The Phoenix Early Intervention in Psychosis Program is an outpatient, recovery-focused program that takes a team approach to helping people aged 14 to 35 years old. For Bailey, her team included a psychiatrist, a therapist, and an occupational therapist, who worked with her to provide the right combination of medication, therapy, and support to build her confidence back up. She participated in this program for three years and still has regular check-ins.

For Bailey her experience was a sign that manic psychosis is not a common subject, she saw value in sharing her story and spreading the word that it is okay to ask for help, and it’s okay to talk about your mental illness, even though it is frightening.

“The more people talk about mental illness, the less stigma will surround it,” she said. “So I wrote a book about my journey – starting from the feelings of depression right through the manic episodes.”

Her book, Well, That Was Strange, even contains her journal entries from her psychotic episodes, as it was happening, and the feedback she has received has been overwhelming.

“I wasn’t expecting it to be as popular as it is. The day I published it I posted on Instagram and there were so many comments and feedback,” she said. “A lot of people have read it, and I’ve been asked if I was nervous to share what I went through…I always respond with no, the whole point is to help somebody else.”

You can find Well, That Was Strange: A True Story About a Young Adult Who Learned to Live With Manic Psychosis on Amazon.ca.