SHAME ATE MY SOUL is a memoir that reads like a fiction novel you can’t put down. Susan Walz shares her inspiring personal story of rising above the stigma of mental illness, suicide attempts, addiction, and misdiagnosis, and eventually finding the triumph of recovery.Spanning over two decades, Susan Walz lived with the mental illness diagnoses of postpartum depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, PTSD and borderline Personality disorder. Travel along with her on her journey through many struggles and losses that eventually lead to her discovery of the life lessons necessary to achieve her triumph of healing and recovery. She openly and honestly speaks from her heart educating and helping others understand and feel what it’s like to live with severe mental illness and shows from her lived experiences what mental illness stigma is. Throughout the book, she inspires hope and discusses successful coping and recovery strategies and demonstrates that recovery and healing are possible. She is an example that you can live a happy, fulfilled and purposeful life living with mental illness. Shame Ate My Soul is a necessary book for everyone and anyone who enjoys reading an inspirational story that touches the heart, creates emotion, inspires hope and refreshes and renews the spirit and soul.Review and praise for SHAME ATE MY SOUL: The gong show of psychiatric ineptitude continued, and her mental health declined. Every step of the way people just kept dropping the ball when it came to her care. Besides worrying about further stigma she’d be faced with after the suicide attempt, she had to go through being cut off Klonopin cold turkey and experiencing a terrible prolonged withdrawal. Finally, though, Sue was able to turn a corner. Her recovery has been truly remarkable, with the help of her faith, becoming a grandma, and finally finding a doctor who was able to give her the right diagnosis and get her on the right treatment.Sue has had a very difficult journey, and she’s captured it really effectively in this book. It has a loud and clear anti-stigma message, as well as a very hopeful message for recovery. This is a very powerful book and I highly recommend it. -Ashley Peterson, Author of Managing the Depression Puzzle, Making Sense of Psychiatric Diagnosis and Psych Meds Made Simple
