I have recently read Psychiatry Interrogated, subtitled “An Institutional Ethnography Anthology”. Ethnography is the branch of anthropology that deals with the systematic study of individual cultures. Institutional ethnography (IE), according to Wikipedia, is “a method of social research [that]… explores the social relations that structure people’s everyday lives, specifically by looking at the ways that… Continue Reading
Book Review: The Power of the Double Circle
I have recently read The Power of the Double Circle by Philip Springer, MD, and Shelby Havens, DNP. It’s a small book (91 pages), but it sets out an idea that might have some value in support/self-help and other kinds of groups. Dr. Springer is a retired psychiatrist, and Dr. Havens is a psychiatric nurse… Continue Reading
Book Review: Depression Delusion, by Terry Lynch, MD, MA
In this truly remarkable, and meticulously researched, volume, Dr. Lynch annihilates psychiatry’s cherished chemical imbalance theory of depression. Every facet of this theory, which the author correctly calls a delusion, is critically analyzed and found wanting. Example after example is provided of psychiatrists promoting this fiction, the factual and logical errors of which are clearly… Continue Reading
Book Review: Parenting Your Child with ADHD: A No-Nonsense Guide for Nurturing Self-Reliance and Cooperation, by Craig Wiener, EdD
I have recently read this book, and I think it would be extremely helpful for parents, teachers, and counselors who work with children in this area. Here are some quotes: “…ADHD [is] something that your child does rather than something that she has.” “The first thing to realize is that while you and other adults… Continue Reading
Book Review: Tales From The Madhouse, by Gary Sidley
Earlier this year the British publisher PCCS Books published Tales From The Madhouse: An insider critique of psychiatric services, by Gary Sidley. Gary worked for thirty-three years in the British NHS mental health service. He has held positions as a psychiatric nurse, a manager, and a clinical psychologist. He is currently a freelance writer and… Continue Reading
Book Review: Psychiatry and the Business of Madness An Ethical and Epistemological Accounting, by Bonnie Burstow
This latest book by Bonnie Burstow, PhD, critiques psychiatry, and effectively annihilates any claims that the profession might have had to legitimacy. Bonnie gives us a scholarly, but very readable, account of: the history of psychiatry, ancient and modern; the significance and shortcomings of the DSM; the legal, ethical, and personal ramifications of involuntary “treatment”;… Continue Reading
Book Review: A Disease Called Childhood, by Marilyn Wedge
Avery, a member of Penguin Group USA, has recently published A Disease Called Childhood, by Marilyn Wedge. Marilyn has a PhD in psychology and works as a family therapist. In 2014, fully 11% of American children had received a “diagnosis” of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It is widely believed by these children, their parents,… Continue Reading
Book Review: Body Dysmorphic Disorder: The Illusion, by Zoe Wybrant
Body Dysmorphic Disorder is one of the so-called mental disorders listed in the DSM-5. The manual lists the following diagnostic criteria, (p 242): A. Preoccupation with one or more perceived defects or flaws in physical appearance that are not observable or appear slight to others. B. At some point during the course of the disorder,… Continue Reading
Straight Talk from Lucy Johnstone
PCCS Books Ltd has recently published A Straight Talking Introduction to Psychiatric Diagnosis, by Lucy Johnstone, PhD. Lucy is a consultant psychologist working in Wales, and has been an outspoken critic of psychiatry’s medical model. Here are some quotes: “…my own conclusion, based on extensive reading and clinical work and many enlightening discussions with service… Continue Reading
Psychiatry Disrupted
On August 15, 2014, McGill-Queens University Press published Psychiatry Disrupted: Theorizing Resistance and Crafting the (R)evolution. The work is a collection of papers by various authors, edited by Bonnie Burstow, Brenda A. LeFrançois, and Shaindl Diamond. There is a Foreword by Paula Caplan, and a Preface by Kate Millett. It is no secret that there… Continue Reading
A Prescription for Psychiatry, by Peter Kinderman, PhD
I recently read Peter Kinderman’s new book, A Prescription for Psychiatry, which was published on September 3 by Palgrave Macmillan. The overall message of the work is captured nicely in the subtitle: Why We Need a Whole New Approach to Mental Health and Wellbeing. Dr. Kinderman is Professor of Clinical Psychology, Head of the Institute… Continue Reading
Drugging Our Children: A Book Review
The 2012 book Drugging Our Children: How Profiteers Are Pushing Antipsychotics on Our Youngest, and What We Can Do to Stop It, is edited by Sharna Olfman PhD, and Brent Dean Robbins, PhD. It is a collection of ten articles, plus an Introduction and an Afterword by Sharna Olfman. Here are the chapter titles,… Continue Reading
The Sandcastle Continues to Crumble: ADHD Does Not Exist
