More Books -
www.successfulschizophrenia.org/resource.htmlIn The Grip of Paranoid Schizophrenia - One Man's Metamorphosis through Psychosis
"Non-fiction autobiographical account by the author of his surviving 30+ years with Paranoid Schizophrenia. From onset and early years of illness through his eight-year delusion that he was John Lennon in a CIA covert operation that he was back from the dead, this book shows the intimate workings of a psychotic mind..... Includes portions of his U.S. Secret Service file and other documentation showing the story is true in how this untreated illness affects society, as well as the individual. Contains factual accounts of how the author finds wellness. An excellent, intelligent, and insightful look at the mysterious bizarre illness of Paranoid Schizophrenia."
Madness, Heresy and the Rumor of Angels: The Revolt Against the Mental Health System -
Seth Farber has collected seven true stories of individuals insulted and injured by themental health system, individuals who then fought back, broke free, and rebuilt their lives. He challenges the delusional belief system known as psychiatry.
Welcome to the Dance: Caffeine Allergy - A Masked Cerebral Allergy and Progressive Toxic Dementia -
Welcome to the Dance explains the biochemical imbalances caused by caffeine allergy and caffeine poisoning that are responsible for the diagnosis of mental illness, the symptoms of so-called mental illness. It tells the authors story and shares stories of other persons allergic to caffeine.
Exuberance: The Passion for Life -
Expert in the arena of mood and temperament, Jamison (An Unquiet Mind; Night Falls Fast; Touched with Fire) detours from her usual analysis of mood disorders in favor of the livelier side of personality. She examines the contagious nature of exuberance, which she defines as "a psychological state characterized by high mood and high energy," offering diverse examples that range from John Muir and FDR to Mary Poppins and Peter Pan. Having in mind the simply put idea that "those who are exuberant act," the author details the energetic efforts of scientists, naturalists, politicians and even her meteorologist father. (Review courtsey of Publishers Weekly.)
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason -
"Sam Harris delivers a startling analysis of the clash between reason and religion in the modern world. He offers a vivid, historical tour of our willingness to suspend reason in favor of religious beliefs--even when these beliefs inspire the worst of human atrocities. While warning against the encroachment of organized religion into world politics, Harris draws on insights from neuroscience, philosophy, and Eastern mysticism to deliver a call for a truly modern foundation for ethics and spirituality that is both secular and humanistic."
a Beautiful Mind -
a Beautiful Mind is a biography of John Forbes Nash, a mathematicla genius, prodigy and legend by the age of thirty. Nash suffered a catastrophic mental breakdown, slipping into insanity for nearly three decades, but miraculously recovered and went on to win a Nobel prize in economics in 1994. Read this amazing story....
Models of Madness -
Models of Madness summarizes the research showing that hallucinations and delusions are understandable reactions to life events and circumstances rather than symptoms of a biologically-based illness or genetic predisposition. Twenty-three international contributors: • critique the "medical model" of madness • examine the dominance of the "illness" approach to understanding madness, from historical and economic perspectives*• document the adverse role of drug companies • outline a range of research-based psychosocial treatment approaches, and*• identify the urgency and possibility of prevention of madness.
Warning: Psychiatry Can Be Hazardous to Your Mental Health -
In the last 20 years, psychiatry has changed completely. The vast majority of psychiatrists who used to counsel, now gather together lists of symptoms, such as depression, anxiety and compulsions, wrongly call them mental illnesses and claim they should be treated with the "brain drugs"-- Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, and Ritalin among them. Compassion, counseling and mental health have been reduced to tiny blips on the current psychiatric screen. This book brings together Dr. Glasser's ideas about mental illness and what you can do for yourself.
How to Become A Schizophrenic: The Case Against Biological Psychiatry, 3rd edition -
How to Become a Schizophrenic is divided into three parts. In Part I the author utilizes the ideas of Harry Stack Sullivan, Theodore Lidz, Gregory Bateson, R.D. Scott and P.L. Ashworth, W. Ronald D. Fairbairn, Anton Boisen and others--as well as his own experiences-- to construct a comprehensive theory which explains how and why people become schizophrenic.
Trials of the Visionary Mind: Spiritual Emergency and the Renewal Process -
This book examines what the acute "psychotic" experience stirs up in the psyche and how to empathetically respond. Understanding the function of mythic themes is reached through the author's historic investigation into myth and ritual of prophets and social reformers in various ages and parts of the world.
