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IF YOU ARE INTERESTED in alternatives to destructive psychiatric therapy, know that these have been available - and used succesfully - for years. Quaker-run asylums in the early 1800s in Philadelphia, New York, and elsewhere, for example disdained medical treatments wholesale: if you were a doctor, you could not gain employment there. Instead of drugs, restraint, and brutality, the Quakers treated their patients with good food, kind words, worthwhile activities, and the acknowledged intention that the patients were at root no different from their caretakers and that given good care, they could confront and vanquish their mental demons successfully.
This notion of a possible cure - and the simple, straightforward means by which it was effected - resulted in improved mental health for patients in a far greater percentage of cases than any drug, shock, or surgical procedure developed since. It worked. Time and again, patients suffering from one or another form of mental instability (in those days, there was no DSM and consequently no alphabet soup of meaningless labels) cured themselves and were able to walk out from the asylums and re-assume useful roles in society - drug-free and without relapse. This is in stark contrast to modern psychiatric treatments, which often result in living vegetables, unable either to care for themselves or to contribute meaningfully to the world at large.
And lest it be said that this tale - documented in summary form in Robert Whitaker's Mad In America - is unscientific and therefore invalid, know that it was investigated by the Director of Schizophrenia Studies at the National Institute of Mental Health, Dr. Loren Mosher, beginning in 1968 and lasting for several years thereafter. Mosher set up a residence facility in Northern California that delivered drug-free, empathetic care and replicated the results of the Quakers: his efforts have since been echoed by researchers in Scandinavia and elsewhere in Europe.
In most of the "developed" world, of course, treatments consisting of kindness make no money for drugmakers and consequently get little public notice. The fact remains, however, that recovery rates from mental illness in third-world nations, lacking drugs, electroshock and psychosurgery, is significantly better than recovery rates from mental illness in the US, Western Europe, and Japan [see "Schizophrenia: Manifestations, Incidence and Course in Different Cultures, a World Health Organization Ten-Country Study", reported in Psychological Medicine, supplement 20 (1992): 1-95].
Are alternatives to psychiatry viable? You bet they are. For everyone except the psychiatrists.
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IF YOU'RE CONCERNED about the influence of psychiatry in society, you have every right to be so. There is a problem here, and realizing that a problem exists is a vital first step, without which no forward progress can be made at all. If you're just coming to the conclusion that something's not quite right with the mental health care picture, welcome to the club. You've got lots of company.
Your most important next step is to educate yourself as to the extent of the problem so that you can ask the necessary hard questions of those who would enslave you. I'd suggest reading "Psychiatry, the Ultimate Betrayal" by Bruce Wiseman and "Mad in America" by Robert Whitaker for starters: these should both be available in your local library or from your favorite bookseller. Meanwhile, browse the Reading Room and my collection of web sites for additional material. Depending on your own personal interests and fields of expertise, you're bound to find something worth learning about.
As your familiarity with the dangers of psychiatry increases, you'll also become more aware of the necessity of knowing as much as you can about the situation - "know your enemy" applies here - so that you can protect yourself and your loved ones and begin to do your part to nullify the effects of psychiatry in society.
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IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE who is under psychiatric influence, you may have a responsibility to that person. It's easy to look the other way when someone you know does something that's hard to confront. It's not happening to you, so you really don't have to worry about it all that much.
Unfortunately, the repercussions of involvement with psychiatry are destructive, not only to the individual involved, but to everyone in his of her sphere of contacts and in a very real sense, to the entire society in which he or she lives. People under psychiatric care typically relinquish responsiblity for their actions - after all, in US law, one can be found "innocent by reason of insanity" - and so become able to unleash untold destruction on their surroundings with little or no provocation.
Should you be concerned if someone you know is under psychiatric influence? Absolutely. What can you do? That depends. You may be up against the person himself, who may have made the decision to seek psychiatric help and will now, having made that decision, not want to admit he made a mistake. And you'll doubtless be up against the psychiatrist himself, who is making good money by perpetrating his particular professional fraud.
Nevertheless, an attempt should be made to bring the person to realize that a chemical lobotomy won't cure anything, any more than a physical lobotomy will, and that continued involvement with psychiatric practitioners will almost always result in negative results.
Appeal to friendship, to sanity, to whatever in life your friend deems worthwhile, and gently bring him to the realization that non-psychiatric therapy is almost always better. Use whatever written and online resources you need.
