Blogs

Essays by a diverse group of writers, in the United States and abroad, engaged in rethinking psychiatry. (The directory of personal stories can be found here, and initiatives here).

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What the RADAR Trial Tells Us About Antipsychotic Reduction and Discontinuation

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Although the trial showed that you are more likely to relapse if you stop or significantly reduce your antipsychotic medication, it did not show that relapse is inevitable.

Remembrances of Linda Andre, Leader in the Fight Against ECT

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Psychiatric survivors and allies mourn ECT activist and author Linda Andre and vow to continue her legacy.
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Report on Improving Mental Health Outcomes

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The report is intended to be used to advocate for the elimination of unwanted psychiatric interventions and to promote humane, effective, voluntary approaches.

Awais Aftab Responds to the STAR*D Scandal . . . And Digs a New Hole...

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The STAR*D scandal is about how psychiatry peddled a fabricated result to the public, and now Aftab, in his latest post, has added a whopper of his own to the STAR*D story.
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Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 14: Psychotherapy and the Role of Psychologists

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Peter Gøtzsche discusses how the textbooks barely mention the role of psychotherapy and therapists, instead focusing almost entirely on pharmacotherapy.

Giving Caregivers a Platform: Chandra, Mother of Sophia

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This is the story of Chandra and her daughter Sophia (not their real names), who has been in the mental health system since the age of 10.

Update on Retracting the Fraudulent STAR*D Results

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Ed Pigott calls for retraction of 2006 STAR*D article in American Journal of Psychiatry.
A History of Fatigue

Book Review: A History of Fatigue from the Middle Ages to the Present

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Fatigue has always been in the background, infiltrating everywhere, ruling our choices and life paths—and the pharmaceutical industry has taken advantage.

Inside the Neuroscience Community: Peter Sterling Responds to Awais Aftab

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Dr. Aftab objects to my "tirade against psychiatric neuroscience." What Dr. Aftab does not do is address any of my substantive conclusions.
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Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 13: Forced Treatment

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Peter Gøtzsche discusses the way psychiatry violates international ethics laws by engaging in forced treatment and other abuses.
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A New Vision for Mental Health Care at Soteria Jerusalem

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Despite living in Israel for five years, I had no idea that one of the few Soteria houses in the world was only a short train ride away.
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Cochrane Reviews of Psychiatric Drugs Are Untrustworthy

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Cochrane is keen to protect guild interests and to comply with official views from governments even when they contradict the evidence in Cochrane reviews.
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Critical Psychiatry Textbook Chapter 12: Electroshock

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Peter Gøtzsche discusses the poor body of research for the efficacy of ECT and the common effect of amnesia, which indicates brain damage.

Medication Overload, Part I: A Mountain of Drugs in America’s Cabinets

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The 25th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day takes place on Saturday, October 28—and this time around, I’ll be there. The upcoming event will provide...
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Why I Resigned from Mental Health America

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When MHA lobbied for expanding forced treatment, I could no longer allow myself to be a cog in the oppressive, profit-driven, psych industry wheel.
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Unattached Burdens: IFS Helps Us Understand What Psychiatry Ignores

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To heal from unattached burdens requires an understanding of the mind that psychiatry lacks.

What’s Eating Oregon? Peer Respites, The Lund Report & Beyond

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Peer respites are a precious resource that deserve protection, and implementation that prioritizes the full vision of the model and prevents co-optation.
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Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 11: Dementia

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"You should not talk to your doctor about dementia drugs because your doctor is likely to mislead and harm you. These drugs should not be used by anyone to prevent or treat dementia."

Book Review of Crash: A Memoir of Overmedication and Recovery by Ann Bracken

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A powerful, heartbreaking wake-up call about how the severely damaging effects of medications that claim to relieve suffering can threaten generations in a family.
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“The Best Minds”: How the Dazzling New Book Falls Short

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"The Best Minds" could be seen as a book that is critical of conventional psychiatry, but it falls short on pointing out its true faults.
Closeup photo of pills on a sheet that reads "Anxiety Disorder"

Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 10: Anxiety Disorders

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Peter Gøtzsche discusses psychotherapy versus drugs as the preferred treatment for anxiety, panic attacks, and OCD.
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Good Damage: How Community-Led Healing Challenges the Campus Mental Health System

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Being re-grounded in my community reminds me that mourning and love are inseparable, and that “nothing about us, is for us, without us.”
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The Media’s False Narrative About Depression Pills, Suicides, and Saving Lives

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When the media tell of a serious harm of a psychiatric drug, they follow a standard script, including that they must also praise the drug.
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Paying Attention to ADHD Prescriptions in Your Community

A national study showed that ADHD drug abuse among U.S. high and middle school students has been rising for the past 20 years.

Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 9: ADHD (Part Three)

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ADHD is a disaster area, in terms of the diagnosis, clinical research, and the harms inflicted on hundreds of millions of healthy people.