Emma's troubles, however, did not end with diagnosis. Another disturbingly familiar story was about to unfold. She was prescribed chlorpromazine, one of the older, cheaper anti-psychotic drugs: "It knocks you out. I did not mind being a zombie at first - I needed sleep. But I have low blood pressure and I kept feeling dizzy and fainting."
然而爱玛的苦难并未随着病情的正确诊断而结束，相反却是另一段相似煎熬的开始。医生给她开了氯丙嗪 – 一种应用较早且很廉价的抗精神病药。“它令你神志不清。起初我倒不在乎成为一具僵尸 – 我总想睡着。可是我的血压开始降低，并时时感到眩晕、瘫软无力。”
She was switched to Stelazine (phenothiazine), another older drug, which stabilised her condition for a while. She managed to resit her exams and pick up her degree course. However, her legs shook. Shortly after graduating, her hands also began to shake and her eyes rolled towards the ceiling uncontrollably.
接着，她转而服用三氟拉嗪，这是另一种历史悠久的药品。该药使她的病情稳定了一段时期。于是她尽力克服困难参加补考，重修学业。然而，她的双腿开始不由自主的颤抖。毕业后不久，她的双手也开始震颤，她的眼球则无法控制地向上翻。
Distressed, she stopped her medication, the worst thing to do. Within two weeks, she had broken down again: "I was talking to my laundry, looking in a drawer for my friends and telephoning people at 4am." Now, after trial and error with the newer anti-psychotic drugs known as atypicals, which have less severe side effects than the older drugs, Emma is on olanzapine (Zyprexa). Aside from weight gain, which has not bothered her because she is 6ft tall, she now feels healthy and is enjoying life. Her foot, however, still shakes occasionally.
在极度的痛苦中，她停止用药 – 这是最坏的决定。不出两个星期，她的意识再次崩溃：“我对着需要洗熨的衣物胡言乱语，我在抽屉里翻寻我的朋友，还在凌晨4点给人打电话。”如今，经过许多次在新型的、所谓非典型性抗精神病药物上所做的试验和失败之后，爱玛正在服用名为olanzapine的新药，它对爱玛的身体的副作用较小。除了用药导致的体重增加之外（这对身高6英尺的爱玛来说不成问题），爱玛现在感到身心健康、生活美好，只是她的脚还偶尔不自主的颤抖。
Yet, successful treatment is not the end of Emma's story. As soon as she left university, she ran up against an unyielding wall of prejudice. "I do have a mental health problem, but I have a degree I am proud of and I wanted a job. I wrote so many applications and had no interviews." She was open about her mental health, perhaps naively, she thinks. "But had I not mentioned it and, say, needed time off to be in hospital, I might not have been able to claim time away, because the employer did not know."
不过，成功的治疗还不是爱玛故事的结尾。她刚迈出校门，便遇到了一堵难以逾越的歧视之墙。“我承认我有精神问题，但我有一张引以自豪的文凭，并且希望找到一份工作。我曾发出了无数的求职申请，却未收到任何面试通知。”她想，她在自己的精神健康问题上是坦诚的，也许是有些天真的。“可是如果我没有事先申明这件事，比如说我需要请假以便定期住院治疗，我可能就不被准假，因为我的老板还一无所知。”
Emma flourished when taken on as a mental health care assistant through the User Employment Programme run by the South West London and St George's Mental Health Trust. She was promoted several times to become a senior project worker. She is a fluent lecturer, and is being sponsored by her employers for a master's degree. "There are many people like me," she says. "Employers should give us a chance, rather than being afraid."
通过由西南部伦敦和圣乔治精神卫生信托基金会所发起的“客户雇佣计划”的接洽，爱玛受雇成为一名精神健康保健助理，她的人生从此走向辉煌。经过几次提拔后，她现在是一名负责项目实施的高级雇员。她是一位语言流畅的演说家，而且她的雇主正资助她攻读研究生课程。“有许多和我一样的人，”她说，“雇主们应该给我们一个机会，而不是对我们恐惧有加。”
本文中文翻译由世博英语Robin完成，深表感谢！
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