Fundamentally re-thinking UK mental health practice
BLOGS
Essays from a diverse selection of writers, which aim to change the professional and public discourse about emotional distress and unusual experiences.
New Campaign: Supporting Litigation Against Mental Health Services Protecting Harmful Psychiatric Practice
People experiencing emotional distress and unusual psychological experiences, need protecting from the pathology-driven medical diagnostic approach, which has resulted in much untoward death and significant harm over the past half century.
Don’t Believe Everything You Read: Words Matter Desperately
The use of five words — depression, anxiety, guilt, bullying, and microaggression — has skyrocketed in print, in media, and among both professionals and laypeople, and this is causing harm.
Insane Medicine, Chapter 8: Treatment Traps and How to Get Out of Them (Part 1)
Deconstructing diagnosis, the nature of psychological injury, and how identifying a problem can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
On Human Nature and Its Implications for the Mind-Body Problem
Our desperation to view mental disorder as a disease leads to unhelpful assumptions that it is somehow distinct from the ‘true’ self, encourag[ing] the supposition that it can be treated or cured without changing the individual’s personality. This has led to a huge programme of medically-disguised social engineering, in which people are encouraged to change the way they think and behave, by being persuaded that they have a medical condition that needs to be eliminated.
How Little We Really Know About Psychiatric Drugs
Joanna Moncrieff reflects on what has and has not changed in the field of psychiatric drug treatment in the years between the first and newly published second edition of the Straight Talking Introduction to Psychiatric Drugs.
Insane Medicine, Chapter 7: Industrialised Psychotherapy Markets Western Folk Psychology (Part 2)
Sam Timimi contrasts the folk psychology brands of CBT and McMindfulness with empowering frameworks such as Open Dialogue and the Power Threat Meaning Framework.
Out of the Bubble: Now or Never?
Never in human history did a powerful institution, no matter how harmful and corrupt, slide into self-inflicted irrelevancy. Institutions like the current psychiatric system can only be toppled by a powerful social movement.
Appealing the FDA’s Denial of ECT’s Harms
More than 200 people signed an open letter to the FDA requesting electroconvulsive therapy’s safety studies and electrical dosing protocols.
Insane Medicine, Chapter 7: Industrialised Psychotherapy Markets Western Folk Psychology (Part 1)
Sami Timimi explores the common factors that influence therapy’s success, the evidence base for psychotherapy, and the over-promotion of CBT.
ECT REVIEW - WRITE TO YOUR MP
Note: All the campaign materials, blogs and updates can be found here.
A group of 40 professionals, researchers, ECT recipients and carers has written to Matt Hancock MP, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, asking for an independent review into ECT along the lines of the recent Cumberlege report into pelvic meshes. We have also written to our own MPs and have so far had a positive response from 8 of them who have pledged to write to Mr Hancock in support, and table parliamentary questions.
You can join us by writing to your MP, find out how here.
A Disorder for Everyone - The Online Festival
Visit the A Disorder For Everyone YouTube channel to view recordings of the speakers and artists that took part.
‘Broken Systems Impact Lives‘ review of the event here
MITUK on Facebook
Visit our new Facebook page.
COVID-19 Resources
Non-medical, non-pathologising resources to help us all survive the COVID-19 crisis – updated regularly
New on Mad in America
OTHER RESOURCES
A list of groups and resources that you may find helpful. If you are aware of other resources that we should consider adding, please let us know by email: [email protected]. Thanks.
Mad in America – Mad in America’s mission is to serve as a catalyst for rethinking psychiatric care in the United States (and abroad).
The Power Threat Meaning Framework – Towards the identification of patterns in emotional distress, unusual experiences and troubled or troubling behaviour, as an alternative to functional psychiatric diagnosis.
Drop the Disorder (Facebook) – a group for anyone who is interested in challenging traditional approaches to emotional distress.
A Disorder 4 Everyone – Exploring the culture of psychiatric diagnosis – creating change. Provides events, blogs and other resources.
A free-to-use guide to the healing of psychological trauma is available. It comprises information, approaches to healing and resources together with links to selected clinicians, organisations, projects and support groups. Download the pdf here: Healing Psychological Trauma
Hearing Voices Network – If you hear voices, HVN can help – we are committed to helping people who hear voices. We offer information, support and understanding to people who hear voices and those who support them.
International Society for Psychological and Social Approaches to Psychosis (UK) – ISPS UK is the United Kingdom network of the International organisation ISPS – International Society for Psychological and Social Approaches to Psychosis. ISPS works to promote greater knowledge of the different psychological approaches to psychosis and psychotic experiences – psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioural, arts-based, family and holistic approaches – and their better integration with each other and with pharmaceutical approaches.
The Council for Evidence-Based Psychiatry – CEP exists to communicate evidence of the potentially harmful effects of psychiatric drugs to the people and institutions in the UK that can make a difference.
The Inner Compass Initiative and Withdrawal Project – provides information, resources, tools, and connecting platforms to facilitate more informed choices regarding all things “mental health”.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Prescribed Drug Dependence will address the growing problem of prescribed drug dependence by demanding appropriate services for those affected, proper training for medical professionals, reduced prescribing through adherence to new and existing guidelines, better data regarding the prevalence of PDD and more research into long-term harms associated with PDD.
More resources are listed here.