Sylvia Caras majored in math at Wellesley and became a housewife.
She faced gender role induced career loss and the problematic of madness. She has now magnificently resurrected her career direction by constructing the system of mental health client Internet lists. We should all learn from her remarkable story.  Andrew Phelps, Ph.D,  April 1999

One of the questions I've been asking myself is to what degree and how specifically I wish to remain involved with the national c/s/x community and indeed with the whole "mental health field".  I want you to know that as I consider this question, your words will bear powerful witness to what exactly it is that I'm involved with.  Accurate representations of reality (which is of course to say, "one's I accept as accurate") are rare for me.  Thank you with helping to enrich my experience.   Scott Huffman, April 1999

I have read your dissertation twice. The first made me cry, as you described your struggle for "place", for "voice" -- pre-Madness.   I love the way the personal and political threads are woven in it and delighted by the language; the writing.  Kathryn Cohan, April 1999

To a shooting star of the mental health consumer/survivor/expatient (c/s/x) human rights advocacy movement Congratulations on a stunning accomplishment, one certain to inspire other individuals with disabilities to renewed endeavor--to resist the oppression of the psychopharmaceutical complex, to pursue recovery from illness and chronic disability, to reclaim one's assets and cast off one's liabilities, to live and not be crushed underfoot by the oppressor.  Michael Bilson, October 1999

This is a remarkable document, the story of a person's disability turned around into a personal triumph. Many fellow people with disabilities of various kinds can learn from Sylvia's example. Truly, many disabilities are invisible. Sylvia brings the world of fear, mood swings, voices and visions into her work and bridges the gap between our world and the larger world.  She serves as a role model for others who have struggled to make our movement whole and effective.  She has made many consumers feel welcome on the Internet.

Randolph C. Hack, October 1999

 

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