| We see the man on the street corner conversing with | | | | responsibility and blames the brain of the person with |
| himself and dishelved. Most often turn away in fear. | | | | no evidence provided that their brains are actually |
| Why are we afraid? Because this man speaks of the | | | | dysfunctional. Theory has become fact in psychiatry. |
| human condition- of how a disordered society can | | | | Psychiatry has its free advertising through the |
| break any of us. | | | | workings of the so called support groups and through |
| What has been termed in the DSM IV as 'mental | | | | its alliance with the pharmaceutical industry. Such |
| disorder' is entirely subjective and the product of the | | | | groups as NAMI (National Alliance for the Mentally Ill) |
| voting of psychiatric committees. The disorders are | | | | and CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention |
| often a product of their imagination and designed for | | | | Deficit) have received large amounts of funding from |
| their ultimate profit. The diagnoses are categorized | | | | the pharmaceutical industry who now have access to |
| under the guise of help, but who benefits? Solely those | | | | many new consumers of their products and who |
| making the diagnosis. In the 1970's Rosenhan and his | | | | benefit from promoting the concept of 'chemical |
| colleagues conducted an interesting study in which | | | | imbalances' to further the sale of their toxic drugs. |
| pseudo-patients were sent to mental hospitals across | | | | Schools have now become not about education at all, |
| the country. They has no history of psychiatric | | | | but rather mental institutions for children. Children are |
| concerns and were told to tell only one lie to the | | | | stifled and are not given the opportunities for critical |
| psychiatrist- that they heard the word 'thud' in their | | | | thinking, but rather to be proper test takers and to |
| heads. Otherwise, they were to behave 'normally'. All | | | | become cogs in the industrial machine. When they fall |
| of these individuals were admitted to the hospital. The | | | | out of line with the desired result, they are labeled and |
| only means for their release was to submit to the idea | | | | drugged. Social Security payments for 'ADHD' or other |
| they were insane but were getting better by the | | | | behavioral disorders become a temptation for poor, |
| 'treatments' of the psychiatric staff. The psychiatric | | | | struggling families to encourage their compliance with |
| establishment was appalled and said this was merely | | | | the status quo. |
| a fluke and suggested Rosenhan send | | | | Psychiatry has also taken over the cause of child |
| pseudo-patients again and they would be able to | | | | welfare. In California, it was seen that over 90% of |
| identify them. Rosenhan stated he would send 40 | | | | foster children were on psychiatric drugs, often multiple |
| pseudo-patients. The psychiatrists stated they had | | | | drugs, with no apparent reason to support the use, not |
| found the 'fakes' but the fact was Rosenhan actually | | | | to mention that potential for serious adverse events. |
| sent no one else. | | | | These drugs are being implicated more and more in |
| In all of this, we see that experience is ignored. Instead, | | | | causing violence, mania, and suicidal ideation in children. |
| we have categorized behaviors, all in the eyes of the | | | | The only reason for these foster children to be treated |
| beholder, and medicalized it. It does not matter any | | | | in such manner is solely greed and to perpetuate a |
| longer what the experience of the person is, the | | | | corrupt system geared at control of the vulnerable. |
| objective of psychiatry is to suppress the behavior, | | | | The abused are being further abused by the |
| and suppression then leads to oppression. | | | | psychiatric system. The elderly are subjected to ECT |
| If we were to truly be pro-active and psychiatrists | | | | at 3 times the rate at age 65 than age 64. Why? |
| were motivated by a true desire to do no harm and to | | | | Because at age 65 Medicare will pick up the tab. Once |
| seek for person's mental health, then we would not be | | | | again, abuse of the vulnerable. |
| merely suppressing, but rather seeking to understand. In | | | | We must awake to this fraud. When we can begin to |
| addition, we would be targeting those issues which | | | | understand the human condition, work for social justice, |
| often create mental anguish for persons to begin with. | | | | and take responsibility for a disordered society, then it |
| We would be addressing issues of social justice. | | | | will be that 'disorders' will fade away and true mental |
| Instead, psychiatry exonerates institutions from taking | | | | health will arise. |