Patient Experience

Alcohol dependence: evidence and experience on 12 steps to recovery

In a blog for anyone worried about their drinking, or supporting someone with alcohol dependence, Sarah Chapman from Cochrane UK looks at evidence for the effectiveness of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and other 12 step programmes, and hears from some people with experience of becoming sober through AA.

Menière’s disease: experience, evidence gaps & treatment choices

In a blog for people with Menière's disease and those supporting them, Sarah Chapman looks at the latest evidence on treatments and talks to her husband Tim about living with Menière’s and making choices about treatments, and to researcher Katie Webster and Ear, Nose and Throat doctor Martin Burton, who are both authors of new Cochrane Reviews on treatments for Menière's.

PTSD: remembering and recovering with EMDR

Sandra shares her experience of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and how treatment with EMDR (eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing) helped, and we include sources of information and support for people with PTSD.

My OCD journey 2: learning and compassion in tough times

In this blog, Karen Morley, who in 2018 wrote for Evidently Cochrane about her experiences of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and how evidence helped her, tells us what has happened since, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on her mental health, the challenges, and things she has found empowering.

Putting positive experiences at the centre of postnatal care

A new WHO guideline on postnatal care puts a positive experience at the heart of the care that women and their babies receive in the first six weeks after birth. It recognises that care should go beyond the mere delivery of certain services. Good postnatal care should aim to meet every individual woman’s needs, leaving all new parents, the baby and family with a positive experience of this critical period in their lives.

Vasodilators for Raynaud’s Phenomenon

In this blog for people with Raynaud’s phenomenon, Dr Kevin Su, a Rheumatologist from Australia, looks at the latest Cochrane evidence on vasodilator drugs for Primary Raynaud’s phenomenon. Katie LeBlanc, a patient advocate, reflects on her experiences.