Mad in America is a webzine devoted to rethinking psychiatry’s current “disease model” for diagnosing and treating psychiatric disorders. This Family Resources section is designed to provide information and resources for parents and other family members who wish to explore alternatives to conventional, drug-based psychiatric care for their relatives, especially children of all ages.
We’re Ignoring a Major Culprit in the Teen Mental Health Crisis
Teen mental health issues are a major concern for today’s parents. Hiding in plain sight is the fact that this generation is the most sleep-deprived population in human history.
Editor's Corner
What’s Eating Parents? Decision Fatigue and Burnout
I often attend webinars related to mental health, especially about youth and families. About a month ago, I attended one on “The Pandemic’s Impact on Parents.” It was sponsored by SciLine, which offers press briefings with groups of scientific experts on topics in the news.
The webinar’s announcement blared a familiar theme: “COVID-19 has challenged parents to manage their own health, the health of their children, their work, and their finances in a setting of unprecedented risk and economic pressure.” And if you, the caregiver, are struggling with the psychological effects of extreme stressors like these, it’s that much harder to deal with a struggling kid.
So I thought it might be helpful to share the findings from two of the three expert presentations about what is known, based on research, about the effects of pandemic-induced stress and burnout on parents—and how stress, decision fatigue, and other factors may influence the choices parents make about their children’s health. Read more.
Blogs & Personal Stories
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.
ADHD: The Money Trail
Doctors, drug companies, and the news media have profited from skyrocketing rates of diagnosis and drugging for ADHD, and the law has created a perverse set of incentives for parents and children which favor the ADHD label.
The Abused Children to Bipolar Pipeline
The mental health system traumatized me further. They were allies with my abusers to cover up and continue my abuse.
Featured Resources
Engaging “Madness”: A Guide for Significant Others and Families
Using personal stories from my own family, my new booklet Engaging 'Madness' paints a clear picture of what an alternative healing journey outside the biomedical paradigm can look like.
Medicating Preschoolers for ADHD: How “Evidence-Based” Psychiatry Has Led to a Tragic End
The prescribing of stimulants to preschoolers diagnosed with ADHD is on the rise, which is said to be an "evidence-based" practice. A review of that "evidence base" reveals that claims that ADHD is characterized by genetic and brain abnormalities are belied by the data, and that the NIMH trial of methylphenidate in this age group told of long-term harm.
Interview: Abuse and Neglect at Private “Troubled Teen” Centers
Parents, beware: Disability rights lawyer Diane Smith Howard shares disturbing findings on conditions at youth residential treatment facilities.
"Mad in the Family" Podcast
Family Newsletter
Support Groups
MIA offers moderated, online peer-support groups for parents. U.S./Canada groups meet twice monthly on alternating Tuesdays. There is one group for parents of children 18 and under and another for parents of adult children. The European group (children of all ages) meets on the second Thursday of each month. Learn more and sign up here.
My child is suicidal. What should I do? Steve McCrea, MS, answers a common parenting question. Have a question of your own? Submit it for an online reply from one of our experts.
Psychiatric Drug Info
Did you know:
- That longer-term studies of children given a diagnostic label of ADHD have found worse outcomes for medicated youth?
- In a large NIMH study, researchers concluded that few youth “benefit long-term” from antipsychotics (neuroleptic drugs)?
- That use of marijuana, stimulants, and antidepressants increase the risk that a youth will receive a diagnostic label of bipolar disorder?
Research on psychiatric drug use in children and adolescents
- Stimulants for children with a diagnostic label of ADHD
- Antidepressants for children with a diagnostic label of depression/anxiety
- Antipsychotics (neuroleptics) for children with a diagnostic label of psychosis, bipolar disorder, and more
Research on non-drug treatments
- Non-drug approaches for ADHD
- Non-drug approaches for depression
- Non-drug approaches for psychosis, bipolar disorder, and more
Resources Information on withdrawal from psychiatric drugs. Directory of therapists/providers who support drug withdrawal.
Videos
