Sometimes Amazing Things Happen: Heartbreak and Hope on the Bellevue Hospital Psychiatric Prison Ward

This is a book worth reading whether you have close personal experience with the world of mental illness or are looking for insight into a grim reality that most Americans try to pretend doesn’t exist. Highlighting the humanity of both her patients and co-workers, Dr. Ford’s journal-like memoir conveys some of the best and worst of working in what has to be one of the most challenging careers possible.While it’s not the gritty expose I was expecting, Sometimes Amazing Things Happen tackles some of the harsh realities of working at or being a patient in our nation’s severely dysfunctional criminal justice/mental health system. It’s clear that the book could have been devoted solely to documenting the injustice and abuse present in the system but Dr. Ford instead emphasizes the element of hope in herself and others. The book doesn’t offer any grand solutions on how to make things better but carries the simple message that actually caring about these patients is crucial and our lives are enriched when we do so.

I work in the mental heath field and I found this book very relatable. Elizabeth gives excellent insight into this career choice both as a doctor and other support personnel. If you wondered what it would be like to work in a mental health facility, this book will give you a good taste. I can tell you that when you have a good day and really get to help someone, its incredible, but bad days are like none you've ever had in any other job. I have learned so much about the suffering of people with mental illness and the everyday challenges they must ensure. I connected with the author in every phase of her career. This book is an interesting, quick read and will have special meaning to those who work in mental health facilities.

I read this whole book waiting for amazing things to happen.This woman, Elizabeth Ford, has a passion for working in what I would consider to be a very difficult place with sometimes extremely difficult people. Positive results are often short-lived, and almost all of these people never will lead normal lives. I cried when I finished the book and then saw the picture of Elizabeth. Her eyes are full of compassion. So beautiful!!

I love this book and I love Dr. Ford. I volunteer as a restorative circle facilitator in a high poverty and high discipline problem elementary school. I see many similarities between the patients and their environment and the environment the kids at the school are in. I fell in love with Dr Ford in the introduction when she states: "I have come to see my success as a doctor not by how well I treat mental illness but by how well I respect and honor my patients’ humanity, no matter where they are or what they have done." This is similar to the approach I take when working with kids.I love how in chapter 8 Dr. Ford empathizes with a dangerous man who has armed himself with poop. She writes: "If I were in his situation, I might do the same." Her compassion is amazing as she writes of the despair she feels when faced with her powerlessness to help and protect him from the violence and evil that infests his world.I love how in chapter 9, she shows how consistent caring leads to a 3 year breakthrough with a patient no one wants to deal with. I am only on Chapter 10 and can't wait to read more. I never write a review, but have been so moved by what I have read so far that I had to tell the world about just how great this book is.Dr Ford reminds us that everyone - no matter how damaged by violence or mental illness they are - is still a human being with good at their core and that core can be accessed through lovingkindness.

As someone who has worked with this population on Rikers for almost 10 years, Dr. Ford's sharing of her experience and her compassion is what we crave. Those incarcerated are seen by the public and law enforcement as evil, and historically there has been little effort towards rehabilitation and restoration of hope for people whose lives have been hammered with loss, trauma, neglect, and mental illness. The humanity expressed in this book will hopefully help others to witness what we see on a daily basis and encourage more compassion and investment. Dr. Ford's current presence on Rikers has improved the lives of so many and there is still much to be done. I give Dr. Ford and the City much credit for investing in the Creative Arts Therapy as one way to address these issues, we have the largest team I know of, in the trenches every day. This book's honesty and the description of the positive effects of approaching these people as humans deserving of care is an important advance in the only direction that is ethical. I was working on Rikers during Hurricane Sandy and the incarcerated people were terrified of being abandoned....I had little concept of what was going on at Bellevue and what it took to ensure the safety of the forensic patients and am immensely grateful for the attention they were paid.

Fab read

Very good read. Hard to put down.