Healing From Transgenerational Trauma: My Mum, My Daughter, & Me
Emotional trauma is the type of wound that, if not processed and integrated, can become a void that expands to swallow not just the traumatized person but also their children and grandchildren.
The “S” Word: How the Culture of Fear Has Failed Youth in Crises
I learned at a young age that my suicidal thoughts and feelings would be met with panic and punishment from adults.
ADHD Diagnosis Leads to Worse Quality of Life, Increased Self-Harm in Kids
When comparing kids with the same symptoms who were either diagnosed with ADHD or not, those who received the diagnosis had worse outcomes.
Q&A: How Can I Best Support My Child’s Withdrawal from Psychiatric Drugs?
Two experts offer do's and don'ts on "being there" during the challenging and sometimes time-consuming process of safely discontinuing mental health medications.
Health Risks to Babies When Antidepressants Used During Pregnancy
Babies born to mothers taking antidepressants during pregnancy were more than six times as likely to have neonatal withdrawal syndrome—including breathing problems, irritability/agitation, tremors, feeding problems, and seizures—than those born to mothers taking other types of drugs.
In Andrew’s Honor: Attorney Elizabeth Rich’s Fight Against Unjust Commitments
Anyone detained and then formally committed under Wisconsin’s civil mental health laws can initially be held and forcibly drugged for six long months. Yet, for years, not a single person has been able to appeal the six-month commitments in court.
What Video Games Can Teach Us About Effective Parenting
There is a secret to the programming of these games that seems to stir children to a level of greatness. Fortunately, that magic is completely transposable to our interactions with them.
Dramatic Decline in California’s Use of Antipsychotic Drugs on Its Foster Children
From The Imprint: Youth and Family News: A new study indicates statewide reforms have freed thousands of abused and neglected children from the lasting effects of the most powerful psychiatric drugs, but concerns about other medications persist.
#RestoreTheirRights: An Update on Guardianship Action
It’s time to change the conversation around guardianship. The question is not “When do we remove someone’s rights?” but “How can we best support them?”
Call for Teen Art in All Media!
MIA's Family Resources and Arts sections are co-sponsoring an online teen multimedia art exhibition with the theme “Beyond Labels and Meds: What It Feels Like to Be Me.”
This Teen Was Prescribed 10 Psychiatric Drugs. She’s Not Alone.
From The New York Times: The problem of multiple medication use, or polypharmacy, that first emerged a decade ago among young people in foster care and low-income settings, has now gone mainstream.
Mad Parenting: On Becoming an Unlikely Family Man
I’ve often been told I shouldn’t have kids because I’m “bipolar.” But since my twins’ birth, I’ve been way more stable than I thought I would be, and I’ve found what I’ve always been looking for.
Ending Child Abuse: The Next Spiritual Revolution
From Bryan Eden/alice-miller.com: Humanity’s progress toward peace, love, prosperity and happiness is being held captive by an invisible plague of cruelty and violence.
1 in 3 UK Teens Given Antidepressants, Despite Official Guidelines
From inews.co.uk: Family doctors say a lack of access to effective psychological therapies on the NHS is leading them to over-prescribe medication.
Catherine’s Story: A Child Lost to Psychiatry
A year ago today, our youngest child died, thanks to the adversarial actions and toxic treatments foisted on her by medical-model psychiatry. By telling her story, we hope to promote systemic change.
Mass Shootings and the News Media: Catching Up to the Science of PACEs
From ACEs Too High: Over the last 25 years, the main development that has changed our understanding of violence is the CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences Study.
Mindfulness in Schools Does Not Improve Mental Health, Study Finds
From The Guardian: Students who engaged with the meditation practice benefitted but many were bored by it, say researchers in the UK.
“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.
Q&A: How Can I Best Advocate for My Child in the Mental Health System?
Steve McCrea, MA, advises on how to research options, set goals, look out for a child's interests—and speak up, if need be.
To Prevent Mass Shootings, Stop Relying on the Myth of Motive; Start Doing Forensic...
From PACEs Connection: The right question is: What happened to this person? What happened to a beautiful baby boy to turn him into an 18-year-old killer spouting racist screed?
Stimulants Don’t Improve Academic Performance in Kids with ADHD
“Efforts to improve learning in children with ADHD should focus on obtaining effective academic instruction rather than stimulant medication.”
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.
NHS Data: 41% Rise in Antidepressant Prescribing to Children Aged 5-12 Since 2015
From The Pharmaceutical Journal: The majority were males, and peaks in antidepressant prescribing to young people in England coincided with periods of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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.
From Horse Ranch to Home Ground: Healing Families via Telehealth
Since COVID, NISAPI has transitioned our collaborative therapy setting from barns and fields to kitchens and living rooms. Our clients report similar positive outcomes with telehealth as in person.
