Tag Archives: Mental Health
The DSM Update: New Bells and Whistles on the Same Old Bunk
The American Psychiatric Association’s plan to revise its holy book, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM), shoves a bunch of cosmetic and structural bells and whistles onto the same old diagnostic framework. They’re going to reorganize criteria into domains, talk … Continue reading
Fascism in a White Coat: The Authoritarian Regime of Mental Illness
If the mental illness industry were a government, it would resemble an authoritarian regime that maintains control through coercion, manipulation, and the suppression of dissent, while claiming to act in the people’s best interest. It enforces compliance through labels and … Continue reading
The Granddaddy Effect: Honoring Raxley Leonard Obarr on His 140th Birthday and the Neuroscience of a Life-Saving Connection
Today, March 13th, marks the 140th birthday of my maternal great-grandfather, Raxley Leonard Obarr, my Granddaddy. He was the only grandfather figure I knew. He was also a Knight Templar, a master of bird magic, a juggler, and the kindler … Continue reading
Posted in co-regulation, Family
Tagged activism, belonging, connection, Granddaddy, great-grandfather, justice, legacy, Mental Health, safety, well-being
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The DSM Misses the Mark: IPNB Offers a Humane and Scientific Understanding of Mental Health
Some trauma experts have said that if the psychiatric Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) acknowledged trauma, it would be a very thin volume because virtually everything else would fall beneath it. But from an Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) … Continue reading
Posted in Mental Health, Psychiatry
Tagged Behavioral Health, DSM, illness, IPNB, Mental Health, mental illness industry, Nervous System, pathologizing, psychiatry, Psychology, recovery, Trauma, wellbeing
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The Gilded Age Values of the Modern Mental Illness Industry
The dominant culture continues to enforce many of the values of the Gilded Age, especially those related to economic inequality, individual responsibility, and the criminalization of marginalized groups. While there have been some advances in social justice, the structures of … Continue reading
Posted in IPNB of Hierarchy, Mental Health
Tagged Behavioral Health, Guilded Age, hirarchy, industrialists, Mental Health, mental illness, status quo
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From Trauma to Truth: How I Became Anti-Psychiatry
I became anti-psychiatry because of what psychiatry did to me and what I saw it do to others. I walked in with severe Complex PTSD. They put me on Lexapro. The suicidal ideations started about 3 weeks after. When I … Continue reading
Posted in Psychiatry
Tagged abuse, anti-psychiatry, Behavioral Health, chemical imbalance, control, hierarchy, IPNB, Mental Health, psychiatry, Trauma
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Dependency is Okay When it’s a Prescription
The mental illness industry is obsessed with telling people not to become dependent on anything: don’t rely on substances, don’t lean on coping tools too much, don’t build habits that might create “addiction.” But then, the very same industry hands … Continue reading
Posted in Mental Health
Tagged anti-depressants, anxiety, Behavioral Health, Cymbalta, dependency, discontinuation syndrome, interpersonal neurobiology, IPNB, Lexapro, medical marijuana, Mental Health, MMJ, polypharmacy, psych meds, psychiatry, Psychology, psychotropic medications, withdrawal
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Latching Onto Safety: Why Dogma is Such a Big Bone
Stressed people, feeling unsafe, threatened, or disconnected, will gravitate toward anything that offers even a small sense of relief or belonging, even if it’s harmful or misleading; it’s better than nothing. From an Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) view, this is an … Continue reading
The DSM is Bunk: IPNB Offers a Humane and Scientific Understanding of Mental Health
Some trauma experts have said that if the psychiatric Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) acknowledged trauma, it would be a very thin volume because virtually everything else would fall beneath it. But from an Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) … Continue reading
Top 10 Reasons Everyday People Should Learn About Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB)
Most people hear the word “neurobiology” and think it’s something only scientists or therapists need to understand. But Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB)–also called Relational Neuroscience–includes much more than knowing brain parts and how they work; it enhances our human experience and … Continue reading
Posted in Neurobiology
Tagged conflict, connection, human, IPNB, Mental Health, relationships, science, well-being
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