Beating Hospital Grade Depression and Anxiety

W.B. Turner grew up on his family's sheep farm in regional New South Wales. As a boy, he loved playing cricket and basketball and found his best results at school came from a love of writing—particularly in the subjects of English and History. Soon after he finished high school, he experienced depression and anxiety. After a long period of being undiagnosed, this led him to an eight-week stay in psychiatric hospital in his early twenties. With the benefit of an accurate diagnosis during his hospital admission and supportive family and friends, he completed a degree in media and communications from the University of Sydney and has worked in that field ever since. As someone with a lived experience of both a mood disorder (bipolar disorder) and an anxiety disorder (obsessive compulsive disorder), he knows how living with conditions like these can damage one's confidence. He is passionate about encouraging others with mental health issues. He has previously worked as a patient advocate in the New South Wales hospital system and as a volunteer presenter for the Black Dog Institute's high school mental health program. He lives with his wife and four children in Sydney, Australia.