Mad in America -
Medical journalist Robert Whitaker reaveals an astounding truth: Schizophrenics in the United States currently fare worse than patients in the world's poorest countries, and quite possibly worse than asylum patients did in the early 19th century. Whitaker argues that modern treatments for the mentally ill are just old medicine in new bottles, and that we as a society are deeply deluded about their efficacy.
Punishing the Patient: How Psychiatrists Misunderstand and Mistreate Schizophrenia -
The underlying nature of schizophrenia is shrouded in mystery. There are no laboratory tests available to confirm a diagnosis, and psychiatrists have many divergent and contradictory theories about its cause. The central, confronting question posed by Punishing the Patient is whether people with schizophrenic systems have a right to refuse psychiatric treatment. This book is bound to lead to a re-examination of schizophrenia by patients, ex-patients, parents, psychiatrists, politicians, and the State.
Mistaken Identity: Surviving tragedy and misdiagnosis -
"When tragedy strikes... what happens if, when you seek the help you need, you are misdiagnosed and allowed to suffer from depression and anxiety for years on end while further lossses accumulate? This is what I experienced as a result of analytical psychotherapy and it's a timely warning...."
Blaming Our Genes: Why Mental Illness Can't Be Inherited -
After searching the whole human genome over and over agian for years, not one single gene has ever been found that causes any mental illness. How then have scientists convinced the public and fooled themselves that the inhereitance model of mental illness is valid? This book tells you how and why.
Rape of the Soul: How the Chemical Imbalance Model of Modern Psychiatry has Failed its Patients -
Using scientifically sound evidence, Rape of the Soul convincingly demonstrates that NO chemical imbalances exist for any so called mental illness, and that psychiatric drugs do not cure mental illness. Instead, this book explains how drugs "work" by blocking out emotional pain, thereby robbing the soul of its fullest potential for healing and wholeness. Also clearly demonstrated is the fact that psychotherapy is superior to drug treatment for all disorders, including schizophrenia.
The Bridge Between Two Worlds: A Shaman's View of Schizophrenia and Acute Sensitivity -
Not anyone can be a shaman, however we are all able to walk the path of the shaman and gain valuable tools to assist us in surviving the more dark and challenging times of our lives. The Path of the Shaman teaches us to stay balanced and grounded on this earth, to honour and understand the laws of nature and to keep our core self whole. Walking the Shamans path is a wonderful adventure once you learn the laws and tools to keep you protected whilst on your journey.
Blaming the Brain: The TRUTH About Drugs and Mental Health -
"Valenstein reveals how, beginning in the 50s, the accidental discovery of a few mood-altering drugs stimulated an enormous interst in psychopharmacology, resulting in staggering growth and profits for the pharmaceutical industry. He lays bare the commercial motives of the drug companies and their huge stake in expanding their markets. "
PCCS Books listing of Critical Psychology titles -
Escape From Psychiatry -
ESCAPE FROM PSYCHIATRY is a very powerful story! I am awed by Clover's strength and courage in being able to go back and relive all of her experiences of psychiatric abuse in order to write about what she went through. Her story is very important because it shows how the core of so-called "schizophrenia" often traces back to feeling desperate for love and yet very afraid of it. Mostly, however, her story documents how the pessimistic expectations that psychiatrists have for people who are extreme mental cases can become self- fulfilling prophecies for people who remain trapped as "patients" in the "mental health" system. When Clover found different people who gave her kindness, love, and hope, she recovered and healed. This is the kind of story that most psychiatrists can't stand hearing about because it shows how they contribute to the very conditions they claim they are trying to cure, and it shows that their beliefs about "chronic mental cases" can be totally wrong. --Al Siebert, PhD (Resiliency Center Director)
Mental Illness: Opposing Viewpoints -
"Renowned psychiatrist Peter Breggin documents how psychiatric drugs and electroshock disable the brain. He presents the latest scienttific information on potential brain dysfunction and dangerous behaviorial abnormalitites produced by the most widely used drugs including Prozac, Xanax, Halcion, Ritalin, and lithium."
Users and Abusers of Psychiatry -
"A radically different critical account of the day-to-day practices of psychiatry. Using real-life examples and her own experience as a clinical psychologist, the author argues that the traditional way of treating mental breakdown can often exacerbate people's original difficulties leaving them powerless, disabled aned even more distressed."
Reclaiming Our Children: A Healing Plan for a Nation in Crisis -
"From recasting our attitudes as parents and getting more involved in schools as volunteers, to restructuring class size, limiting homework, and fostering honest dialog about the pressures in our society, Reclaiming Our Children shows us the way to lasting peace with and among our children."
Your Drug May be Your Problem: How and Why to Stop Taking Psychiatric Medications -
"Psychiatric drugs are given upbeat names like antidepressent, tranquilizer, sleeping pill, stimulant, and mood stabalizer. They are prescribed to more than 20 million Americans to help with problem called 'depression,' 'anxiety,' 'panic disorder,' and 'attention deficit hyperactive disorder; But can these drugs do you more harm than good? Can they make you feel worse than you did before you took them or when you stop?"
I'll Carry the Fork: Recovering a Life After Brain Injury -
Death didn't find Kara Swanson the day the minivan careened into her own car, but the head injury she sustained changed her life forever. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is not a laughing matter, but the author presents her painful tale in an Erma Bombeck-like style that wraps the hard information in humor and gentle playfulness. Alongside Kara's inspirational sense of humor, medical and legal professionals offer technical input and practical advice to those dealing with or helping someone through the aftermath of brain injury. This funny and informative book will help countless others find their way to a new life, and know that they are not alone on the journey.
Natural Healing for Schizophrenia: A Compendium of Nutritional Methods -
An overview of the wide varieties of conditions which contribute to, cause, or are often mislabelled as schizophrenia. A reported 80-85% of individuals given nutritional treatment for biotype-based biochemical balances recover, or are greatly improved. Results gleaned from over 40 years of research by hundreds of physicians. This book is a must for any library.
Reality Therapy in Action -
"Sit with Dr. Glasser as he counsels a variety of clients and reveals the explicit core of his established counseling method, sharing his thoughts with you as the counseling proceeds."
We Don't Live Under NORMAL CONDITIONS -
In June of 1996, six people with histories of depression were brought together to discuss their experiences with, and opinions about "mental disorder." The result is a unique cinematic experience that will change the way you think about "normal."
Dancing with God Through the Storm: Mysticism and Mental Illness
Jennifer Elam, a licensed psychologist, describes her experiences hearing people's stories about God. She herself has had a personal experience that by some measures could have been considered psychotic. Read her letter to Successful Schizophrenia and why she has stopped practicing psychology until she can find a way to treat them without doing harm.
A Wrongful Death: One Child's Fatal Encounter with Public Health and Private Greed -
A book about the suicide of a teenage girl, Christy Scheck, in a mental hospital run by National Medical Enterprises.
Brain Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry: Drugs, Electroshock... -
"Renowned psychiatrist Peter Breggin documents how psychiatric drugs and electroshock disable the brain. He presents the latest scienttific information on potential brain dysfunction and dangerous behaviorial abnormalitites produced by the most widely used drugs including Prozac, Xanax, Halcion, Ritalin, and lithium."
Toxic Psychiatry: Why Therapy, Empathy, and Love Must Replace the Drugs, Electroshock and Biochemical Theories of the New Psychiatry
The War Against Children
Beyond Conflict
The Wildest Colts make the Best Horses -
"This timely book calls for a halt to the epidemic drugging of young people in our society today for so called ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)." What to do when your child is labeled a problem by the schools. Includes "All About Children": Selected quotations compiled by Leonard Roy Frank.
They Say You're Crazy: How the World's Most Powerful Psychiatrists Decide Who's Normal -
"How are decisions made about who is normal? As a former consultant to those who construct the 'bible of the mental-health professions,' the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), Paula Caplan offers an insider's look at the process by which decisions about abnormality are made. Cutting through the professional psycho-babble, Caplan clearly assesses the astonishing extent to which scientific methods and evidence are disregarded as the Handbook is developed. A must read for consumers and practitioners of mental-health services."
Psychiatric Nursing: Ethical Strife -
Psychiatric nursing is fraught with more ethical dilemmas than any other area of nursing practice. This collection of reflections on ethical issues for psychiatric nurses and society features 'real life' everyday experiences of practitioners, and breaks new ground in the field of psychiatric nursing ethics. Features both new and seasoned writers with moving experiences to share. Read more about Psychiatric Nursing: Ethical Strife.
Insanity Inside Out: The personal story behind the landmark Supreme Court decision -
Read the story behind the late Ken Donaldson, the namesake to the Kenneth Donaldson Archives for the Autobiographies of Psychiatric Survivors. "Insanity Inside Out is a tragic story of fifteen wasted years, stolen from Donaldson as a result of involuntary commitment to a Florida state mental hospital. For fifteen years he sought to procure his release, to assert his sanity, to demand his constitutional rights."
Cruel Compassion: Psychiatric Control of Society's Unwanted
Re-examining psychiatric interventions from a cultural-historical and political-econmic perspective, Szasz demonstrates that the main problem that faces mental health policy makers today is adult dependency. Millions of Americans, diagnosed as mentally ill are drugged and confined by doctors for non-criminal conduct, go legally unpunished for the crimes they committ, and are supported by the state--not because they are sick, but because they are unproductive and unwanted.
Insanity: The Idea and Its Consequences
The Manufacture of Madness: A Comparative Study of the Inquisition and the Mental Health Movement -
Dr. Szasz examines the similarities between the Inquisition and institutional psychiatry.
Exploring Madness: Experience, Theory, and Research, Second Edition -
"Innovative and radical approaches to the investigation, understanding and treatment of madness. Included are personal and literary accounts, theroetical viewpoints, and research findings."
From Placebo to Panacea: Putting Psychiatric Drugs to the Test =
This new book contains devastating critiques of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), of drug studies and the placebo effect. This overview contains broad yet pointed critique of the various types of biases introduced by drug company funding of drug research.
Shock Treatment Is Not Good For Your Brain: A Neurologist Challenges the Psychiatric Myth -
"Seven painful first-hand interviews with victims of electroshock thereapy. With Dr. Friedberg's guidance, patients tell in their own words the frightening effects--pain, memory loss, confusion and fear--of this throwback to the Inquisition."
Schizo T-A-N-G-O: Disarming Madness
Wisdom, Madness and Folly -
The Far Side of Madness -
by John Weir Perry
"First published in 1974, this pioneering work reframes acute psychotic episodes in the context of visionary experience and describes the resulting innovative methods of handling them. This book recounts experiences of individuals undergoing visionary 'upheavals,' discussing at length the sense of messianic callings and programs, the renewal of the self and its relation to creativity, and finally a philosophy and method of treatment."
Going Crazy: The Radical Therapy of R.D. Laing and Others -
"Radical approaches to the art of soul healing from the experts. R.D. Laing, David Cooper, Claude Steiner, Joe Berke, Antonin Artaud et al debunk the sacred profession of psychiatry as practiced--and usurped--by today's medical Establishment."
Kundalini - Psychosis or Transcendence -
"Kundalini is a psychophisiological transformation process, which, under suitable guidance and conditions, can lead to psychological balance, strength, and maturity. If the process is not recognized when it occurs, its proper development may be inhibited, and its psychotic-like features exaggerated."
Schizophrenia: Medical Diagnosis or Moral Verdict? -
"This book breaks with the traditional uncritical acceptance of the 'disease model' of assumed schizophrenic behavior, and demonstrates its failure to explain the basis of norm-violating behavior. The authors provide a systematic analysis of contemporary schizophrenia research from paradigm to model to hypothesis, including the history of the 'disease model' and the origin of schizophrenia as a metaphoric concept."
Labeling Madness -
"How many people are sane but remain confined in our mental institutions because their sanity is unrecognized? And how many patients might be sane outside the psychiatric hospital but seem insane in it? This book shows dramatically that we can no longer treat the mentally ill as social lepers. Instead we must find more effective viewpoints and procedures."
Labeling Deviant Behavior: Its Sociological Implications -
"Schur studies the labeling aspect of mental-health to help place it in proper sociological perspective. He incorporates such questions as what does labeling assert and what does it not assert; its actual and potential contributions; its limitations; and how it fits in with other major approaches to the analysis of deviance and control."
Blue Jolts: True Stories from the Cuckoo's Nest -
"How does it feel to be labeled 'insane': to be institutionalized against your will; to awaken in a barren hospital room, drowsy and twitching from medication; to watch helplessly as the attendant turns the lock outside your door; to be denied employment for carrying the stigma of 'mental illness'? For thousands of people entering mental hospitals each year, scenes like these are not from a bad dream but a frightening reality."
Cry of the Invisible -
"This book seeks to give voice to two of the most silent groups in our society: the homeless, and psychiatric survivors. It represents one of the few times in history that we hear from such people first hand. What happens behind the walls of a mental institution is rarely publicized or revealed. The fact is there are startling inadequacies. First person accounts reveal the failure of the mental health system to ask the most basic questions."
The Right to Refuse Mental Health Treatment -
Part of the APA's series on "The Law and Public Policy, Psychology, and the Social Sciences."
Periodicals:
Mind Freedom Journal (Previously called Dendron News). PO Box 11284, Eugene, OR 97440.