MIA Reports

In-depth reporting on psychiatry and its impact on society.

A painting depicting clouds with lightning over the sea at sunset

Breaking the Cycle: How I Overcame Intergenerational Trauma and Became a Peer Advocate

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How did that young Puerto Rican girl who very much disliked seeing a therapist when locked up in the juvenile system end up working in the mental health field as an adult?

Giving Caregivers a Platform: Meagan, Mother of Matt

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A mom describes her son's descent into the harms of psychiatry—and his way out. "It was really difficult to watch Matt decline. He had given up hope that he could get well."

The Surprising Mental Health Benefits of Volunteering

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A program offers psychotherapy in exchange for voluntary service in the community. But the act of volunteering itself can have mental health benefits of its own.

“War Cry For Change”: Veterans Launch Campaign for Informed Consent and Safe Deprescribing at...

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Derek Blumke and Timothy Jensen: The Grunt Style Foundation leads a new phase in the movement to combat psychiatric drug harm.

Madness, Utopia and Revolt: An Interview With Sasha Warren

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Sasha Warren founded Of Unsound Mind to trace the histories of psychiatry and its connection to policing and prisons.

The Connection Cure: An Interview with Julia Hotz

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Julia Hotz is a solutions-focused journalist based in New York City. She is the author of the forthcoming book, The Connection Cure: The Prescriptive...
Stock photo. Man in lab coat appears to scream in anger.

Criticisms That Establishment Psychiatry Can and Cannot Tolerate

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Criticism that uniquely applies to establishment psychiatry but not to medicine in general threatens its existential legitimacy, and is not tolerated.
Ozempic injectors and a tape measure

Popular Obesity Drugs Monitored for Suicidal Thinking

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Concerns rise about the adverse effects and longer-term harms of GLP-1 injections like Ozempic and Wegovy.

Discourse, Drug Use, and Psychiatry: An Interview with Critical Psychologist Ilana Mountian

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Richard Sears interviews Ilana Mountian on drug use, marginalization, the disease model of addiction, and problems with prohibition.

A Tribute to Dr. Dean K. Brooks: The Fire Still Burns

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Stories of a state hospital leader who challenged the mental health system by placing patients as the most important people: Dr. Dean K. Brooks of Oregon State Hospital.

For Native People, the Past is Present: David Edward Walker on Oppressive Mental Health...

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David Edward Walker is the author of Coyote’s Swing: A Memoir and Critique of Mental Hygiene in Native America, which was published in February...

Exercise for Youth Mental Health in the Lockdown: Interview with Psychologist Scott Greenspan

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School Psychologist Scott Greenspan discusses how to promote exercise and mental wellbeing for adolescents stuck indoors during the pandemic.

Trans Lifeline: Naming Trans-Specific Harm in Mental Health

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Interim Hotline Manager Jahmil Roberts and Advocacy Director Yana Calou from the Trans Lifeline work towards connecting trans people to the community support and resources they need to survive and thrive - free of prisons and police
Photo of Diana Rose, wearing a pink sweater, smiling, in front of a bookshelf

Is Service-User Research Possible in Mental Health? An Interview with Diana Rose

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MIA’s Ayurdhi Dhar interviews Diana Rose about producing knowledge with survivors of psychiatry, abuses faced by service users, and what good research would look like.

Embodying Emotional Taboos: Musicians and Mental Health

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Mia Berrin is a songwriter, producer, and recording artist based out of Brooklyn, whose project, Pom Pom Squad, has garnered attention over the last...

Project LETS: Building Peer-Led Mental Health Alternatives on Campus

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Founder and Executive Director Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkhulu talks about the organization's work to support struggling students and end discrimination against them.

The Carter Center’s Guide for Mental Health Journalism: Don’t Question, Follow the Script

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The Carter Center’s Journalism Resource Guide on Behavioral Health is a manual for docile journalism. There is no encouragement to be skeptical of the powerful in psychiatry. Rather, the guide provides reporters with a template to follow that reifies conventional wisdom, offering a message similar to what the American Psychiatric Association has sounded for years.

Mental Wellbeing Poorest in English-Speaking Countries of the World

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A survey of 233,087 “internet users” in 34 countries that measured “mental wellbeing” found that the percentage of respondents who were “distressed or struggling” was highest in English-speaking regions of the world, where 30% fell into this category.

The Anatomy of Anxiety: An Interview With Ellen Vora

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Dr. Ellen Vora, author of 'The Anatomy of Anxiety', joins us to discuss trauma, grief, functional medicine and more.

Interview: Abuse and Neglect at Private “Troubled Teen” Centers

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Parents, beware: Disability rights lawyer Diane Smith Howard shares disturbing findings on conditions at youth residential treatment facilities.

Capitol Hill Briefings Debunk Myth Linking Gun Violence to Mental Illness

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The public is regularly led to believe that mass shootings are committed by people diagnosed with a serious mental illness. Researchers explain that is just plain wrong, and prevents our society addressing the most common causal factors.

The Path from Trauma to The Power of Nature: An Interview with Banning Lyon

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Our guest today is Banning Lyon, author of The Chair and The Valley: A Memoir of Trauma, Healing, and The Outdoors. An account of...

Books Under Review: Fall 2022

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Reviews of three recent books reflecting various perspectives on the mental health system.
covid in a psychiatric hospital

Reporting the COVID Crisis at Psychiatric Hospitals: A Missed Opportunity

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In its coverage of the impact of COVID on psychiatric hospitals, the media missed opportunities to challenge stereotypes and interrogate problems with current carceral approaches to mental health treatment.

Can Psychosocial Disability Transform Mental Health? A Conversation with Luis Arroyo and Justin Karter

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Mad in Mexico's Luis Arroyo interviews MIA's Justin Karter about how psychosocial disability inclusion can transform Global Mental Health.