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IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE who's considering psychiatric therapy, you may have a responsibility to fulfill. If that person chooses to participate in psychiatry, it might be hard to admit, later, than they made a mistake. That's why those who are considering choosing psychiaric therapy should be gently educated as to the real motives and activities of psychiatrists and the typical results of psychiatric treatment, before they choose to go that route. After all, placing your sanity in the hands of someone whose motivation comes - at best - from the financial support of drugmakers could very well have consequences that are fatal, not merely inconvenient.
Psychiatry as an institution has invested a very great deal of time and money in the project of making sure that the Man on the Street views his friendly local headshrinker as "the" expert in the field of the mind. Such is the volume of voices shouting this mantra that it's easy to go along. But a single look at the consequences of psychiatric meddling would give any sane person cause to hesitate before committing himself to such a fate.
If you know someone who is considering undergoing psychiatric therapy, do them a favor. Do them the biggest favor anyone has ever done for them. Show them the evidence, and then show them what alternatives are available. Don't allow your friend - or anyone, for that matter - to become another psychiatric victim.
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IF YOU'RE CONSIDERING SEEING A PSYCHIATRIST, you may want to take another look at your options. Whatever your situation, you are not in a position where your only choice is putting yourself under the care of someone who cannot help you.
I would urge you to explore alternatives. There are many, but your local psychiatrist will not recommend them because they put no money in his pocket. On the other hand, alternatives to psychiatry tend to be gentle, humane, simple, inexpensive, and - check this out - effective.
Remember, once you get shocked, or lobotomized, or addicted to some "cure" that numbs you out and dumbs you down, the road back is much, much harder. Choose the right direction now, for the sake of those who you love and of those who love you.
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IF YOU'RE CURRENTLY SEEING A PSYCHIATRIST, know that the psychiatric profession has a problem. On the one hand, psychiatrists like to let people think that they know all about the human mind. On the other hand, they openly acknowledge that there are no cures for mental illness, that all that can be done is suppression of symptoms, and that one's life, after therapy, boils down to learning to live with "disease"-imposed limitations.
The fact of the matter, of course, is that mental illness can, in a large majority of cases, be cured to the point where the patient can rejoin society as a FULLY functional member, without drugs, without electroshock, and without fear of relapse. This has been conclusively demonstrated many times in history and verified experimentally in very recent times in an exhaustive ten-nation study by the World Health Organization.
"Well now," you ask, "Don't the psychiatrists know about that? Would they not do those things if they were in fact true?"
No, not necessarily.
You see, psychiatrists get paid a lot of money to prescribe pills, and if pills were not necessary, then they'd be out of business. That's what it really boils down to: it has nothing whatsoever to do with curing anyone of anything.
So what do you do if you're in the hands of a psychiatrist? First, educate yourself to the facts of your situation. Are you improving, or are you being numbed by drugs? Are you more capable now than you were when your therapy started? Don't answer me, my friend - answer yourself. It's your life we're talking about.
Second, educate yourself as to alternatives to psychiatric treatment. Consult a competent non-psychiatric medical professional who is familiar with the effects of nutrition, diet, and environmental factors on mental well-being. Many so-called psychiatric "illnesses" are very easily remedied by a simple change of diet, environment, or habit.
Then, if you decide to change your treatment program, be sure to follow your (non-psychiatric) doctor's advice. Some psychiatric medications are classified as Class II narcotics and these, along with most others, are extremely difficult to just stop taking.
Once you've switched to a non-psychiatric treatment program, stay with it until you get results. If a simple change of diet helps your condition, then this should be gained fairly quickly.
And lastly, tell others. If you know anyone else who is in a similar situation, tell them your story. Help them get well, too. Don't fall for the "I went to college so I'm an expert" line: what you know is true for you, and if it helped you, then you should tell others about it.
Okay?
Okay.
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IF YOU'VE BEEN TO A PSYCHIATRIST and come to the conclusion that it's not doing you any good, realize that most mental problems yield to simple solutions. Stopping psychiatric therapy - a good idea - should be done with the assistance of a competent non-psychiatric physician, since withdrawal from psychiatric medication can often be dangerous and difficult to attempt without help.
At the same time, the actual cause of your condition should be detemined. Often, it's simply a matter of diet, environment, or living habit: a searching non-psychiatric medical examination will discover exactly what it is. Once the root cause of the condition is established, then a program can be worked out to handle whatever that cause is.
