Bethany’s Message: “I am an ordinary person. I do not have a PhD, I am not a famous researcher. I would like to say that the heroes in my story are my mom and my dad, who absolutely would not give up for me, and always said that I would go back to college and always said that I would reclaim my life. And also my doctors, especially Dr. Nasrallah, as well as some of my other doctors, who spent so much of their time going above and beyond. Dr. Nasrallah would sit down with me and say, “Are you wanting to go back to school? What are your dreams? What are your goals? What did you want out of your life before the onset of this illness? Because we’re going to shoot for the stars. We’re not gonna give up.” And I am so grateful for my parents and for Dr. Nasrallah spending so much time coaching me and encouraging me and watching for side effects of this medication. It took a lot of effort on his part. But my parents and Dr. Nasrallah and my other doctors, these people are the true heroes in my story. I want you to know that I’m very, very grateful for these people.”

Bethany Yeiser was born just outside of Chicago in Arlington Heights, though her family moved to Illinois and then to a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, where her father was a paster. She grew up alongside her brother and had a wonderful childhood. Bethany was a very serious student, inspired to do her best by her teachers and those around her. In high school, she became extremely invested in violin, eventually being accepted as a student by a local music conservatory professor. She reflects on her thoughts and attitude in high school below:

Bethany: When I was in high school I was very, very serious on violin. I started practicing four to five hours every day. I was accepted as a student of a music professor at a local music conservatory. I was very proud of that. I was also in the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra. I was in the National Honor Society, and I thought about college all the time. What I was gonna be, would I have a PhD someday? How could I make my impact on the world?

After high school, Bethany was accepted into her dream school, the University of Southern California, and awarded a half tuition scholarship. At USC, Bethany thrived – she was a high performing student with good grades, participated in research, and was concertmaster on violin for the community orchestra. After a few years, Bethany started looking for ways to leave her mark, and was inspired by others at the university around her who had travelled, as well as Mother Theresa and her work. Bethany decided to follow the inspiration of a young woman she met on campus and travel to Nairobi, Africa after her junior year. There, she spent time among the Nairobi people, exploring the culture and helping others in an effort to leave her mark.

Bethany: I wanted to make my own mark, and as I was at the university, I met more and more people who had traveled internationally. One of them really stands out in my memories as a young Caucasian woman who had spent one year living in Nairobi in a very poor community. In the summer after my junior year of college, I got on a plane, and I flew to Nairobi for two and a half months to visit some of her connections, actually, which she’d set me up with, in a very, very poor slum. I loved Africa. I was so privileged to have this opportunity to see more of the world, to make a difference, to better understand another culture. But I had no idea that when I returned from Africa, back from my senior year of college, my life was about to change.

Upon returning to school, Bethany’s life began to take a turn. Her senior year began with taking multiple difficult classes, including molecular genetics, where she unexpectedly failed her first exam. Her schoolwork fell to the wayside as her mind returned to thoughts of Africa. It was then, she recalls, that her delusions began:

The next semester, Bethany’s delusions led her to take a plane to Boston on the belief that a wealthy billionaire would meet her there, eventually marry her, and help her travel the world to raise money for those in poverty. Not meeting this person after spending sixteen hours in the airport, she returned to Los Angeles. That same semester, Bethany dropped out of college and became homeless, often living in the university library or around campus thanks to her old student ID card. Bethany lived this way for almost three years until she began to have auditory and visual hallucinations, which she discusses below:

Eventually, Bethany’s delusions and homelessness were noticed by people on campus, and she was removed from campus by the police. After two brief incarcerations Bethany was taken to be diagnosed, which open the door for her to realize that she was not well, start getting help, and eventually reconnect with her parents. She moved to Cincinnati with her parents and began the process of finding a medication to manage her symptoms – a twelve-month process she remembers as feeling hopeless at times do to “horrific side effects and very little symptom relief” from the five antipsychotics she tried.

After nearly a year, Bethany began seeing Dr. Nasrallah, who started her on clozapine, an underutilized medication that ended up being a fit for Bethany. Her auditory hallucinations virtually disappeared after a few months, and after a year and a half she enrolled in college again, signing up for one class that she passed with flying colors. “I realized that my college graduation was finally going to be possible.” Not only was her graduation possible, but Bethany graduated in 2011 with her degree in molecular biology, magna cum laude, and now considers herself to be fully recovered. Listen to Bethany recount her journey in more detail below:

Today, Bethany works to advocate for and education about schizophrenia and clozapine. She speaks at universities, especially her alma mater, the University of Cincinnati, and has published her own memoir, Mind Estranged: My Journey from Schizophrenia and Homelessness to Recovery. Her memoir and its positive reception are something she credits with a huge change in her life and work. In 2016, she and Dr. Nasrallah started the nonprofit CURESZ (Comprehensive Understanding via Research and Education into Schizophrenia), which she described below:

Bethany: We’re interested in correcting misunderstandings about schizophrenia, help people to understand that this is a treatable brain disease. There is no shame in having it. We want to do research. We’d like to fund research in the future. We like to give people hope. One of the ways we do this is through a group of people I call schizophrenia survivors. These are people from around the country who have schizophrenia, like me, they always will, but thanks to medication and community support, they’ve reclaimed their lives. They’re working, exploring hobbies, volunteering, thriving, have meaningful relationships with friends and family. Through highlighting these survivors, I want to demonstrate that I am not the exception to the rule. It is possible today to get better from schizophrenia. There is hope.

Beyond her work with CURESZ, Bethany is very outspoken about mental health in general, especially after her experiences with incarceration. She is a staunch advocate for mental health courts and treatment for the mentally ill, rather than incarceration. While Bethany herself aimed to flourish through her experience with schizophrenia, she also knows that many others may not have the support to do so, and hopes to change that:

Bethany also enjoys playing the violin, teaching piano to younger beginners ,and learning different languages, including Chinese, Hebrew, Arabic, and Spanish at varying levels. She struggles with sedation from her medication, but has found ways to live her life regardless – she currently works from home for her work with CURESZ. She hopes to see her work with CURESZ grow, as well as being able to grow her personal life and relationships.

Bethany: I would like to spread the message that I do not consider schizophrenia to be a life sentence. That this is a treatable illness. There is no shame in having any disease, including my schizophrenia. . . Just to have a fulfilling, meaningful life, and hopefully, to make a difference.

Overall, Bethany has come to appreciate the things in her life that she finds meaningful, such as her work with CURESZ and her passion for the violin. Listen to her final reflection here: