Madness Radio

Is depression a result of poverty? How can community development and economic empowerment affect mental health? Psychology professor Alisha Ali discusses the dangers of turning social problems into medical disorders, including bias in diagnosis, limits of “cultural competency” and “anti-stigma” initiatives, and the experiences of immigrant women. http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/faculty_bios/view/Alisha_AliThe post Depression And Oppression: Alisha Ali first appeared on Madness Radio.

Labor doula and Icarus Project student organizer Annie Robinson talks about her experience in the mental health system as an adolescent, and how it led to her interest in changing medical birthing procedures and becoming a doula. Annie discusses the trauma caused by doctor interventions in childbirth and its lasting effects on both children and mothers. Anniewrobinson(at)gmail(dot)com http://www.dona.org http://www.motherfriendly.orgThe post Birth Trauma w/ Annie Robinson first appeared on Madness Radio.

Internationally known advocate, psychiatric abuse survivor organizer, and clinical psychologist Ronald Bassman discusses and reads from his new book, A Fight To Be: A Psychologist’s Experience From Both Sides of the Locked Door. Ron was diagnosed “paranoid schizophrenic” and left in back wards as a “chronic case,” but has gone on to become a leader in the recovery movement and an inspiring teacher and therapist. http://www.ronaldbassman.comThe post Psychologist and Survivor: Author Ronald Bassman first appeared on Madness Radio.

Marykate Connor, founder of Caduceus Outreach Services in San Francisco, talks about her innovative work helping homeless people with mental health problems. She discusses the criminal justice system, the decline of services since the 1970s, medication policies, poverty, and what led her to create one of the most innovative and effective homelessness programs in the country. marykate_caduceus (at) sbcglobal (dot) net http://www.caduceusoutreachservices.orgThe post Homelessness And Mental Health w/ Marykate Connor first appeared on Madness Radio.

Grace Guyol, diagnosed with bipolar disorder and author of Healing Depression and Bipolar Disorder Without Drugs: Inspiring Stories of Restoring Mental Health Through Natural Therapies, discusses nutrition, supplements, and holistic health care for helping people diagnosed with severe mental illnesses. GGuyol (at) aol.comThe post Holistic Drug Alternatives: Gracelyn Guyol first appeared on Madness Radio.

Psychology professor Randy Frost, author of Buried In Treasures, discusses his work on hoarding, people who collect so much stuff excessively that it disrupts their lives or creates a health or fire hazard, including how to help people without risking adding to the problem through intrusive or drastic intervention. rfrost@smith.eduThe post Hoarding Stuff w/ Randy Frost first appeared on Madness Radio.

Editor Sabrina Chapadjiev discusses the new Seven Stories Press anthology Live Through This: On Creativity and Self Destruction, a rich collection of women artists sharing intimate accounts of cutting, alcoholism, suicide, abuse, madness and other self harm and how it relates to their creativity. Authors include bell hooks, Bonfire Madigan Shive, Patricia Smith, Annie Sprinkle, Inga Muscio, Kate Bornstein, and Nicole Blackman. http://sabrinachap.com/LTTThe post Live Through This Anthology: Sabrina Chapadjiev first appeared on Madness Radio.

Advocate and bipolar survivor Steven Morgan talks about his experiences with spirituality and meditation, including healing through dream work. Listen to the recent profile the New York Times did of Steven at http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/07/16/health/healthguide/TE_BIPOLAR_CLIPS.html and check out Steven’s writing at http://www.vermontrecovery.comThe post Reinventing Bipolar: Steven Morgan first appeared on Madness Radio.

Long time Icarus Project organizer, open source computer software architect, and graduate doctoral student Jeffrey Goins discusses his psychiatric experiences and insights from the world of technology applied to the world of madness. Topics include the Eli Lilly Zyprexa memos scandal and intellectual property rights; freedom in a surveillance society; prophecy and ancient wisdom, and the “end of forgetting.”The post Madness and Technology: Jeffrey Goins first appeared on Madness Radio.

Oregon Mental health counselor Ron Unger discusses his experiences with altered states of consciousness, and how cognitive behavioral therapy can be a useful alternative to medication and mainstream psychiatric treatment. Ron is a longtime organizer with the human rights organization Mindfreedom International, and his website is http://www.recoveryfromschizophrenia.org/blog/The post Cognitive Therapy: Ron Unger first appeared on Madness Radio.