The fly in the ointment, unfortunately, is that the effects of psychiatric medications you may have taken are often long-lasting and lead to side-effects that no one may have bothered to tell you about. Still, with attention to diet, environment, and lifestyle, many of these effects can be overcome as well.
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IF YOU HAVE SURVIVED PSYCHIATRIC TREATMENT, congratulations! Very well done! Depending on your circumstances, you may wish to do your part in educating others, helping them shake off psychiatric "help", or participate in other ways to bring about the end of this scourge. No one should have to endure the kind of abuse that's dished out daily in psychiatric wards and psychiatrists' offices, and all who have dealings with psychiatrists should know the exact nature of this beast. I would encourage you to take some part in the effort to bring about a greater understanding of the evils of psychiatry, in whatever manner and from whatever forum you deem appropriate.
Don't forget, you have many, many allies.
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IF YOU WANT TO TELL OTHERS about your experience, you've taken a tremendous step in the direction of greater sanity. Why? Because the more people know the true story of psychiatry and what kind of results are produced by psychiatry, the more people will seek - and find - effective alternatives.
You will find many who have made the decision to "go public", but there are many, many more who cannot because they no longer have control of their creative faculties, or their will, or their sanity. If you are to speak, then you must also be a voice for some of those uncounted, unheard multitudes who continue to suffer the "cures" of psychiatry in silence.
Fortunately, you have many allies in your fight. Scan the popular press and you'll find many who are eager to help you make your story known. Check this web site and search for "psychiatry". You'll find the names of those who have written articles critical of psychiatry: those people will be able to refer you elsewhere if they're too busy to help you themselves.
Alternatively, check here - the Citizens Commission on Human Rights is the premier psychiatric watchdog group active in the field and again, if they can't help you directly, they can certainly steer you in the right direction.
Or check others who have written about their experiences. You'll find allies, friends, and willing helpers to assist you in your own crusade.
Since I first put up this site, I have received many communications from psychiatric victims and brave survivors who saw fit to tell their story at least to me. If I am given permission, I will occasionally post their stories here for others to read. Feel free to add your voice on this forum or another of your choosing. But do speak out. Your voice is one that others need to hear.
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IF YOU KNOW OF CRIMES committed by a psychiatrist, you're in an interesting position. On the one hand, your opposition is large, extremely well-funded, well-organized, and they've already likely labeled you with one of their bogus "diagnoses".
On the other hand, you're shooting fish in a barrel. Any psychiatrist who administers electroshock, performs lobotomies, or issues prescriptions for mind-damaging drugs and who is aware that such treatments do not work has committed fraud at best. And there is absolutely nothing in the world that those criminals fear more than the bright light of truth shining down on them.
Many psychiatrists have been successfully prosecuted in civil as well as criminal court for things that they did in the guise of "helping others". Many of these psychiatrists are even now rotting behind bars or paying millions of dollars in restitution to those who they defrauded. Many more still need to come to terms with the fact that what they're doing amounts, in many cases, to flagrant criminality.
If you're interested in bringing a psychiatrist to justice, go here to start.
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IF YOU WANT TO WORK ACTIVELY to combat psychiatry, welcome to the front lines. If you're willing to confront taking the battle to the enemy, here are a few tips.
First, don't do it alone. The effects that you create are multiplied many-fold if you align your efforts with those of others joined in the fight. No one heeds a single picket sign, but bring a hundred and you'll have television crews ready to carry your message to the world. Similarly, your enemy will find it easy to silence a single voice, but let that voice become a chorus and they'll likely run and hide.
Second, know that others are already doing what you want to do. They'll know what works and what doesn't, so listen to them and do what's been proven successful.
Third, if you have significant information about psychiatrists, share it with those who can best use it. They know how to present information to the media, how to testify before Congressional committees, and how to get legislation passed because they've done it before. They are your allies.
And last, don't forget that all psychiatists are not enemies. Many originally wanted nothing more than to help people, and that's a good thing. Many see how their profession has become nothing but a tool for the drugmakers and would want to see it reformed to the point where real help is provided. Your real enemy is a viewpoint: the viewpoint that man is an animal, incapable of betterment and doomed to a life of living with limitations. This is the viewpoint espoused by psychiatric training centers and hospital facilities and championed - yes - by many psychiatrists. But keep in mind that it is this viewpoint, not the shrinks themselves, that must be eradicated.
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IF YOU ARE A MEDICAL DOCTOR,, be aware, first of all, that the pressure you feel to suppress symptoms by prescribing psychiatric medication comes from people who owe no allegiance whatsoever to the Hippocratic Oath. The pressure you feel comes from drug-makers who make money when you opt for the quick fix.
