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Rickie
She was a wonderful child -- charming, gifted, full of energy -- and she seemed to have a wonderful life ahead of her. Then the incomprehensible happened. At age 13, Rickie was diagnosed schizophrenic, removed from her caring family, and condemned to long, heartbreaking years in mental institutions.
This is the spellbinding story of Rickie's agonizing odyssey through illness and recovery, told by her father, internationally renowned psychiatrist Frederic Flach, and enriched with Rickie's own recollections. Indeed, part of the tragedy for Rickie and her family was the many years lost because the medical community of which her father is a distinguished member was unable to bring her back to health.
For anyone whose family has ever been touched by crisis, RICKIE is an unforgettably moving and powerfully uplifting book.
"A touching story." -- The New York Times Book Review
This is the spellbinding story of Rickie's agonizing odyssey through illness and recovery, told by her father, internationally renowned psychiatrist Frederic Flach, and enriched with Rickie's own recollections. Indeed, part of the tragedy for Rickie and her family was the many years lost because the medical community of which her father is a distinguished member was unable to bring her back to health.
For anyone whose family has ever been touched by crisis, RICKIE is an unforgettably moving and powerfully uplifting book.
"A touching story." -- The New York Times Book Review
- GenresNonfictionBiography
306 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 20, 1990
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 27, 2017
A fascinating book about how the mental health care system in the 1960s failed a young girl and robbed her of her adolescent years. After a series of traumas including the death of her beloved grandfather, Rickie Flach suffers what appears to be a mental breakdown, leading her parents to make the tough decision to have her hospitalized. Although her father, the author, is a psychiatrist, he entrusts her care to others who have more experience with adolescents and do not have a personal connection to Rickie. Turns out though that no one really know how to get through to Rickie, and she ends up bounced from one treatment center to another, some private and luxurious, others run by the state and treated the patients like prison inmates. Finally, a chance encounter between her father and an old friend provides insight to new theories that are largely rejected by professionals in the world of psychiatry, but in desperation after years of seeing his daughter institutionalized, Dr. Flach is willing to give these new treatments a try for Rickie. The result of these treatments makes Dr. Flach and others unfamiliar with her case wonder how much of Rickie's history was mental illness and how much might have been caused by other factors.
What adds another layer to the book is reflections from Rickie, now a grown woman, who remembers most of her years in treatment with vivid clarity. Dr. Flach was intentionally kept in the dark about most of Rickie's therapy, both because he was a doctor and because the prevailing school of thought in those days was to keep the patient separate from the outside influence of family. Therefore, it is Rickie's recollections which provide the most intimate detail into what she was subjected to behind closed doors.
Overall, an interesting book, and I would be curious how Rickie's case would be handled if she was 13 years old today. Surely she wouldn't have been institutionalized for years on end, but would she have been labelled a problem and medicated to the point of being nothing more than a zombie at a school desk, in and out of hospitals as her condition had its ups and downs? Or would the better diagnostic tools available now pinpoint the root of Rickie's condition right away and guide her down the path to success before any harm can be done? Alas it is all speculation, and we can just hope that things are better now than they were for Rickie in the 1960s and 70s.
What adds another layer to the book is reflections from Rickie, now a grown woman, who remembers most of her years in treatment with vivid clarity. Dr. Flach was intentionally kept in the dark about most of Rickie's therapy, both because he was a doctor and because the prevailing school of thought in those days was to keep the patient separate from the outside influence of family. Therefore, it is Rickie's recollections which provide the most intimate detail into what she was subjected to behind closed doors.
Overall, an interesting book, and I would be curious how Rickie's case would be handled if she was 13 years old today. Surely she wouldn't have been institutionalized for years on end, but would she have been labelled a problem and medicated to the point of being nothing more than a zombie at a school desk, in and out of hospitals as her condition had its ups and downs? Or would the better diagnostic tools available now pinpoint the root of Rickie's condition right away and guide her down the path to success before any harm can be done? Alas it is all speculation, and we can just hope that things are better now than they were for Rickie in the 1960s and 70s.
