by Paris Williams -- Over the years of my explorations into psychosis and human evolution a very interesting irony became increasingly apparent. It is well-known that people who fall into those deeply transformative and chaotic states typically referred to as “psychosis” often feel, at different points throughout their journeys, that they have received a special calling ...
Cognitive behavioral therapy or CBT has been pretty heavily criticized by people within the "alternatives" community and in particular by a number of Mad in America (MIA) bloggers and commenters in the past few years. In a way that isn’t surprising, because many of us are looking for radical change, and CBT often appears to be part of the establishment, especially within the therapy world.--But while I’m all for criticizing what’s wrong with CBT, especially with bad CBT, I think there’s also a danger in getting so caught up in pointing out real or imagined flaws that we fail to notice where CBT can be part of the solution, helping us move toward more humanistic and effective methods. I would propose that we instead attempt a “balanced approach,” noticing both where CBT is likely to help and where it is not, and discovering what can be done to build on the strengths of CBT while avoiding problems with the misapplication or overstated marketing of it. … [click on title for the rest of the post]
In the diverse array of terms now used - extreme states, madness, spiritual crisis, kundalini, psychosis, crazy, shamanic initiation - I see my own experience in all of them. To me, they’re all expressions of what I call Shades of Awakening. Each one with it’s own flavor, meaning and transformational path to recovery. -- After over a decade of soul searching, a new question emerged. How can I support others who are integrating to find their own truths, their own narratives and their own answers? (Be sure to visit the Shades of Awakening series page to learn about Dabney's free series of interviews with many folks who've moved through spiritual emergence (which often otherwise gets pathologized by psychiatry) and are now thriving.) … [click on title for the rest of the post]
"Grandiosity" is a state of reactivity brought about by having been rejected, abandoned and invalidated in childhood. In a similar vein "mania" is a dissociative state. This is something that is rarely understood. In understanding mania as dissociative we see that it is a form of post traumatic stress. We are disconnected from the body when we experience mania. We are literally ungrounded. All of this can be healed by becoming aware on all fronts. Body/mind/spirit. I have done it and I know many others who have too. Healing is a journey that doesn't end. … [click on title for the rest of the post]
John Nash has died. Besides being a brilliant man who won a nobel prize he was once diagnosed as schizophrenic and became very famous for that fact as well, when the movie "A Beautiful Mind" came out. John Nash has died. Besides being a brilliant man who won a nobel prize he was once diagnosed as schizophrenic and became very famous for that fact as well, when the movie "A Beautiful Mind" came out. -- I am doing this post in his memory. I’m recovering from a nasty stomach bug so it’s being put together quickly. Included is footage where John Nash once again clarifies that he didn't take psychiatric drugs for most of his life. … [click on title for the rest of the post]
Vulnerability is not a weakness, a passing indisposition, or something we can arrange to do without, vulnerability is not a choice, vulnerability is the underlying, ever present and abiding under-current of our natural state. To run from vulnerability is to run from the essence of our nature; the attempt to be invulnerable is the vain attempt to become something we are not and most especially, to close off our understanding of the grief of others. More seriously, in refusing our vulnerability we refuse to ask for the help needed at every turn of our existence and immobilize the essential, tidal and conversational foundations of our identity. … [click on title to read and view more]
Dina Tyler inspires and is making it happen in the system right now. This is what a peer specialist looks like. We are the ones who can make the system transform. We know, better than anyone, how to help one another and, more importantly, how to help ourselves. ...
When I get caught up in trying to explain why I have these experiences I often realise that I am coming from a place of fear. I tell myself that I want to understand because knowing why will help me cope, help me know what to do. I may even tell myself that my experiences need me to be understanding and empathic. I want to make myself feel safer, I want to find the right way forwards – the best way. I don’t want to feel confused and powerless so I go to default mode of observing, analysing the data and coming up with an explanation that seems to best suit the issue at hand. I may return to explanations that have helped me in the past. … [click on title to read and view more]
There is an important read today at Mad in America by Bruce Levine about how to regain power from the medical establishment. Those of us who have been harmed and know just how serious it can be have an important role to play. ... [click on title to read more]
In the video below Dr. Russell Razzaque shares what he learns about the psyche when he starts meditating. He is surprised when he comes to recognize many states he experiences in meditation to be similar to states that are pathologized in psychiatry. He sees them in his patients and recognizes them in his own experience when meditating. I've certainly found meditation to be a way to learn how to recognize and integrate many parts of my psyche. … [click on title for the rest of the post]
I no longer believe that I “lost” my life to drugs. This is, as Mary Oliver, puts it, my “one wild and precious life.” Yes, this is it and so I celebrate it. … [click on title for the rest of the post]
