Christine Collins writes from experience that spans the private and the institutional: the quiet terror of a child with nowhere safe to land, and the public reality of being hospitalized, medicated, and treated as a problem to manage. Her perspective is rare because she traces both sides of the story, the personal history that set the stage and the clinical decisions that intensified the crisis.

In the book, Christine describes repeated medication changes, adverse reactions that were mistaken for worsening illness, and the exhausting cycle of relapse, readmission, and “try the next drug.” When standard options failed, she endured 31 electroconvulsive therapy sessions and significant memory loss, an outcome that forced her to rebuild her own narrative with the help of family and the friend who stayed present throughout.

Christine’s message is not anti-care; it is pro-discernment. She advocates for informed consent, careful tapering, listening to patients, and humility in treatment. She also speaks openly about the role faith played in her healing, and the way forgiveness and healthier boundaries helped her rebuild a life.

Her hope is simple: that readers who feel “written off” will see a different possibility, and that those who love them will not stop asking better questions.

Her recovery began when a second opinion led to pharmacogenetic testing, showing that the antidepressants and antipsychotics she had been given for years, one after another, were prone to adverse effects and unlikely to work for her.