ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the sources of support drawn on by those with lived experience of the mental health system – including the support of peers, unexpectedly supportive allies within the healthcare system, family and friends. An overarching theme that emerges from all these chapters is the need to ensure that people are listened to, believed and respected when they describe their experiences of distress. The chapter draws the vastly different legal, political and cultural contexts, many common themes can be seen across these different experiences. It presents Rusi Stanev's story. The judgment in Stanev v Bulgaria makes note of the illegality, even under prevailing Bulgarian law, of the contract for services through which Rusi's placement was secured and his disability pension diverted to institutional authorities. A further layer of frustration following the judgment in Stanev v Bulgaria involved Rusi's continued subjection to partial guardianship and the intransigence of Bulgaria's guardianship regime more generally.
