The journey through disruptive loss and transformational gain: a co-creative single case study on writing and publishing after psychosis.
Emma Brijs, Diederik Walravens, Liesbeth Taels, Stijn Vanheule
Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine October 10, 2025 DOI: 10.1186/s13010-025-00193-z (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Co-constructive single-case study using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1 |
| Population | DW, a man with lived experience of psychosis, and his published and unpublished writings |
| Keywords | Humans Psychotic disorders Writing Publishing Male Recovery Psychoanalysis Psychosis Spirituality |
| Key findings | Argues that writing helped DW navigate and stabilize his experience of psychosis by restoring narrative coherence, stabilizing self-experience, legitimizing spiritual meaning, and sustaining life-engagement, while publishing helped him reach others and create possibilities for recognition and reconnection. Proposes that loss and transformation are interwoven dynamics in recovery rather than opposing forces. |
Abstract
Background: This paper explores how writing and publishing can contribute to recovery after psychosis, focusing on lived experience. Collaborating with DW, whose creative work engages existential and philosophical questions, we examine how narrative expression may help respond to experiences of loss and destabilization.
Methods: Using a co-constructive single-case study design, we analyzed DW's published and unpublished writings in dialogue with psychoanalytic and recovery-oriented frameworks. The data was analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
Results: Writing emerged as a vital tool for DW to navigate and stabilize his experience. Identified themes include: (1) Grasping the past; (2) Existing in the present; and (3) Hoping for the future. Publishing initiated a second movement: (4) Coming to closure for oneself and others; (5) Reframing psychosis and psychiatry; and (6) Guiding only one other a step forward.
Conclusion: The case study shows how writing can support recovery by restoring narrative coherence, stabilizing self-experience, legitimizing spiritual meaning, and sustaining life-engagement. Publishing, in its turn, helps reaching others, creating possibilities for recognition and reconnection. Rather than opposing forces, loss and transformation appear as interwoven dynamics in recovery. Narrative practices like writing and publishing can be valuable existential tools for individuals reconstructing meaning after psychosis.