Onika L. Dainty

As I waited for the University of Toronto Master’s of Social Work (MSW) students to settle into the classroom, I could feel my nervousness rising. These young people are the future of social work, and I was a woman who had lived through psychosis, invited to offer something no textbook could provide. My role was simple in theory: share my lived experience of mental illness, offer insight into one of its most complex realities, and leave a lasting impact as they prepared to support clients experiencing psychosis firsthand. Simple, right?

Yet as I listened to the professor’s lecture on psychosis, stigma reduction, medication side effects, and intervention strategies, the full weight of my experience returned. How could I capture what it truly means to live through psychosis in such a short time? How could I help them understand that people navigating this form of mental illness are still whole, still human, and deserving of dignity, patience, and compassionate care?

Through my work with the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, alongside social workers and lived experience advisors, I contributed to a Psychosis Simulation Project. Our goal was to bring lived experience into social work education. The initial result was an educational video that bridges clinical knowledge with human reality, highlighting both practitioner perspectives and the voices of those who have experienced psychosis and returned to wellness.

This blog explores why lived experience must be part of social work education. Psychosis cannot be understood solely through clinical language or diagnostic criteria. It must be understood through the lives of real people who live, work, love, and heal beyond their diagnosis.

Humanizing Psychosis Beyond the Label

One of the most important messages I share is this: I am not psychosis. I am not my illness. I live a full and meaningful life.

For many MSW students, their early exposure to mental health is rooted in clinical settings. Clients appear as case files, diagnoses, or mental status exams. In those environments, people can become reduced to symptoms. Their humanity is often overshadowed by hallucinations, delusions and disorganized speech. 

What is often missing is the fuller picture. The person behind the diagnosis may be a mother, a sister, a student, an employee, or a friend. They have identities, relationships, and aspirations that exist far beyond their mental illness.

Sharing my lived experience challenges this narrow lens. It reminds future social workers to see the person first and the diagnosis second. Hearing directly from someone who has experienced psychosis and built emotional stability, structure, and routine in recovery helps reduce stigma and deepen empathy. It brings forward dignity, identity, and the complexity that defines each individual life.

Stages of Psychosis: What to Expect Before, During, and After

Individuals experiencing psychosis often move through distinct stages, each with its own challenges and needs. Understanding these phases is essential for effective mental health support and long-term healing.

Before Psychosis

In the early stage, symptoms such as paranoia, delusions, and hallucinations may begin to surface. Many individuals are still living in the community, often without a strong support system or awareness of what is happening.

In these situations, crisis intervention may occur, sometimes involving police wellness checks. While intended for safety, these interventions can feel deeply distressing and, in some cases, harmful.

For social workers, this stage highlights the importance of early, compassionate intervention. Consistent check-ins, emotional support, and trust-building can make a meaningful difference. Care should not begin only after the crisis peaks. It must start as early as possible.

During Psychosis

During psychosis, individuals are not grounded in shared reality. Their thoughts, emotions, and behaviours may become intense, disorganized, or unrecognizable. Emotional responses can feel overwhelming, often described as a form of emotional hijacking, where the brain’s fear response overrides rational thinking.

It is important to understand that behaviours during this phase are symptoms of mental illness, not reflections of character.

Social workers must respond with steadiness, empathy, and a willingness to look beyond the moment. Supporting both the individual and their support system helps create a foundation of safety and understanding. This foundation becomes critical when the person begins to return to baseline.

After Psychosis

The period after psychosis is just as important as the crisis itself. Recovery does not end when symptoms fade. In many ways, this is where the deeper work of healing begins.

Supporting individuals in rebuilding structure, routine, and stability is essential. This may include sleep regulation, medication management, and reconnecting with daily life.

Social workers play a key role in this phase. They become a steady point of reference as individuals reintegrate into their lives. Care must remain continuous, grounded in patience, empathy, and non-judgment. True recovery is not a single moment but an ongoing process of rebuilding and growth.

Medication Management: Nuance and Non-Compliance

Discussing medication in mental health care is rarely straightforward. My own experience reflects this complexity. There have been times when I resisted medication and times when I recognized its value in supporting my stability and recovery.

For many individuals, hesitation around medication is rooted in real concerns. Side effects from antipsychotics and mood stabilizers can include emotional numbness, fatigue, and significant weight gain. These changes can impact identity, self-esteem, and overall well-being, especially for women navigating mental health and body image.

There is also the reality of forced treatment during acute episodes, when individuals may not have the capacity to advocate for themselves. This can create lasting distrust toward medical systems.

For social workers, advocacy is essential. This means asking thoughtful questions, listening without judgment, and helping bridge communication between clients and psychiatric teams. Medication management should be approached with empathy, collaboration, and respect for the client’s lived experience.

Lived Experience Reflection: The Social Worker Who Helped Me Trust

In 2016, during a severe episode of psychosis, I was hospitalized at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto following a traumatic wellness call. What followed was a period marked by isolation, restraints, medication challenges, and a deep mistrust of the system. At the same time, I was experiencing homelessness.

It was during this time that I met Tarak, the social worker who would change the course of my recovery.

Our early interactions were difficult. I was fearful, reactive, and guarded. I pushed him away with anger and mistrust. Yet he remained consistent. He showed up daily, calm and present, even when I tried to drive him away.

What I did not realize at the time was that he was listening, not just to my words but to the pain beneath them. He recognized my trauma, my fear, and my desire to heal, even when I could not express it clearly.

At one point, he made me a simple offer. Give him a month. If I was not satisfied, he would step aside. That consistency, paired with empathy, allowed me to take a chance on trust.

Tarak supported me in finding housing, rebuilding structure, and reconnecting with life. He sat with me through small moments that became significant turning points. Over time, he became more than a social worker. He became a steady presence in my healing journey.

He saw beyond my Bipolar disorder and psychosis. He saw possibility. He helped me reconnect with my sense of self, my creativity, and my potential. That belief changed everything.

Final Thoughts

Speaking with MSW students was deeply meaningful. It felt like an opportunity to shift how future social workers understand mental health, not just as a clinical field but as a human experience.

Lived experience brings depth that textbooks cannot offer. It adds context, emotion, and reality to the study of mental illness. It reminds us that behind every diagnosis is a person with a full life, not defined by their most difficult moments.

Psychosis is part of the story, but it is never the whole story. Healing, growth, and emotional stability are possible. And when social workers are trained to see the whole person, not just the symptoms, they become far more effective in supporting lasting recovery.