Yes, slowly but surely there begins a recognition that what gets called mental illness cannot be explained with the bio-medical model.
From The Wilson Quarterly an article well worth reading with the recent history of how that which is called mental illness is considered in society and how that is changing since the psychopharmacological era has clearly failed:
In the 1990s, scientists declared that schizophrenia and other psychiatric illnesses were pure brain disorders that would eventually yield to drugs. Now they are recognizing that social factors are among the causes, and must be part of the cure. (read it here)
We are in the midst of a revolution in how those labeled with mental illness are understood and cared for. Many will remain stuck in the bio-medical model but the fact is the tide keeps turning and it’s wonderful to watch it happen. More and more people are recognizing the complexity of our psyches.
There are many ways to heal. And many ways of understanding the psyche.
See here for Recovery Stories: These are all stories of recovery that involve freedom from drugs/medications. Most everyone on these pages were told they would need drugs for the rest of their lives and proved psychiatry sorely wrong.
Links to articles that look at the Shamanic-like nature of consciousness — When it comes to understanding the psyche it’s often helpful to use many different models. These are posts that deal with it from a shamanic interpretation or similar.
Spiritual emergency: one way of interpreting activity of the psyche that is often labeled psychotic — links to posts that use the spiritual emergence lens to look at the activity of the psyche when it otherwise is often labeled as psychotic. One could just as easily call these phenomena existential crisis of the psyche too. When it comes to understanding the psyche it’s often helpful to use many different models. Such is the nature of the psyche.
Trauma and the body: A talk with Will Hall and then links to and other information regarding trauma and the body. I’m sharing the post again and then adding a collection of links about the topic because I continue to find that our bodies hold trauma and psychological distress in ways that we are just beginning to understand. We are truly holistic beings and our minds and bodies are intricately intertwined. The body, too, must be addressed.
Open Dialogue: Alternative Care for Psychosis — On this blog there is now a nice collection of articles on Open Dialogue as it’s used in Western Lapland Finland with people who find themselves experiencing all manner of psychotic phenomena. The psychiatric hospitals are nearly empty there. The method can be learned and the results have been documented.