September 16, 2018
A true story about a psychiatrist whose daughter (Rickie) is hospitalized at age 13 following a mental breakdown. The focus of the book was how the author faced his daughter's illness and its impact on his life. It was impressive that Rickie got better despite the best treatment of that time. It was interesting to see how much psychiatric treatment has changed since the late 1960's/early 1970's and shows that there's still so much to learn. I also enjoyed the glimpse of the various hospitals in NY (and the surrounding states) named in the book.
May 1, 2018
This is the story of the psychiatrist and his daughter's journey through flawed 1960's era standards for diagnostic and treatment methods of youth-onset schizophrenia.
February 23, 2011
For ten years, the child described in this book was in and out of various institutions, with tentative diagnoses ranging from autism to schizophrenia. Her father, a psychiatrist, candidly shows his error in submitting to professional advice before finally assuming responsibility for finding a cure himself. The girl's problems were solved with developmental optometry and dietary changes to correct a biochemical imbalance.
I read it in the waning days of one major phase of treatment of my son's developmental problems. The part about the necessity of the family taking charge certainly rang true, because in our story there would have been no progress at all had we not done the same. I was in the process of finding out, however, that what apparently works for one child has little or no applicability to another with similar symptoms.
I read it in the waning days of one major phase of treatment of my son's developmental problems. The part about the necessity of the family taking charge certainly rang true, because in our story there would have been no progress at all had we not done the same. I was in the process of finding out, however, that what apparently works for one child has little or no applicability to another with similar symptoms.
June 11, 2010
This book most likely deserves a 5-star rating, but since I've come fresh from reading it cover-to-cover, I'm still shook up by the tragedy and horror of it all. The vast majority of the book was like an endless nightmare where you want to wake up and make everything all better, and I was so depressed and outraged that I wasn't sure I could make it all the way through. But, being the determined person that I am, I finished the story and am very grateful that I did. Rickie's own determination and courage and hope is heroic in nature, her parent's love and devotion and persistence, impressive, and the fact that miracles do still happen and that there are still happy endings, inspiring. My own faith was strengthened and my determination to do my best with my own challenges was renewed. Powerful, true story.
May 13, 2011
This is the true story of a girl who has schizophrenia. It was written by her and her father. Her father is a psychiatrist. Behavior problems developed at the onset of puberty along with several traumatic incidents. After ten years of state hospitals and pretty bad situations she and her father find that she has peripheral vision/perception problems and nutritional problems. It was a very good book. I was glad I had the opportunity to read it and am so glad that they wrote it. Very sorry they had to go through all that they did.
May 22, 2018
The book I probably shouldn't have read when I was in middle school. I'm sure this book contributed my deepest depression to develop. They shouldn't have left this kind of book lying around for a kid to see. I sometimes wish I hadn't read this book then. Although I'm not sure, I think my life could've been different if this book wasn't there. To this day, this book is one of the most impactful books I've read in my life. I could probably say I almost grew up with this book without even knowing what this book was about.
March 30, 2016
Rickie is the daughter of the doctor who wrote the book. The author, indeed is a psychiatrist who had a child develop symptoms compatible with schizophrenia. Today, with all the advances in mental health treatment and the care of those with such symptoms, her care would be MUCH better... It is very readable, and would be great for anyone trying to understand the care of seriously mentally ill women and men.
September 23, 2014
This is not the type of book I am usually drawn to, but I chose it because it worked for a challenge. I found parts of the story interesting while other parts seemed quite boring to me. It did, however, confirm my lack of confidence in the field of traditional medicine and its practices.
May 15, 2010
Absolutely shocking what this girl had to go through (institutionalization for schizophrenia) because of a simple, overlooked problem.
September 6, 2014
This was an okay read. It was hard for me to get through, but it was an interesting read for the subject.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews