Kenneth Kendler: ā€œImplausibleā€ That Psychiatric Diagnoses Even ā€œApproximately Trueā€

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In JAMA Psychiatry, prominent psychiatrist Kenneth Kendler writes that psychiatric diagnoses are ā€œworking hypotheses, subject to change.ā€

Inside a Forensic Psychiatry Unit: Here’s How to Survive

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Sean Gunderson, who was detained by the criminal justice system for 17 years after receiving an NGRI verdict, documents the life of a forensic psychiatry inmate.
Oryx Cohen and Briza Gavidia

Emotional CPR: Heart-Centered Peer Support

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Two National Empowerment Center leaders discuss eCPR, a process for helping youthā€”or anyoneā€”through an emotional crisis using three simple steps.

How Western Psychology Can Rip Indigenous Families Apart: An Interview with Elisa Lacerda-Vandenborn

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An interview with Elisa Lacerda-Vandenborn about the consequences \psychology and mental health treatment can have for indigenous children.
A prescription bottle. The label reads "Healthy diet" and "Exercise."

Art, Music, Exercise, and More: What Are the Recommended Doses for Improving Mental Health?

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Researchers have calculated the dose-response benefits of ordinary hobbies, habits, and lifestyle practices that are available without any trip to a doctor or a drug store.

The Visual Illusion of Efficacy in Psychiatric Drug Trials

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Published reports of clinical trials of psychiatric drugs typically include a graphic showing the efficacy of the study drug in reducing symptoms of the...

Giovanni Fava – A Different Psychiatry is Possible

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In this podcast, we hear from the renowned clinician and researcher Dr. Giovanni Fava about his latest book entitled ā€œDiscontinuing Antidepressant Medicationsā€.

Crisis on Campus: Mental Health Counselors Are Feeling the Crush

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A dramatic rise in demand for college mental health services has led to counselors feeling burned out. Counseling center directors are looking for solutions.

Can Critiques of Psychiatry Help us Imagine a Post-Capitalist Future? An Interview with Hans...

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An interview with Hans Skott-Myhre on the seeds of post-capitalist subjectivity to be found in the writing of Franco Basaglia and R.D. Laing.
Illustration of colorful blocks resembling tetriminoes

ā€œTetris for Traumaā€ Viral Twitter Thread: A Master Class in Misleading Psych Research

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A TV writer claims that research shows that Tetris is ā€œliterally a trauma first aid kit.ā€ Her tweets sound scientific, but the research behind it is unconvincing.
Photo of Darby Penney sitting beside a flower and candle

Remembering Darby Penney ā€” A Fierce Advocate for Justice and Human Rights

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Celia Brown, Ron Bassman, and Peter Stastny mourn the loss of Darby Penney, who fought to transform the mental health system in New York.
Helena Hansen

Combatting Structural Racism and Classism in Psychiatry: An Interview with Helena Hansen

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MIA interviews psychiatrist and anthropologist Helena Hansen about bringing structural competency to psychiatry while rebuilding communities.

Books Under Review: Fall 2021

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Reviews of four recent books reflecting various perspectives on the mental health system, including explorations of the DSM and Open Dialogue.
Poster for the documentary film "Cured"

In a PBS documentary, ECT Is Bad for ā€œCuringā€ Homosexuality, but Great for Depression!

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A new documentary about gay activists' defeat of the APA ends with a disclaimer that ECT is "effective" for severe depression. Bruce Levine spoke with the filmmakers.
Photograph of two faces in psychedelic colors with dark background

Ending The Silence Around Psychedelic Therapy Abuse

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All the new hype about miracle psychedelic treatments as the next wave of cures for mental disorders leaves out the risk of therapy abuse.

Anatomy of an Industry: Commerce, Payments to Psychiatrists and Betrayal of the Public Good

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Pharmaceutical companies paid psychiatrists $340 million from 2014 through 2020, corrupting every aspect of the testing and marketing of new psychiatric drugs.
Illustration depicting a blue figure with three monkeys climbing on them

What We Have Always Known but Psychiatry Forgot

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When I came off my last medication, my psychiatrist said to me, ā€œYou will get sick again.ā€ Psychiatry has always been sure that I would never recover from bipolar disorder.
Photograph of East Wing and a field of buckwheat

Inner Fire: Where Seekers Have a Choice

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A Vermont residential community program helps people taper or stay off medications with holistic care embedded in a pastoral setting.
Photo of Don Weitz

Remembering Don Weitz, 1930-2021

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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.
Roxanne Stewart-Johnson and her children

The Great Triumph of Roxanne Stewart-Johnson: Psychiatric Refugee

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Roxanne fled to Canada, and received formal refugee status, as a psychiatric refugee after being threatened with psychiatric imprisonment and forced drugging in Jamaica.
akathisia

Akathisia: Very Nearly the Death of Me

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Akathisia is truly an indescribable thingā€”and has to be one of the most hellish experiences on earth. Itā€™s like your brain is hijacked. Every day I thought could be my last.

The Case of Joshua Spriestersbach: If This Is a Horror Story, What Does it...

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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.

My Partner Abused Me. I Was the One Locked Up

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Every day, psychiatrists in Australiaā€™s mental health system write reports denying the sanity of women who are victims of sexual assault, rape, or domestic violence. I know: I was one of them.

Lead Exposure in Childhood Impacts Personality and Mental Health

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A study of over 1.5 million people in Europe and the US links the development of less adaptive personalities with childhood lead exposure.
insomnia drugs

Polydrugged With 12 Different Drugs… For Insomnia

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Before my nightmare with psychiatric medication began, my life was full and happy. But since being prescribed 12 different psychiatric drugs in one year, I have become bedridden, ill and jobless.