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Mending Reality: An Advocate's Existential Journey with Mental Health
Cohen Miles-Rath, an elite runner and first-generation college student, attacked his dad with a knife. He thought he was saving humanity by killing Satan—the universe demanded it of him as the Prophet. However, he was deceived by mania and psychosis, and, soon after, was arrested at gunpoint.
Cohen’s love for his dad couldn’t stop mental illness from nearly destroying their lives. But effective intervention could have. He had been hospitalized twice. What went wrong? Since jail, Cohen has managed schizoaffective symptoms and substance misuse, confronted his painful past, and obtained a social work master’s degree. Now, he’s a mental health advocate.
Told through page-turning narrative, Cohen's transformational journey—having overcome a maniacal, reality-shattering illness—will inspire hope in those seeking insight with mental health.
Cohen’s love for his dad couldn’t stop mental illness from nearly destroying their lives. But effective intervention could have. He had been hospitalized twice. What went wrong? Since jail, Cohen has managed schizoaffective symptoms and substance misuse, confronted his painful past, and obtained a social work master’s degree. Now, he’s a mental health advocate.
Told through page-turning narrative, Cohen's transformational journey—having overcome a maniacal, reality-shattering illness—will inspire hope in those seeking insight with mental health.
304 pages, Paperback
Published July 22, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 11, 2026
Wow.
I've read a lot about the facts and symptoms of schizophrenia over the years ever since I first learned the word when my mom would talk about the times her father was sick. About how the way he talked would change and how jealous he got of her grandfather. I've scoured army records to find his hospitalization after "the jeep accident" and have wondered if that was the trigger or the crisis. As he passed before I was born I can't ask him what his lived experience was. But reading this powerful memoir is probably the closest I can get.
Cohen's story is heartbreaking. He's understandably frustrated and angry that no one intervened when he was clearly unwell for months leading up to the attack on his dad. And honestly, I'm not that surprised. Unless it gets to a point where the person is a danger to themselves or others, our law and society both favor the individual. "You said you were okay," Cohen's dad later says apologetically. He knew that wasn't true, but he figured he should believe him when he said it. And the sad thing is nothing has changed for the better in this regard in the last 50 years. "Not much you could do unless you had them arrested and your grandma didn't want to do that," my dad says with a shrug when he (rarely) talks of the times my grandpa was unwell.
Still, for all how society and family failed Cohen before the crisis, the last quarter of the book is a message of hope. Family and friends rallied around him. He's learned/is learning how to manage the illness. He's gone on to become a mental health advocate. He got married to a women who was willing to see him, not his illness despite her friends' cautions, and they have a kid together (this part is in a recent NYT article). THIS is the story I hope people will remember when they hear the word schizophrenia. Yes, it's a lifelong and often debilitating disease. But it doesn't mean that's all the person with it can be. Cohen has a family, a job, a life and interests outside his illness.
And so did my grandpa.
I've read a lot about the facts and symptoms of schizophrenia over the years ever since I first learned the word when my mom would talk about the times her father was sick. About how the way he talked would change and how jealous he got of her grandfather. I've scoured army records to find his hospitalization after "the jeep accident" and have wondered if that was the trigger or the crisis. As he passed before I was born I can't ask him what his lived experience was. But reading this powerful memoir is probably the closest I can get.
Cohen's story is heartbreaking. He's understandably frustrated and angry that no one intervened when he was clearly unwell for months leading up to the attack on his dad. And honestly, I'm not that surprised. Unless it gets to a point where the person is a danger to themselves or others, our law and society both favor the individual. "You said you were okay," Cohen's dad later says apologetically. He knew that wasn't true, but he figured he should believe him when he said it. And the sad thing is nothing has changed for the better in this regard in the last 50 years. "Not much you could do unless you had them arrested and your grandma didn't want to do that," my dad says with a shrug when he (rarely) talks of the times my grandpa was unwell.
Still, for all how society and family failed Cohen before the crisis, the last quarter of the book is a message of hope. Family and friends rallied around him. He's learned/is learning how to manage the illness. He's gone on to become a mental health advocate. He got married to a women who was willing to see him, not his illness despite her friends' cautions, and they have a kid together (this part is in a recent NYT article). THIS is the story I hope people will remember when they hear the word schizophrenia. Yes, it's a lifelong and often debilitating disease. But it doesn't mean that's all the person with it can be. Cohen has a family, a job, a life and interests outside his illness.
And so did my grandpa.
March 31, 2026
Cohen’s book is an important read on so many levels.
People who can relate to Cohen’s experiences can feel seen and heard. As someone with lived experience I know I have gone through years of not realizing something was off only to learn from someone talking about what they went through that I was not alone in my thoughts or behavior and that I could (and need to) be open and honest in order to get the help I need and deserve.”
Loved ones of people with mental illness can feel seen and heard from how Cohen explores his family dynamics growing up and through his mental health journey which also is a journey for the whole family but each individual as well. I cannot describe how much I appreciated how we get to see both the best and worst moments but the love and support that always is there for him. It offers so much hope while not sugarcoating anything.
And then, we have how all of this ties into stigma… an increasing number of people recognize “mental health matters” and “end the stigma” campaigns but when mental illness is associated with violence, the stigma often seems to be strong as ever such as within the Justice System and on social media where people’s ignorance can come out at full force behind a keyboard.
I think the emphasis on the contrast between the hate and ignorance from strangers seeing headlines of “violence driven by mental illness” and the love and support from those who truly know the actual people beyond the headline was what impacted me most personally about this book. Because even as someone who lives with mental illness and works in mental health research, I was able to reflect on many of my implicit biases that I need to address.
People who can relate to Cohen’s experiences can feel seen and heard. As someone with lived experience I know I have gone through years of not realizing something was off only to learn from someone talking about what they went through that I was not alone in my thoughts or behavior and that I could (and need to) be open and honest in order to get the help I need and deserve.”
Loved ones of people with mental illness can feel seen and heard from how Cohen explores his family dynamics growing up and through his mental health journey which also is a journey for the whole family but each individual as well. I cannot describe how much I appreciated how we get to see both the best and worst moments but the love and support that always is there for him. It offers so much hope while not sugarcoating anything.
And then, we have how all of this ties into stigma… an increasing number of people recognize “mental health matters” and “end the stigma” campaigns but when mental illness is associated with violence, the stigma often seems to be strong as ever such as within the Justice System and on social media where people’s ignorance can come out at full force behind a keyboard.
I think the emphasis on the contrast between the hate and ignorance from strangers seeing headlines of “violence driven by mental illness” and the love and support from those who truly know the actual people beyond the headline was what impacted me most personally about this book. Because even as someone who lives with mental illness and works in mental health research, I was able to reflect on many of my implicit biases that I need to address.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews