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PATRICK DYLAN
Winner of seven awards, including a National Indie Excellence Award and Best Indie Book Award.
SAFE, WANTED, AND LOVED
A FAMILY MEMOIR OF MENTAL ILLNESS, HEARTBREAK, AND HOPE
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"Pat, we need to kill the dog." A chill ran down Patrick Dylan's spine as his wife spoke--psychosis had found their family again.
When a sudden mental illness struck his wife, Patrick Dylan found himself living with an eerie stranger. Scared and unprepared, he began a desperate battle to protect her from a mysterious disease, shelter their children from her bizarre behavior, and recover the woman he loved.
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Safe, Wanted, and Loved is a compassionate, honest, and gripping account of a family navigating mental illness.
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"Patrick's story has the supreme merit of being accurate."
—Rosemary Hayward, author and mental health advocate
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“Safe, Wanted, and Loved provides a compelling, deeply personal narrative about the true impact of mental illness on the individual and their family. Speaking from a place of healing and compassion, Patrick Dylan shares unique insights into a reality faced by so many Americans each day. Anyone out there struggling to navigate mental illness should read this thoughtful book.”
—Former US Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, founder of the Kennedy Forum
“Safe, Wanted, and Loved shares with gut-wrenching honesty and loving tenderness the challenges experienced by so many families dealing with mental illness, my own included. This story powerfully illustrates why afflictions of the brain should be treated with as much respect and compassion as other diseases, without fear of prejudice or shame.”
—Jessie Close, author and mental health advocate
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“With a tremendous amount of care, Dylan shares his experience as a husband and father in a family that must navigate the complex world of mental health. A moving and informative memoir, Safe, Wanted, and Loved reminds readers of the challenges faced by those struggling with their mental health and the stigma placed on that struggle. ”
—Booklife Awards
“A dramatic account, compellingly told as only someone who had lived through the ordeal could. In his first book, Patrick Dylan brings the skills of a veteran novelist to telling a story that illuminates the terrifying darkness of mental illness.”
—Paul A. Cantor, Clifton Waller Barrett Professor of English, University of Virginia
“Patrick Dylan has written a searing account of his wife’s journey to the hell of mental illness and back. Her courage and her family’s tenacity in never letting go of her hand, even in the worst of times, are beautifully rendered. This is a book you will not be able to put down.”
—Alexander Vuckovic, MD, medical director, the Pavilion at McLean Hospital