Courageous Woman Loses Just One Battle

She told thousands of her pain and hope

(November 21, 2007) -- A woman who used her own experience and struggles with schizophrenia to inspire hope in others has died.

Loy Anne McCuaig, 69, died last Wednesday at East Vancouver's Cottage Hospice after a three-year battle with lung cancer. She was diagnosed with small-cell carcinoma in 2004 and given just six to 10 months to live.

McCuaig was struck by schizophrenia when she was 30 years old and suffered extreme paranoia. At one point her illness led her to a homeless existence on the streets of the Downtown Eastside.

In 1991, after being stabilized on medication, McCuaig began sharing her story with others as part of her recovery. She had no shame and, as her son James Konkler said, she shared her deepest, darkest secrets in the hope that her story could inspire others.

For 10 years, McCuaig spoke six times a week. She told her story of struggle and recovery to patients, doctors, students, social workers, police and families of the mentally ill.

Konkler, 49, said it's estimated a quarter of a million people heard her speak. She spoke in Japan, across Canada and the United States and in England and Paris.

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Her bravery and strength earned her a Coast Mental Health Courage to Come Back Award in the mental-health category earlier this year.

"She was a speaker. She had so many messages," said her son. "She was making the message that there is hope for people and families affected by mental illness. She was a person that had recovered."

McCuaig leaves her son, her 48-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, and five grandchildren.

By: Lora Grindlay
Source: The Vancouver Province

Last updated: 11/07

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