Tag: psychiatry

Open Letter to the Psychiatric Institute of Washington After the Death of My Friend

By Will Hall Dear Post-traumatic Disorders Program, Psychiatric Institute of Washington, A close and dear friend is dead. She was a patient at your hospital, and a few days ago she sent me this text: "I left the trauma program after 48 hours. I was appalled at the environment, the terrible therapy and being treated like a prisoner. I went there looking for healing and support and found the experience even more traumatic. Western mental health systems are dehumanizing and insane." That was the last message I ever received from her. I got a call that my friend's body was found in the river: she drowned herself. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Community Rights Movement: ending forced psychiatry from the ground up

Beginning in Pennsylvania, and now stretching across nine states from Maine to New Mexico, 160 communities have passed legally binding, locally enforceable Community Rights laws that for the first time in U.S. history enshrine the inherent right of a local majority of residents to protect the health and welfare of their local places. Each of these new-paradigm laws defines what the community wants, and reins in corporate so-called "rights", stopping legal but harmful practices dead in their tracks. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Ten Myths about Depression and Psycho-Pharmacology

Myth 1: Your disease is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain Myth 2: It’s no problem to stop treatment with antidepressants Myth 3: Psychotropic Drugs for Mental Illness are like Insulin for Diabetes Myth 4: Psychotropic drugs reduce the number of chronically ill patients Myth 5: Happy pills do not cause suicide in children and adolescents … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Beyond medication: Mental Health, Holistic Healing and Nutrition (webinar)

Kelly Brogan MD, a Mad in America blogger, is offering a webinar at Green Med Info that promises to be a wonderful and pragmatic introduction to many of the ideas I present on this blog by a psychiatrist who gets it. Nutritional approaches to healing body/mind/spirit is one very important aspect of total well-being. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

When Psychiatry Retraumatizes

by Laura K. Kerr -- Before I became a psychotherapist, I often wrote, lectured, and blogged about damaging aspects of psychiatry. I am more hopeful now — not about psychiatry improving, but about truly helpful mental healthcare for people who might otherwise be labeled “chronically” mentally ill and forever take medications to tranquillize their internal demons. Since I began combining Sensorimotor Psychotherapy with CG Jung’s growth-focused theory of human nature, I have witnessed meaningful, lasting change happen without medications. I have also heard others talk about improved outcomes (both providers and clients) when trauma becomes the focus of care and joined with faith in lasting transformation. But hope can be blinding (although it sure feels good). The following poem by Franz Wright, from his collection Wheeling Motel, reminds me the problem with psychiatry goes beyond pushing dubious drugs. … [click on title to read more]

This is how mental health professionals argue against informed consent

OF COURSE WE ARE WORTH THE TRUTH I sometimes participate in conversations on Linked-in. It's become a source of gratification at least some of the time as I see more and more people waking up to what is happening in the mental health system. That said, I'm also still often horrified at what I meet there out in the mainstream of mental health providers. I hang around, however, because I've also found that there are many folks who are really deeply grappling with issues that only a decade ago were simply widely avoided. It's an exciting time and people are really opening up to the possibility of deeply humane ways of helping folks that at this time get labeled with psychiatric DSM diagnosis. Below I'm posting some slightly edited comments from one of the threads. ...

David Oaks says: SPEAK UP! FIGHT INJUSTICE!

Damn, I'm inspired. David Oaks, co-founder and former executive director of MindFreedom International, is a leader and a visionary. After experiencing forced drugging and solitary confinement in the mental health system as a young man, he's devoted his life to fighting against stigmatizing psychiatric labels, forced drugging, and human rights abuses. He led the 2003 MindFreedom Hunger Strike/Fast For Freedom where 6 psychiatric survivors fasted for weeks, challenging the American Psychiatric Association to provide solid evidence for the biological basis of mental/emotional distress. Despite an unbelievably COLD initial response from the APA, the strikers did not give up, and the APA was ultimately forced to admit that it had no scientific evidence that mental distress was a “neurobiological illness.”

New advertising for antipsychotics forecasts another change in the language

The Internet wants me to take drugs. I know this, because nearly every site I visit subtly whispers things like “Seroquel…” “Abilify…”  “Adderall, for adult ADHD…” to me from the sidebars.  It shows me pictures of a perfect life, happy smiling people trendily going about their business as “productive members of society” – everything, in... Continue Reading →

Hotel for the mentalists

Part 1 and 2 here and part 3 here. Part 4 here. These were originally posted here. This is Keener's amazing story. I hope you will all start picking it up. There are several more installments some of which she is writing just for this blog in order to finish her story. She is completely... Continue Reading →

Doing a favor for my psychiatrist

Last year my psychiatrist asked me to do him a favor. He teaches at a Chinese Medicine school. He does the Western Psychiatry block of the course. He asked me to come into his class to be interviewed by a student. They would be taking my "history." I told him that if I did that... Continue Reading →

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