Just Like Viruses, Emotions are Contagious
Now is not the time for family members to be nursing old hurts or believe the all-too-common delusion we all periodically fall prey to—you can get, without giving, when it comes to goodwill. Gestures of decency, gratitude and appreciation will need to prevail.
Hegemonic Sanity and Suicide
The “good” suicide attempt survivor wakes up in a hospital bed bathed in beautiful natural light, surrounded by the people who love them most, and they realize that their thinking was flawed and all those unsolvable problems can actually be solved if they are just compliant with medication and therapy. And then there's the “bad” suicide attempter who is angry that they lived, who challenges the status quo.
Psychologists Push For New Approaches to Psychosis: Part 1
Psychologists and people with experience of psychotic symptoms publish a report on new ways of understanding psychosis.
The ERNI Declaration: Making Sense of Distress Without “Disease”
The ERNI (Emotions aRe Not Illnesses) declaration is based on the idea that distress does not equate to disease, dysfunction, dysregulation, or chemical imbalance.
Peer Support Research: Is It Time Yet?
Researchers could be doing a better job of defining peer support. We could also have a better understanding of what the “positive effects'' of peer support really are.
Lessons Learned While Sharing About Voice Hearing
I slowly recognized that I wanted to fight every single person who used language based on their learned beliefs about “mental illness.” They didn’t know any better—so why did I feel so angry?
Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal in Spain
My study, in which I slowly withdrew people from prescribed antipsychotics and antidepressants, found that it is possible to decrease both spending on psychiatric drugs and patients' chronic exposure to them. In general, the drug-reduction process was well-tolerated and well-accepted among those treated.
Blaming the System May Be the Best Therapy
If this were an old sci-fi movie, psychiatry would be the evil alien race on a collision course with earth that plans to completely take it over as soon as it can. That we are not treating psychiatry as the malevolent invader that it is shows only how deeply we’ve fallen for its facade of helping people.
From FACT to POD: How a FACT Team Integrated Open Dialogue
Work with open dialogue always starts with a "network meeting" in which the person of concern is invited to talk with members of their social network (i.e., family, friends, co-workers) and at least two professionals from the care team. The main guideline was "nothing about you, without you."
Pets More Effective for Grief Support than Humans, Study Finds
A new study explores effective forms of grief support, finding that animals are more effective than humans in providing support.
Bringing Human Rights to Mental Health Care: An Interview with UN Envoy Dainius Pūras
MIA's Ana Florence interviews United Nations Special Rapporteur Dainius Pūras about his own journey as a psychiatrist and the future of rights-based approaches to mental health.
Reckless Psychiatric Treatment Spun Me Out of Control
The mental health treatment I received between 2016-2019 was like an unreliable car that various mechanics had tinkered with. Yet each time I careened into a ditch, nobody looked at the car, just at me.
An American History of Addiction, Part 4: “Drugs Are Bad”
The disease theory of addiction had been ingrained in our culture for 200 years when Nixon signed this law. But had we ever actually checked to see if it was all true?
Hindsight is 20/20
During my 2003 episode I received a series of ten shocks and at first they seemed to “magically” cure me. However, it only took a month for me to go back to feeling depressed and suicidal — again.
Developing Alternatives to the DSM for Psychotherapists
A new article suggests counselors and psychotherapists are dissatisfied with current diagnostic systems and outlines some potential alternatives.
When Psychiatric Medications Cause Psychiatric Symptoms
Dr. Yolande Lucire, a psychiatrist from Australia, recently published a paper about the iatrogenic effects of psychiatric drugs.
Recovery Porn: Tell Me Your Story, I’ll Tell You Your Value
There is little denying the power of story… until our own stories get taken from us, positioned against us, and used to determine our value as some sort of human commodity. We deserve to have our stories heard and to hear the stories of others, but on our own terms, without being fetishized or controlled, and without competition for paltry awards and recognition.
How Culture Influences Voice Hearing: An Interview with Stanford Anthropologist Tanya Luhrmann
Ayurdhi Dhar interviews Tanya Luhrmann about cultural differences in voice-hearing, diagnosis and damaged identities, and conflicts in psychiatry.
Risk of Depression Spikes When Kids Take Ritalin
Risk of depression increased when children were taking methylphenidate for ADHD, but once they stopped taking the drug, depression risk dropped to normal levels.
Neuropsychological Tests Reveal Consequences of Polypharmacy
Neuropsychological assessments reveal the cognitive, occupational, and social impact of polypharmacy in psychiatry.
Kendra’s Law Must Be a Beginning, Not an End
I believe that, as things are right now, forced treatment can be justifiable. But we need to move studies and research forward, move mental health treatment forward into an era where forced treatment is obsolete.
Psychotherapy Can Prevent Relapse When Discontinuing Antidepressants
“Short and simple psychological programs can prevent people from relapsing when they stop their antidepressants.”
Dan Hurd – One Pedal at a Time
An interview with U.S. Navy Veteran Dan Hurd, founder of Ride With Dan USA and The One Pedal at a Time Movement. After surviving his third suicide attempt, Dan became inspired to bicycle to all 48 States in the continental U.S. to help raise awareness and make connections.
The “Madness” of Inpatient Psychiatry
Inpatient psychiatry is not a place of psychological healing; it is devoid of compassion and full of human rights abuses.
Mad Science, Psychiatric Coercion and the Therapeutic State: An Interview with Dr. David Cohen
MIA's Peter Simons interviews David Cohen, PhD, on his path to researching mental health, coercive practices, and discontinuation from psychiatric drugs.