Remembering Darby Penney — A Fierce Advocate for Justice and Human Rights
Celia Brown, Ron Bassman, and Peter Stastny mourn the loss of Darby Penney, who fought to transform the mental health system in New York.
A Dystopian Vision of Psychiatry’s Future
As a psychiatric survivor, I was stunned to see a medical professional describe a dystopian nightmare as a vision of progress for psychiatric medicine.
Peer Respite: Why It Should be Everyone’s Concern
My intent with this blog is to compare some lessons learned from my recent medical crisis response to a similar peer-run respite response.
RIP: Ed White – Advocate, Researcher and Supporter
It is with great sadness that we write about the loss of one of our colleagues from the psychiatric drug withdrawal community; Doctor Ed White.
Fate of a Whistleblower: I Spoke Out About Abrupt Med Withdrawal
A rapid withdrawal can be very dangerous and even deadly. You do not solve the problem by firing those who point this out, but that happened to me.
A New Liberation Movement, Focused on Relationship
The harm that medical-model practitioners inflicted on me had to be managed and overcome. This delayed my progress resolving my childhood traumas.
I Set Up a Suicide Crisis Centre to Provide the Opposite of What I...
Our approach is to openly care about our clients and empower them as much as possible. It's vital that clients know we care about their survival.
RIP: Scottish Psychiatric Survivor Activist Chrys Muirhead
When Mad in America was launched nearly a decade ago, Scottish psychiatric survivor and activist Chrys Muirhead was one of the first bloggers on our site.
What Happens When A Peer Is Accused of Relapsing?
Once my colleague started spreading her conviction that I was relapsing, the whole agency began scrutinizing my behavior. As a peer, you’re under constant suspicion.
Soteria House and Peer Respite Summit
Rethinking Psychiatry and MindFreedom International convene the first International Peer Respite and Soteria Summit: Creating Compassionate Alternatives for People in Crisis and Distress.
Mad Activists: The Language We Use Reflects Our Desire for Change
There is not one movement but many, and the language people use reflects how accepting they are of the psychiatric explanation of their experiences.
The Importance of Empathic Listening for Making Meaning of Distress
Psychiatrists would gain more understanding if they listened to their patients and worked with them to make meaning of their distress.
Honoring Jane Whittington: 1950-2021
It’s with great sadness that I am writing of the sudden and unexpected passing of my former husband and best friend Jane.
The Cochrane Tapes Reveal a Horrendous Show Trial Against a Critic of Psychiatry
Why did Cochrane expel one of its best known scientists, who had helped get Cochrane started and bolstered its reputation? What happened that day?
What We Have Always Known but Psychiatry Forgot
When I came off my last medication, my psychiatrist said to me, “You will get sick again.” Psychiatry has always been sure that I would never recover from bipolar disorder.
What Can We Learn from Alcohol? A Paradigm Shift in How We View Distress
The effects of alcohol—both positive and negative—have a lot to teach us about the biomedical view of psychiatric diagnoses and the drugs prescribed to treat them.
Review: “(Mis)Diagnosed: How Bias Distorts Our Perception of Mental Health”
Psychiatric diagnoses can be shaped by prejudice, reflecting biases that ignore trauma, diminish populations, and invalidate humanity and experience.
Remembering Don Weitz, 1930-2021
My hero, mentor, and very dear friend Don Weitz died comfortably, in his home, on the afternoon of September 1, attended by his loving twin children, Lisa and Mark.
Psychedelics—The New Psychiatric Craze
Psychedelics have become popular through the potent mixture of financial interests and desperation. Evidence for their beneficial effects is lacking.
Interview: Moving Toward a Human Rights Approach to Student Mental Health
Psychologist Jim Probert of the University of Florida's student counseling center explains why "Our goal is not to take the steering wheel out of the person's hands."
The Sins of Conservatorship: Why Britney Spears Compared It to Slavery
For the last three years of my mother’s life, she was under absolute control of her conservator. If we dared to object to the neglect or abuse, retaliation was certain.
The Great Triumph of Roxanne Stewart-Johnson: Psychiatric Refugee
Roxanne fled to Canada, and received formal refugee status, as a psychiatric refugee after being threatened with psychiatric imprisonment and forced drugging in Jamaica.
The Case of Joshua Spriestersbach: If This Is a Horror Story, What Does it...
Spriestersbach was imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for almost three years. The more he told the doctors that he was not Thomas Castleberry, the more they believed that he was psychotic.
Garbage in, Garbage out: The Newest Cochrane Meta-Analysis of Depression Pills in Children
In May 2021, Cochrane published a network meta-analysis of depression pills for children. The abstract is misleading and reads like drug company marketing.
ISEPP to American Psychological Association: Condemn Forced Treatment
The International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry petitions the American Psychological Association to condemn forced treatment as a human rights violation
