Psychotherapy and Social Change: Mick Cooper on Counseling, Pluralism, and Progressive Politics
Javier Rizo interviews Mick Cooper on the intersection of psychotherapy and social transformation, the pluralistic approach to counseling, and the role of psychology in building a more just society.
Reporting the COVID Crisis at Psychiatric Hospitals: A Missed Opportunity
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
Mad in Mexico's Luis Arroyo interviews MIA's Justin Karter about how psychosocial disability inclusion can transform Global Mental Health.
Britney Speaks: Are We Ready to Listen?
Comparing her circumstances to sex trafficking, Britney Spears told the judge she wished to sue her conservators and be allowed to tell reporters “what they did to me.”
Creative Maladjustment: An Interview with Donzaleigh Abernathy
Donzaleigh Abernathy—goddaughter of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.—shares her thoughts on the civil rights movement and the legacy of racism in the United States.
MindFreedom’s Shield Program: Working to Free People from Psychiatric Incarceration and Forced Treatment
“We need the MindFreedom Shield to have someone in our corner when we are told that it doesn't matter what we want, that someone else can make a choice about our bodies that we will have to live with for the rest of our lives.”
In the Courts, a Partial Win for Informed Consent and ECT Justice
Price Hancock views the Thelen verdict as a partial win. "The jury agreed that the manufacturer 'failed to warn.’ That's huge. It's a step in the right direction."
Inside A Forensic Psychiatry Unit: Where I’ve Come From and Where I’m Going
I will begin with a story of my youth. Then I will explore what my life has looked like since my release from custody. Finally, I will offer my own perspective on the country’s problems with gun violence, articulated from my unique positionality.
Tara Thiagarajan: Mental Well-being Better in Venezuela than in United States: Why?
Tara Thiagarajan is founder and chief scientist of Sapien Labs, a nonprofit organization that runs the Mental Health Million Project, we discuss its annual Mental State of the World Report, which uses an online survey to track mental wellbeing among internet-enabled populations around the world.
Inside a Forensic Psychiatry Unit: Access to the Courts—A Right and Survival Tool
Being stuck in the custody of a malicious treatment team could mean death. I had to resort to the Mother of All Tactics Hegemony (a lawsuit).
The APA’s Apology for Racism Omits Psychiatry’s Essential Bigotry
Psychiatry has acknowledged its history of racism, but can they ever acknowledge that the entire edifice is built on fundamental bigotry?
‘Sacred Conversations’: A Talk with Susan Swim and a Father Whose Daughter Found Healing
We have two guests today. One is Susan Swim, executive director of the Now I See A Person Institute, which she created in 2007...
Faith Healing in India: An Ancient Way of Tending to Madness
In contrast to the colonial legacy of medical psychiatry in India, indigenous and faith healing methods emphasize the interconnectedness of the mind, body, and spirit, using rituals, storytelling, and communal support to create a holistic healing environment.
Unheard Voices: Carlton Brown
In the first installment of MIA's Unheard Voices series, Carlton Brown talks about his life, living on the streets, the psychiatric system, and survival.
Rights Based Global Mental Health and Social Exclusion: An Interview with Ursula Read
MIA interviews the anthropologist Ursula Read about her research on mental illness, human rights, and social exclusion in Ghana.
New Tools to Support New Moms: An Interview with Jennifer Barkin, PhD
A maternal mental health expert shares how perinatal stress and the climate crisis are affecting women’s everyday lives.
Teen Arts Exhibition: Beyond Labels And Meds: What It Feels Like To Be Me
28 teen artists share the power of their creativity in this collection of profoundly moving, courageous, and beautiful artwork.
The Fight Against Involuntary Commitment: Are Protection & Advocacy Organizations Fulfilling Their Mission?
Protection and Advocacy organizations were designed as ground-breaking tools for fighting involuntary commitment and protecting patients’ rights. Are they fulfilling their promise? And will they survive Trump?
Inside A Forensic Psychiatry Unit: Rolled Ankles, RATs, and Invisible Abuse—The Final Obstacles Toward...
Sexual abuse is inevitable, an unspoken and largely invisible tragedy that affects most, if not all, inmates who enter into any detention center, especially a so-called “mental hospital.”
Mad Pride Rises in Mexico
The Mad Pride movement continues to spread around the world, with a first-ever march in Mexico City.
“Pollution’s Mental Toll”: A Talk with Journalist Kristina Marusic
The reporter explains how air and water pollution affect our brains, why children are so vulnerable, and what to do about it.
Interview: How Does Climate Change Affect Youth Mental Health?
Psychiatric epidemiologist Jennifer Barkin talks about her research on the traumatizing effects of extreme weather events on youth and how caregivers can help them build resilience.
Family Panel Discussion – Supporting a Child, Teen, or Young Person in Crisis
Supporting a Child, Teen, or Young Person in Crisis - Our guest panel, Ciara Fanlo, Morna Murray and Sami Timimi join host Amy Biancolli to share stories of crisis but also stories of healing and of hope.
Interview: Researchers Deconstruct Ghostwritten Industry Trial for Antidepressant
Researchers, Jon Jureidini, Jay Amsterdam and Leemon McHenry, have taken a closer look at the data from a randomized control trial of citalopram (Celexa) that was ghostwritten and then used by the manufacturers to support claims of the drug’s efficacy and safety in the treatment of child and adolescent depression. To get the background on this story, we connected with Dr. Leemon McHenry, an investigator in this study and a lecturer in philosophy at California State University, Northridge.
Books Under Review: Fall 2021
Reviews of four recent books reflecting various perspectives on the mental health system, including explorations of the DSM and Open Dialogue.
