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• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 40 - 49 >> Niabingi - Interview 01 >> Niabingi describes being in hospital and how it prompts her to ask "what is wrong?" and often leads to the "stark realisation" that she is unwell. (Pl

This 42 year old Black, British born woman was diagnosed at the age of 25 with paranoid schizophrenia but disagrees with the paranoid part. She believes that her mental distress was caused by the racism she experienced when growing up.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 40 - 49 >> Niabingi - Interview 01 >> Niabingi describes what her voices say and compares hearing voices with "a song that keeps on coming into your head". (Played by an actor).

This 42 year old Black, British born woman was diagnosed at the age of 25 with paranoid schizophrenia but disagrees with the paranoid part. She believes that her mental distress was caused by the racism she experienced when growing up.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 50 - 59 >> Lorenz - Interview 11 >> Lorenz describes coming to accept his diagnosis of schizophrenia and why he thinks the diagnosis was justified by his symptoms and not made because he

Lorenz is a 50 year old Black Afro-Caribbean man who has been in the UK since 1966. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia aged 20 and this is now controlled by the anti-psychotic Aripiprazole (10mg daily) enabling Lorenz to work as a social care assistant.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 50 - 59 >> Lorenz - Interview 11 >> Lorenz also hears different kinds of voices and they mainly say "good things" but can tell him to hurt himself.

Lorenz is a 50 year old Black Afro-Caribbean man who has been in the UK since 1966. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia aged 20 and this is now controlled by the anti-psychotic Aripiprazole (10mg daily) enabling Lorenz to work as a social care assistant.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 40 - 49 >> Jay - Interview 27 >> Jay says she hears her voices constantly and they say mostly negative things, apart from two voices that encourage her.

Jay, 42, describes herself as Black-British. She was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder aged 34 and now works in mental health. Jay's voices say mainly negative things, but two voices encourage her and give her tenacity and drive.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 40 - 49 >> Devon - Interview 12 >> Devon says the voice he heard sounded like "my own spirit" and also described believing that the television was talking to him.

Devon, 49, is married and was born in Jamaica; he came to the UK in 1965. He was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia aged 22 and depression aged 48. He is a founder member of the organization Sound Minds - www.soundminds.co.uk - a user-led music project.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 30 - 39 >> Dolly - Interview 14 >> Dolly knows she is becoming unwell when she starts to see shadows shaped like humans; she also hears voices, poetry and music.

Dolly, a 36 year old writer and author of The World is Full of Laughter, is of mixed ethnicity (White/Asian), and first experienced psychosis aged 14. She finds Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Buddhism and meditation very useful.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 40 - 49 >> Jay - Interview 27 >> When she was in hospital, she didn't tell anyone that she heard voices, only that her "head was noisy".

Jay, 42, describes herself as Black-British. She was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder aged 34 and now works in mental health. Jay's voices say mainly negative things, but two voices encourage her and give her tenacity and drive.

• Mental health >> Mental health: ethnic minority experiences >> Aged 40 - 49 >> Niabingi - Interview 01 >> Niabingi thought hearing voices was "natural", but when her mum first took her to the doctors, they said nothing was wrong. (Played by an actor).

This 42 year old Black, British born woman was diagnosed at the age of 25 with paranoid schizophrenia but disagrees with the paranoid part. She believes that her mental distress was caused by the racism she experienced when growing up.