18.6 C
Byron Shire
November 9, 2026

Sharing voices and the lived experience of schizophrenia

Latest News

Green Heroes among 2026 NSW Environment Award winners

The NSW Environment Awards, hosted by the state’s leading environmental advocacy organisation, Nature Conservation Council NSW, was recently held at Customs House in Sydney.

Other News

Stone fruit season has arrived!

There’s something special about biting into a perfectly ripe peach or nectarine, with juice running down your chin and the taste of summer in every mouthful. Stone fruit season is now underway, and local grower Rajesh Kumar is bringing a beautiful selection of fresh fruit to the farmers’ markets.

Questions remain over October Belongil Creek fish kill

The artificial opening of the Belongil Creek, an Intermittently Closed and Open Lake and Lagoon (ICOLL), on Monday, 12 October led to yet another significant fish kill with locals and vistors advised to avoid the area and not swim nearby.

What does the US blue tsunami mean for us?

In a stunning repudiation of Donald Trump and the Republican Party he remade in his image, US voters have chosen alternative candidates across the country in midterm elections.

Council must stand firm on Wallum

As a Bayside resident and Byron Shire ratepayer, I am concerned by suggestions that Council may be preparing to...

From Spinifex Country to Lismore for a $23,000 art prize

In Michelle Anderson’s Kanpala, circles of red, orange and yellow bring a place in Western Australia’s Spinifex Country into view. It’s a place she returns to often in paint: Kanpa, the Country where her grandmother was born.

Northern Rivers family could be forced to leave Australia

A Northern Rivers family might be forced to leave their life behind without direct intervention by the Minister for Immigration, Tony Burke. The de Silva family have been living locally since 2020, contributing significantly to local businesses and to disaster recovery.

The impact of schizophrenia on both the person with the illness and their family is explored through the personal experiences of Meg Heggen in her latest book Sharing Voices. Meg’s 43 year old son has been ‘burdened by schizophrenia/schizo-affective disorder and major depression’, she says.

As a self-publising local author Ms Heggen has written numerous books including Geoffrey Hannah: Never a less Likely Bloke, a memoir of the master cratftsman responsible for the exquisite Hannah Cabinet now on display in the Lismore Art Gallery.

‘My latest book Sharing Voices: The Lived Experience of Schizophrenia however, is my most personal, and considerably precious, literary work; following, as it does, the life of my elder son and how his illness -– schizophrenia – impacts greatly on his life and the lives of family members,’ she said.

‘As the title may suggest his words feature throughout the book as we share the telling of the experience of such an extraordinary illness on our day-to-day lives.’

Sharing Voices is being launched in Lismore on Thursday 21 March (6pm) at the Lismore Library Meeting Room (ground floor) where you will also have the opportunity to engage with author Meg Heggen.



For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling.

If you are a local business owner help us and in turn we help you. All The Echo asks for is advertising, not a free ride. It is every advert in The Echo and on www.echo.net.au, which creates the space for all the stories and coverage of community events, happenings and concerns.

If you are a reader you can become a sponsor of The Echo. Your support keeps the us independent.

Even a small one-off or regular donation from you will help keep the echo’s independent voice alive and strong.

Support Us

Become one of the supporters who helps keep independent, local journalism alive in the Byron Shire by contributing anything from as little as the cost of a coffee each month.

You're Wonderful, Thank you for supporting independent journalism in the Byron Shire

You’re supporting The Echo, thank you

Your contribution is keeping independent, local journalism alive in the Northern Rivers.

Because of supporters like you, we can keep every story free for everyone — no paywall, no exceptions. Your money goes directly to funding our newsroom of 40-odd local workers covering the stories that matter to this community.

Tell us what you think, give us your opinion

The Echo loves your letters and comments and is proud to provide a community forum on the issues that matter most to our readers and the people of the NSW north coast. So don’t be a passive reader, email us your epistles at editor@echo.net.au.

The letters deadline for The Echo is noon Friday. Letters longer than 200 words may be cut. The publication of letters is at the discretion of the letters editor. Please remember to include your full name, address and telephone number.

Online comments are no longer available.

Remembrance Day 2026: 11am, 11 November

It is estimated that in WWl there were 20 million dead and 20 million injured. From a population base of fewer than five million,...

Love books? Join Friends of the Library

Friends of the Libraries, Byron Shire are looking for some fresh, new, younger faces to join the group and help keep it moving forward.

Racehorses shot for pet food by NSW breeder

Thirteen thoroughbred horses deemed no longer useful, have been destroyed with eight horses destroyed by firearm at Berkeley Park Stud.

Byron Bay Surf Lifesaving Club youngsters shine

Two young members of Byron Bay Surf Lifesaving Club have delivered outstanding performances at the Paddle NSW State Sprint Championships, held at the Penrith International Regatta Centre over the weekend.