Madness Radio

Why are so many children being diagnosed bipolar? Do medications treat disease – or just keep children under control? What else can parents do when faced with difficult behavioral problems? Sharna Olfman, Psychology Professor at Point Park University and editor of the book Bipolar Children, discusses the growing social and economic pressures to label children bipolar. http://dai.ly/epbcoO http://scr.bi/yFfoRNThe post Bipolar Children: Sharna Olfman first appeared on Madness Radio.

Shamans of the Amazon jungle heal the spirit by communicating with plants and singing people back to health. Can indigenous medicine, including the psychedelic ayahuasca, help anxiety, depression, and addiction? What do healers of Peru have to teach us about mental health? Metsa Niwue, a curandero who has studied for more than sixteen years with the Shipibo and Quechua Lamista peoples, discusses the promise and potential dangers of traditional Amazonian plant medicine for the west. (transcript) http://vegetalismo.org http://www.neip.info/upd_blob/0000/982.pdfThe post Amazonian Healing: Metsa Niwue first appeared on Madness Radio.

Could a young man’s overwhelming visions of Christ and apocalypse be a creative response to life trauma, rather than signs of paranoid schizophrenia? Does madness unfold differently depending on whether it is supported – or feared? Irish activist and punk musician Grainne Humphrys, herself a survivor of an extreme state, discusses the campaign for the release of former partner John Hunt. John has been incarcerated and drugged against his will since 2005, sparking international outcry. http://freejohn-loverevolutionary.blogspot.com http://www.mindfreedomireland.com http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQUKdaRaJNw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVjgRUI-IM0The post Chemical Crucifixion: Grainne Humphrys first appeared on Madness Radio.

How can we truly help combat veterans facing the aftermath of war? Is veteran trauma a sign of mental illness, or a healthy response to violent situations? Are medications and therapy the answer? Paula Caplan, author of When Johnny and Jane Come Marching Home: How All of Us Can Help Veterans, discusses healing the wounds of war by listening to the stories of veterans in our communities. http://whenjohnnyandjanecomemarching.weebly.com http://www.paulajcaplan.netThe post Healing Veterans: Paula Caplan first appeared on Madness Radio.

Why are nearly a third of all elders in nursing homes given anti-psychotic drugs, despite life threatening side effects? Are medications being used as chemical restraints? Can nursing homes be places of dignity — or should they be abolished? Carole Hayes-Collier was diagnosed schizophrenic at 19 and left to a lifetime of hospitalization. When she recovered, the abuses she witnessed inspired her to join the Gray Panthers and dedicate her life to elder rights and mental health. http://graypanthers.org http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119672919018312521.html http://www.canhr.org/stop-druggingThe post Dignity of Elders: Carole Hayes-Collier first appeared on Madness Radio.

How common are suicidal feelings? Is a psychiatric illness behind suicidal despair — or a meaningful and even spiritual life crisis? Does forced hospitalization really provide help? Suicide attempt survivor David Webb, author of Thinking About Suicide: Contemplating and Comprehending the Urge to Die, discusses how speaking openly about suicidal feelings, rather than reacting with panic and fear, is the best form of suicide prevention. http://www.jungcircle.com/DWebb.html http://thinkingaboutsuicide.orgThe post Talking About Suicidal Feelings: David Webb first appeared on Madness Radio.

What is reality? Why do people in extreme states feel connected to the universe, and experience uncanny and even supernatural events? Does quantum physics have something to teach us about madness? What if therapists were like indigenous tribal shamans, entering into clients’ “psychotic” worlds as if stepping into a dream? Arnold Mindell studied with pioneering scientists Richard Feynman and Norbert Wiener and then became a Jungian therapist and founder of Process Oriented Psychology. He discusses his more than 40 years of work with individuals and groups, including people diagnosed with psychosis, and the ancient belief in a purposeful dreaming reality behind everyday events. http://www.aamindell.net/blog/books#arny http://www.processwork.org/ http://www.sonic.net/~billkirn/mindell_interview.htmlThe post Physics, Dreaming and Extreme States: Arnold Mindell first appeared on Madness Radio.

How did pharmaceutical giant Glaxo Smith Kline create “depression” in Japan — and a billion dollar market for its anti-depressant drug Paxil? Why do people diagnosed with schizophrenia recover more in Tanzania than they do in the US? Can western-style psychotherapy help tsunami survivors in Sri Lanka? Ethan Watters, author of Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche, discusses how mental disorders are cultural products, defined in the US and then exported around the world. http://www.crazylikeus.comThe post Exporting Mental Disorders: Ethan Watters first appeared on Madness Radio.

Can therapy reach people in extreme states of “psychosis” — without using medications? Do we need to give a diagnosis to help someone? Why are counselors afraid to listen to their “mad” clients? New York psychotherapist and filmmaker Daniel Mackler discusses how be defied social work training in his work with people labeled with schizophrenia and bipolar, and what he learned from recent visits to successful treatment alternatives in Northern Europe. Daniel is the filmmaker of Take These Broken Wings and co-author with Matthew Morrissey of A Way Out of Madness. http://www.iraresoul.comThe post Therapy for Psychosis: Daniel Mackler first appeared on Madness Radio.

Seamstress Agnes Richter was locked away in a mental asylum in the 1890s, and was so determined to have a voice that she embroidered her personal story onto the jacket she wore on the ward. What is the hidden history of people writing their own narratives of going insane? How important is it to listen to the experiences of “mentally ill” people? Is there meaning in madness? Gail Hornstein, Mt. Holyoke College professor and author of Agnes’s Jacket: A Psychologist’s Search for the Meanings of Madness, discusses the work of the Hearing Voices Movement in the UK, peer run support communities including Freedom Center in the US, and why professionals should let patients speak for themselves. http://www.gailhornstein.com http://bit.ly/aG9bnSThe post Meanings of Madness: Gail Hornstein first appeared on Madness Radio.