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Letters to the Moon: Part 1
Anna Slabodsky says she is a vampire. The hospital in Sheffield says otherwise. Anna, a 108-year-old Russian vampire, is sectioned in a Sheffield psych ward. They injected me with something and now all my powers are gone.I still have my ring. The ring is magical. It keeps me safe from the sun, and allows me… Continue reading
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Do you have ties with Russia?
Anna, a 108-year-old Russian vampire, is sectioned in a Sheffield psych ward. Some of you asked me on X what happened in Leeuwarden, and how come I am in a psychiatric hospital in Sheffield, trying to protect my ring? Let me tell you. I came to Sheffield for a conference: “Folklore in sociological studies”. The… Continue reading
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Chapter 1: Tea in This English Hell
I told them I’m a vampire, but they just scribbled ‘delusion’, and now I’m sectioned, sipping tea in this English hell. I am in Sheffield, to be precise. A Russian-born royal, turned into a vampire at twenty-seven, I fled my native land for a restful life in France. But nothing is restful anymore, and I… Continue reading
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Move less, and believe in yourself even when the world tries to crush you
What’s one thing you know now that would have saved your younger self a lot of pain? You know what? A renowned French psychic, who was also a specialist in the I Ching oracle, once told me: “Most people move only once, when they grow up and buy their own house. And usually it stays… Continue reading
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I was Buddha
It was on a rainy day in November that I looked outside the window of my workplace in Amsterdam and asked: “Is there more to it? Is there something else?” I was three months into the promotion – portfolio manager – still a financial analyst of banks, still no diploma, at a consultancy in Amsterdam.… Continue reading
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No Turkey for Christmas
Do you or your family make any special dishes for the holidays? Me and my son, we don’t have any family left where we live. When we moved to the Netherlands (for my job) six years ago, my Dutch stepfather (husband of my mother) followed us, to help me with my son, but he died… Continue reading
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Moscow: 1994
Is there an age or year of your life you would re-live? If I had to relive a year of my life, I would relive 1994. I was in Moscow in 1994, when Russia (but also Ukraine) was undergoing life crisis. After years of hunger shops restarted to sell some eatable products, such as bread,… Continue reading
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A life of wonder denied for many
Are you seeking security or adventure? Are you seeking security or adventure? For some reason our society has become a bit divisive, it’s either one or another, without allowing anything in between. Western leaders say we shouldn’t judge by culture or disability, but look around: people get silenced online for speaking out, or labeled ‘crazy’… Continue reading
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Robbie Williams and me
I never expected a psychiatric hospital’s living room to introduce me to Robbie Williams, but his music became a lifeline through my mental health chaos, thanks to my admission into a psychiatric hospital in Amsterdam when I experienced what is usually known as ‘psychosis’. I remember my first encounter with Robbie Williams as if it… Continue reading
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How Art Helps Me Navigate Bipolar: A Personal Reflection
What is your relationship with ‘madness’? Do you agree with the strictly bio-medical approach to madness, or believe that there might be something else to it? I have been struggling with identifying myself as bipolar, and instead, focused on art as a tool to help me to cope with overwhelming stigma. I write in my… Continue reading
About Me
I am a doctor of philosophy, a university lecturer, and a lover of cats, fine wine, dancing, theatre, and human eccentricity. I was born in the Soviet Union (Moscow). I am fluent in four languages, and have spent all my adult life studying (except from 18 to 19) working and living throughout Western Europe. Despite a surname-Netchitailova- that translates from Russian into English as “unreadable”, my greatest passions in life are reading and writing. My personal struggles have made me appreciate the manifestations of weirdness that exist everywhere.