Introduction

Thank you for considering submitting a blog to Mad in the UK. We welcome written blogs that align with our aim of fundamentally re-thinking mental health theory and practice in the UK, and promoting positive change. This note will give you information about our blogging process and requirements. Should you have any questions, please email us: [email protected].

MITUK is a site that, broadly speaking, is intent on providing an online focal point for people interested in campaigning for a change in the professional and public discourse about emotional distress and unusual experiences; for support, both within and beyond services, which meets people’s real needs; and for social policy which addresses the causes of distress at its roots.

We also want our site to be one that shows respect for people with different thoughts, beliefs, experiences, and opinions. We know that passions can run hot on this topic, but we are trying to foster an environment where there is a civil tone to the conversation at all times.

We particularly welcome personal stories from current or former service users/survivors, carers, professionals, and others. We are happy to make them anonymous if that is your preference. Content from MITUK is sometimes shared with other ‘Mad In…’ sites as well, but in the case of personal stories, we will not do this without your permission. However, you should be aware that once a blog is published on MITUK, the content may be widely shared in ways that we cannot control. Please take this into account when deciding to submit a personal story.

Blogging overview

Tone and language of blogs

We want MITUK to be a place that is respectful in tone. This doesn’t mean that bloggers shouldn’t write their opinions, but in a sense, blogging on MITUK will be different to writing a blog on a personal website. Think of MITUK as something of a magazine; pieces can be funny, opinionated, etc., but always written in a respectful way.

We encourage writers to become familiar with language guidelines written by Peter Kinderman and Anne Cooke, which can be accessed here or the British Psychological Society’s Division of Clinical Psychology Language Guidelines provided here. In short, we want to avoid medicalized terminology and to describe problems in everyday language wherever possible.

Purpose of blogs

While your blog is a forum for making your thoughts known on this general topic of psychiatry, psychology and mental health, you should also think of it as a place to report on what you may be doing in your own sphere of involvement with this world.

We want readers to come to MITUK to learn about innovative projects, success stories, efforts at developing alternative therapies, peer-run initiatives, etc. So your blog might be seen as providing a mix of opinion, insight, and news.

Writing quality

Please review your blog for clarity, grammar, and spelling. We want our readers to find MITUK a home for good writing. At the same time, we recognize that some people are relatively new to writing for this kind of forum, and we are happy to offer support and feedback on drafts. We will offer suggestions for editing where necessary and may add a new title for clarity.

Simultaneous Submissions

We are happy to accept blogs that have been previously published elsewhere, providing that the previous publisher has no right to the blog that could prevent it from being used on MITUK.

Some submitted blogs will also feature on our sister site, Mad in America or other Mad In affiliates.

Re-posting MITUK Content

We are happy for other Mad In affiliates to re-post our content, unamended and with permission from [email protected]. Any changes to our content must be approved by MITUK. Please acknowledge in your post that it first appeared on MITUK, and link back to the original post.

Submitting Blogs

Please email your blog to [email protected]

Reader comments and interacting with readers 

We have made a concerted effort to invite our readers to see themselves as part of a larger community devoted to rethinking mental health theory and practice. There are many reasons for that, but partly it is because we believe that this is a discussion that our society needs to have and that it should be a discussion that includes everyone: those with lived experience, family members, mental health professionals and so forth.

Readers who want to comment on articles must register with MITUK, and we ask that everyone comments in a civil manner. We, of course, want to keep the comment section open for critical thoughts, but we ask our readers to do so in a respectful way, and without using language that is hateful or might be considered a personal attack.

We have a moderator who seeks to keep comments within these guidelines. This isn’t easy, for we have to strike up a balance that allows for a free discussion of ideas and opinions, and yet keeps that discussion civil and on-topic. To begin with, all comments will be reviewed and approved before being posted.

Some of our writers will want to engage with readers, responding to their comments, and while it is up to every writer to decide whether to respond, we do encourage such interaction, as it can be so informative for everyone. We ask our bloggers to respond to commenters with the same respect that we ask our readers to give to our writers.

What We Need From You To Create Your Account

1. A photo (jpg) of you, at least 200×200 pixels. A headshot would be fine, and if not a headshot, a photo that we can crop for a headshot. Photos that are too large will be resized.
2. A short biographical statement of around 40 words (see example here).
3. A short title for your blog, which describes the particular focus of your blog.
4. A longer biography that includes a description of what you will be writing about. This doesn’t mean that you will only write about that subject, but still let readers know your general focus.
5. We hold your email address, but this is not shared with readers unless you wish to share it in your blog.

Once Your Account is Created

Accessing the site

Log in using the link at the top of the page.

6. Your login name: Initial of your first name, then full last name, all lowercase. So for instance, Robert Whitaker’s login name is: rwhitaker.
7. Your password will be emailed to you. You can change your password if you like on the dashboard. For a password reset or other technical issues please email: [email protected].
8. Please use your author account when commenting on articles. Please do not make more than one account on Mad in the UK. If you were already a commenter then your existing account will be given author privileges.

If you have a question, don’t hesitate to ask and thank you; your blog is going to be an important part of this community.

The Mad in the UK Team

General enquiries: [email protected]

Blog submissions: [email protected]

A Note on Scientology

For anyone in the critical space around psychiatry and psychology, the potential for hijacking by scientology adherents is a concern. Mad in the UK reject Scientology and will never knowingly promote or host Scientology content.

It is very difficult to always know the provenance of everything that may be posted on MITUK, so if you are aware of something that we should take action on, please let us know by emailing [email protected]

Last updated: November 2022