Be aware also, that despite Federal oversight, many of these psychiatric medications underwent clinical trials that yielded results that were dubious at best. Significant adverse reactions were often overlooked and time spent in trials was shortened, all in the interest of profits. Know that since these drugs were approved for marketing, those same adverse reactions, now headline-making, have skyrocketed.
Lastly, know well that your training gives you a much deeper insight into what makes the human body work. This implies that you also know what makes it not work, and it gives you a wide array of analytical and diagnostic tools to bring to bear on your patient's situation. According to many, the majority of mental problems stem not from chemical imbalances in the brain, but rather from nutritional deficiencies, dietary oddities, environmental factors, and - often - the simple lack of a sympathetic ear.
All of these causes are real, and each is eminently treatable without drugs, electroshock, or lobotomy. You do not need to chemically lobotomize anyone so he becomes more tractable - all you need to do is practice your craft well and thoroughly, and watch peoples' conditions improve.
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IF YOU WORK in an associated field - law, insurance, education, politics, and so forth - you are at the point of attack where psychiatric influence is being pushed into society the hardest and where the most powerful defense must be mounted.
Above all, you should inform yourself of the results that occur when psychiatists are allowed to infiltrate your field. Notice the nose-dive that scholastic aptitude test scores took after 1963, when psychology first gained a major foothold in the American public school system. Become aware of the rate of insurance fraud convictions among psychiatrists - the highest of any medical field. Realize that when two psychiatrists hold diametrically opposed positions as to someone's sanity in a court of law, what's being demonstrated is that neither one of them knows what he's talking about. Watch the appropriations for psychiatric research get spent on totally useless projects that have no possible relevance to any healing art.
If you doubt that such things exist to be seen, send for the documentation, which proves conclusively each of the point I've made above. It's not my opinion, people: it's documented fact.
Realize, next, that the stronger your certainty, the more effective you can be in neutralizing psychiatry's insidious efforts to advance into your sphere of expertise. Cultivate contacts who know the score and continue to educate yourself as to the actual state of affairs in your profession. And don't waver when they dangle what amounts to bribes in your face. Recognize what they're doing for what it is: an attempt by a criminal element to legitimize their criminality, at your expense.
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IF YOU WORK DIRECTLY with a psychiatrist or a psychiatric office, realize that you have a responsibility to yourself and to all others with whom you share this planet. You have a choice of whether or not to support an effort that leads to destruction, to enslavement, to ruin.
This may be difficult to accept, but it is true nonetheless. For proof, all you need to do is listen to those who have been victimized, read about those whose lives have been destroyed, and watch as the influence of the psychiatric viewpoint erodes the very foundations on which this civilization was built.
If you work for a psychiatrist, realize that every day when you report to work, you're helping forward an agenda that leads straight down the tubes, for all concerned. Once you know this, then you can choose to continue this action or to break away and do something more worthwhile. There's lots of other things to do, especially if you have a genuine interest in helping others. Alternatives to psychiatry exist and are gaining ground daily. These are worthy of support, and if you decide to support them, they will welcome you with open arms.
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IF YOU ARE A PSYCHIATRIST and you believe that your profession could use a little psychotherapy, know that you're in the minority. You may find yourself targeted as one of the "bad guys", but if you're sincere in your belief, you should be able to make that fact known.
The field of mental healing does need therapy, and if you choose to be one of those brave enough to provide it, your services will be sought and your opinion valued. If you continue to practice, make it known that you deliver non-drug therapy. Refuse to condone electroshock and lobotomy. Seek alternatives to psychopharmaceutical "solutions". Work with patients with a care to preserving their rights in a system that's geared 100% against them. Speak up for them, treat them with kindness, and you'll be more than repaid in the actual good you do.
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IF YOU ARE A PSYCHIATRIST and you support the "man-is-an-animal" viewpoint, you might ask yourself some searching questions. For instance, would you undergo the therapy which you prescribe to your patients? Would you take the drugs? Would you consent to lobotomy or electroshock?
Why not?
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I AM NEITHER a lawyer nor a medical practitioner. What I say is my opinion, and what I give is my advice. As an inhabitant of this planet, I'm just as entitled to do those things as anyone else. If you want legal advice, talk to a lawyer. If you want medical advice, see a doctor. If you want psychiatric advice, read this site again. Every page. That's my advice to you.
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