BOOK PREVIEW Richard C. Saul, MD ADHD Does Not Exist: The Truth About Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder Publication date: February 18, 2014 ************************ Those of us on this side of the psychiatry debate have been saying for decades that the condition known as ADHD is not an illness, but is rather an arbitrarily delineated… Continue Reading
The Bitterest Pills, by Joanna Moncrieff: Another Book Worth Reading
Dr. Joanna Moncrieff is a UK psychiatrist and a founding member of the Critical Psychiatry Network. In 2009 she wrote The Myth of the Chemical Cure: A Critique of Psychiatric Drug Treatment. Her latest book, The Bitterest Pills, was published earlier this year, and is about neuroleptic drugs (the so-called anti-psychotics). You can get an… Continue Reading
Another Critique of Psychiatry’s Medical Model
I have recently read De-Medicalizing Misery [palgrave macmillan, 2011]. It’s a comprehensive collection of articles, edited by Mark Rapley, Joanna Moncrieff, and Jacqui Dillon. The table of contents provides a sense of the book’s scope. Table of Contents Carving Nature at its Joints? DSM and the Medicalization of Everyday Life, Mark Rapley, Joanna Moncrieff, and Jacqui… Continue Reading
Pharma Corruption of Healthcare
I’ve been reading another great book: Deadly Medicines and Organised Crime: How big pharma has corrupted healthcare, by Peter C. Gotzsche [Radcliffe Publishing, 2013]. The book is an exposé of pharma’s fraudulent research and marketing. The author is a Danish physician who has been involved in clinical trials of drugs, and in drug regulatory matters. He… Continue Reading
Cracked: The Unhappy Truth About Psychiatry, by James Davies, PhD: Book Review
This is an excellent book, published by Pegasus Books earlier this year. The cover blurb says that it is “…scathing about every aspect of psychiatry.” Dr. Davies, who is a practicing therapist in the UK, brings to the subject enormous energy and enthusiasm. He has interviewed Robert Spitzer, Allen Frances, Irving Kirsch, Joanna Moncrieff, Sami… Continue Reading
Madness Contested: An Outstanding Book
The book Madness Contested has recently been published by PCCS Books. It’s a collection of articles, edited by Steven Coles, Sarah Keenan, and Bob Diamond. The book is a remarkable piece of work. It covers just about every contentious concept in the present “mental illness” debate, and brings to bear an abundance of new insights and… Continue Reading
A Survivor’s Story: The Dark Threads
I have just read The Dark Threads, by Jean Davison (Accent Press Ltd, 2009) It’s autobiographical, and describes with great detail and insight how a young woman of 18 years, whose only problem was acute shyness coupled with a yearning for some meaning in life, made the mistake of visiting a psychiatrist. Jean describes how… Continue Reading
Shock “Treatment” Is Not Safe and Provides Little If Any Benefit
DELICATE THINGS REQUIRE DELICATE HANDLING When I was a teenager, one of my hobbies was making small transistor radios. It sounds complicated, but is well within the reach of an average 15-year-old. You get some magazine articles, learn how to read a circuit, and learn how to use a soldering iron. A transistor is a… Continue Reading
“Prescription Drugs Associated with Reports of Violence Towards Others”
This is the title of a 2010 research report by Thomas J. Moore, Joseph Glenmullen, and Curt D. Furberg, published in PLOS One, an online peer-reviewed journal. The authors of the study searched the FDA’s Adverse Event Reporting System from 2004 to September 2009, and flagged reports indicating violence. They concluded: “Acts of violence towards… Continue Reading
Bad Pharma, by Ben Goldacre
All the awful things you’ve heard and read about the pharmaceutical companies are documented on the pages of Bad Pharma with compelling clarity and abundant references. Dr. Goldacre is a British physician. His primary issue is the safety and efficacy of pharmaceutical products in general medicine, but he has a lot to say about psychiatric… Continue Reading
Another Important Book
De-Medicalizing Misery, edited by Mark Rapley, Joanna Moncrieff, and Jacqui Dillon This book is a collection of papers by various authors, most of whom have experience working with clients and are also associated with prestigious British universities. Here are some quotes: “The architects of modern biological psychiatry have constructed a system that does little… Continue Reading
Another Good Book by Stephen Ray Flora
A few weeks ago I recommended Taking America Off Drugs by Stephen Ray Flora. Well, he has also written The Power of Reinforcement (State University of New York Press, 2004), and this also is well worth reading. Reinforcement is a crucial concept in psychology, and in this book Dr. Flora clarifies the matter and dispels the… Continue Reading
Another Good Book
Taking America Off Drugs by Stephen Ray Flora A few weeks ago, in a comment, A Behaviorist Fan recommended the above book to me. It came out in 2007, and I don’t know how I missed it at the time. But I’ve read it now and it’s a superb piece of work. Definitely a must… Continue Reading