Mad in America: Rethinking Mental Health

This week on the Mad in America podcast, we talk to Dr. Maureen (Mo) Hannah. Mo is a Professor of Psychology at Siena College, New York, where she has taught since 1992. She is a licensed New York State psychologist practicing with older adolescents and adults. Mo is an Advanced Imago Relationship therapy Clinician and serves as an Academic Faculty member of Imago Relationships International. Her clinical and research interests revolve around couples therapy, intimate partner violence, and transpersonal psychology. She serves as the Editor of Family and Interpersonal Violence Quarterly and has published seven books and numerous chapters and articles. In 2004, she co-founded and continues to serve as Chair of the annual Battered Mothers Custody Conference. In this episode, we discuss: ▪Mo's experiences with the psychiatric system, both personally and professionally ▪How poor care in the mental health system led to an unexpected and devastating family loss ▪That Mo feels that her families needs and views were not taken into account when discussing treatment for her elder daughter, Monique ▪The difficulties that parents encounter when a child is old enough to be covered by HIPAA laws, meaning that treatment is not discussed with parents ▪How Alex, Mo's younger daughter, was put onto antidepressants following the loss of her sister but she had little to no intervention to ensure that the drugs were the right treatment for her ▪That Doctors do not tell patients about withdrawal effects when stopping psychiatric drugs ▪That Alex suffered profound withdrawal effects 3-4 months after she had ceased the drugs, one of the worst issues being extreme insomnia but also anxiety, obsessive thinking and guilt ▪That it was very clear these were drug related effects and not a mental health problem ▪That Doctors should be better informed so they can help their patients make an informed choice about drug treatment ▪That Mo used to be more open to drug therapy discussions with her patients but she now is very cautious to warn people about potential effects and impacts of withdrawal ▪That Mo has also changed her teaching approach to ensure that her students understand that the view of antidepressant drugs that we have been sold is not the reality that many experience ▪That the view of the drugs as safe, effective and non addictive is too simplistic ▪Mo's own experiences with Prozac and finding that her own withdrawal was difficult but not as bad as she had witnessed with Alex, and that our experiences of withdrawal can vary widely ▪How Alex had also sought treatment outside the mental health system, in a naturally oriented facility, but still found that knowledge of how to support someone in withdrawal was virtually non existent ▪That Alex is now recovering, but it is a slow process ▪People going through withdrawal need family and friends support and probably not go near a treatment facility ▪Mo's experience of the 'biological model' of psychiatry in her Doctoral clinical internship training and how dominant that message was ▪That people should think long and hard before committing to an antidepressant, they should research the pros and cons and look into all the available non drug options for help first To listen on Mad in America: https://goo.gl/tyyLmt Podcast show notes: https://goo.gl/DD9nMY To get in touch with us email: podcasts@madinamerica.com © Mad in America 2017

This week on the Mad in America podcast, we talk to Jim Gottstein, president and founder of the organisation Law Project for Psychiatric Rights. Jim talks to us about his own experiences with the psychiatric system, patient rights in mental healthcare and the recent trial between Wendy Dolin and the UK Pharmaceutical manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline. In this episode, we discuss: Jim's experiences growing up in Alaska How Jim became involved with the psychiatric system That Jim was told he was mentally ill and he needed drugs for the rest of his life and would never be able to practice law again How found a Psychiatrist who told him that anyone who doesn't sleep could become psychotic and that he could manage the problem How his experience with the psychiatric system changed the focus of his life About his involvement in a case involving the State of Alaska stealing a million acre land trust for the "mentally ill" That the book 'Mad in America' by Robert Whitaker provided a litigation roadmap for challenging forced psychiatric drugging How Jim formed the organisation Law Project for Psychiatric Rights (PsychRights) to mount a strategic legal campaign against forced drugging and Electroshock in the USA How the number of people detained or forcibly treated in the mental health system is dramatically out of step with the reality demonstrated by Open Dialog and Soteria type approaches That changing public attitudes to the hidden parts of the mental healthcare system is very important How cases can arise very rapidly, requiring almost immediate response which is sometimes difficult That the deck is really stacked against the patient because they are having to defend themselves against medical professionals and their lawyers while they have no credibility because they are charged with being mentally ill The events in the trial between the widow of Stuart Dolin and the UK Pharmaceutical manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline That it was a legal first because Wendy Dolin sued the manufacturer of the brand name drug, Paxil, even though Stuart Dolin was taking the generic version of the drug manufactured by Mylan How Wendy Dolin's lawyers came up with a common law negligence claim against GSK that GSK had a duty to provide accurate information about the drug How GSK manipulated the science of the clinical trials to downplay the suicide risk That Dr. Joseph Glenmullen and Dr. David Healy were key expert witnesses That the jury unanimously found GSK guilty of withholding information That GSK have stated their intention to appeal the verdict How the appeal process will work Why we shouldn't trust what Pharmaceutical manufacturers tell us about clinical trials The lack of informed consent where the prescribing of psychiatric drugs is concerned That outcomes for patients who have either not taken, or withdrawn from, antipsychotic drugs are much better than for those who continue with the drugs To listen on Mad in America: https://goo.gl/tyyLmt Podcast show notes: https://goo.gl/QpjVsA To get in touch with us email: podcasts@madinamerica.com © Mad in America 2017