Chuck and Zoe are the main bloggers on Defying Mental Illness but also have a wonderful growing team of other bloggers who have brought in a rich resource on other topics around defying mental illness, living and enjoying life in its fullness.
Chuck Onah
It all started with Chuck fainting at the airport. When he regained consciousness, Chuck found himself in a mental hospital. He was diagnosed with Psychotic Depression. Over time, Chuck was diagnosed with a range of other mental illnesses with the final one being Schizophrenia. Unbeknown to him about this latest record on his medical files, Chuck carried on with day to day living over the next 14 years when he met Zoe. Read more
Zoe Onah
Zoe met Eze (Chuck) in the 14th year of what turned out to be an 18 year ‘journey’ with mental illness. They got married less than a year of meeting with Zoe fully knowing Chuck had a diagnosis of mental illness. In the 18th year, Chuck defied the odds of mental illness.
A consultant psychiatrist signed him off the mental health system with a bill of NO MENTAL ILLNESS. The consultant was so amazed by Chuck’s astonishing recovery that he even questioned how Chuck came to be diagnosed with mental illness all those years before in the first place! Read more
Meet our guest bloggers
Anne Arouna
Anne Arouna writes on Defying Mental Illness about abuse, Female Genital Mutilation and on overcoming negative emotions.
Anne was born in Africa in a polygamous Muslim family among several siblings. Anne encountered all manner of abuse from trusted families and friends, and suffered greatly as a result. Thinking that getting married would ease her pain, she got married to the first man that came along, also a polygamous man. Read more
Beautifully Bronzed
Caroline has a certified diploma from the 
Carlton Institute, which is an industry wide recognized qualification for spray tanning.
Caroline has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience in the last few years and writes on beauty in particular spray tanning on Defying Mental Illness.
Here is what Caroline says Read more
Carl Towns
Carl Towns is a 28-year-old wanna-be writer. He is also a recovering addict in the path of self-discovery.
His goal is to learn as many things as possible and to seize every single moment he lives…Pretty much trying to make up for all that he missed on the years he was lost in drugs and alcohol (among other things).
He loves technology, cars and pretty much anything that can be found online. Read more
Elisabeth Peters
Elisabeth Peters is a Psychologist with her own company providing psychological services for children, families and schools.
She has been working in a wide range of settings and has experience in dealing with numerous mental health issues. Recently, she has developed age-specific programs for overcoming (exam) stress.
She is a Psychologist, a Member of the British Psychological Society, with a Masters in Child, Adolescent and Family Mental Health and thorough training in play therapy and mindfulness.
Monika Ribeiro
Monika Beata Francisco-Ribeiro writes on Defying Mental Illness on overcoming depression, emotive issues and other matters of the heart.
Monika is a writer and a poet. After completing a Master’s degree Course in Marketing, having experienced a piece of the corporate world of business, Monika found a deep desire to explore creative writing and performing arts.
Monika was born and raised in Poland (born to Nigerian father and Polish mother). She is currently a resident of London married to a Ghanaian. She continues to enjoy the exposure to many different cultural expressions all of which influence who she is, how she thinks and what she writes about. Read more
Rachael Silvester
Rachael enjoys a good book and a crackling log fire. She is a keen hiker with a love for the countryside.
One topic she holds close to her heart is that of mental illness, having being challenged with BDD (Body Dysmorphic Disorder)
Samson Adeyemi
Samson Adeyemi writes on Defying Mental Illness about bullying and also on youth issues.
Samson has been leading and inspiring many young people for over 8 years now. At age 16, he was invited to the House of Lords to partake in a Special Volunteers Awards dinner. He is now 23 years old and his achievements, awards, and impact made till date speak for themselves.
He was voted by the young people in Lewisham to represent them in the UK Youth Parliament (UKYP). He spoke at the House of Lords during a UKYP debate. He represented young people again in 2009 in the House of Commons. Read more
Want to write for us? This is a great platform to write about your experience and share some inspirational blogs on mental and emotional health. Let us hear from you today!