When I was refusing to take meds my thinking was turning to antipsychiatry. This was for a few reasons mainly the austere treatment those with mental illness receive, side effects of medications and most importantly they dont really understand mental illnesses especially sz. So thats why I ask is ‘schizophrenia’ schizophrenia because theres a detachment from the reality of what sz actually is. The word sz refers to divided mind because it was theorized there was a separation of mental functions but that theory has been debunked. It occurs to me those with sz often lose the critical thought tools for questioning their delusions so it can be said they lose the right way of thinking about or interpreting reality. At least as an analogy the same thing has happened with understanding sz and at times the profession has been a danger to others and themselves at least to taking away their credibility. My thinking is less antipsychiatric now that i have been successfully treated but im not without criticisms still.
Antipsychiatry raises pretty legitimate concerns, Drapetomania and lobotomies used to be a thing. Suppressing the frontalnlobe is still a thing.
There will always be concerns. But psychiatry has come a long way in the last fifty+ years.
I think it is important to distinguish between being antipsychiatry and simply criticizing the shortcomings of current treatments. It is good and important to voice valid concerns. Side effects, lack of proper care, and over-pathologizing are very real problems that have failed to be addressed effectively. Deciding the whole field needs to be thrown out and replaced with shaman and healing crystals is a whole different thing.
One area I am sad to see still being under-utilized is the discovery that adults maintain neuroplasticity and can compensate for neural defects that developed in childhood. I hope that future mental health care focuses more on how to reshape the brain rather than using medications to overcome the abnormalities. But the technology does not currently exist, and until it does, the medications are the most effective tool we have.
Yes i think antipsychotic is there only tritment option right now I dont think they are trying to be malicious.
I figure the medications will only improve. Im not sure about other treatments.
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