One more coincidence, Mark: this same Dr. Carol North is mentioned several times in Newsweek's March 11 cover story on schizophrenia. She is described as "a respected psychiatrist and researcher at Washington University," apparently first heard voices when she was 16, and tells of how they taunted her with the "fact" that she wasn't good enough to get into medical school, couldn't pass an exam, etc. Later in the article, she says that she thought there were "10,000 universal truths that I needed to understand, that there were messages in the pattern of paint on the wall and in the pattern of concrete."
I don't know her whole story and haven't read her book, but the fact that she managed to make it through a grueling academic regimen, achieve notable success in her field, and then openly discuss her personal struggle, in the face of such a cruel and daunting illness, is remarkable. She certainly has my admiration. Good luck, Mark, in getting reacquainted with your old childhood friend. Mary P.
