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MindFreedom International: Mental Health Rights and Alternative Mental Health

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Celebrating 24 years of united independent activism for human rights and humane alternatives in mental health. MindFreedom International is a voice for survivors of abuse in mental health care. All are welcome to join, today!

MFI Featured News

A "Non-Normal" Message to Support MindFreedom International!

(Published: Aug 06, 2010 06:56 PM)
A "Non-Normal" Message to Support MindFreedom International!
The Executive Director of MindFreedom International, David Oaks, has a message for you that is just NOT NORMAL.
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VICTORY: Journalist Bob Whitaker is "Re-Confirmed" as Keynote for Alternatives 2010

(Published: Jul 23, 2010 09:00 AM)
VICTORY: Journalist Bob Whitaker is "Re-Confirmed" as Keynote for Alternatives 2010
Whitaker is a critic of psychiatric drug company claims, with his new book, "Anatomy of an Epidemic." US federal government officials objected to Whitaker keynoting Alternatives 2010 conference. An MFI alert 48-hours ago is called "effective," and Whitaker is now re-confirmed as keynoter. Thank you MFI News readers!
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MindFreedom Directory of Alternatives - One Year Later

(Published: Jul 04, 2010 05:45 PM)
MindFreedom Directory of Alternatives - One Year Later
One year later, the MindFreedom International free online directory of mental health alternatives is growing. Matthew Morrissey, MFI board member, explains how you can help promote self-directed, safe, and humane healing approaches in mental health.
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MFI News

Update: MindFreedom member Geetha Rathnamala now FREE, forced drugging over.

(Published: Aug 26, 2010 12:35 AM)
Update: MindFreedom member Geetha Rathnamala now FREE, forced drugging over.
UPDATE: A 31-year-old member of MindFreedom International - Geetha Rathnamala - was being held against her will in a Pittsburgh psychiatric institution, and involuntary psychiatric drugging had begun. Geetha is a registered MindFreedom Shield participant, and an alert was issued. Many members and allies helped expose the abuse going on inside the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic (WPIC), which is part of the enormous University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Geetha is now free. [Update4 -10 Sept. 2010]
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"Undue influence of pharmaceutical industry" opposed by USA mental health consumer/psychiatric survivor leaders.

(Published: Jul 14, 2010 04:54 PM)
"Undue influence of pharmaceutical industry" opposed by USA mental health consumer/psychiatric survivor leaders.
Key national mental health consumer/psychiatric survivor leaders at a national USA federal meeting on mental health consumer and psychiatric survivor inclusion issued a statement of "alarm" about the "undue influence of the psychiatric pharmaceutical industry," and the “urgent necessity for more non-drug alternatives in mental health care.” Speaking for themselves as individuals, and not on behalf of the government, 18 of the 19 participants signed the statement.
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Global News

Worst Mental Health Media: Canada's National Post Biased Coverage by Joseph Brean of PsychOUT Conference

(Published: May 17, 2010 12:13 AM)
Worst Mental Health Media: Canada's National Post Biased Coverage by Joseph Brean of PsychOUT Conference
MFI awards the Worst Media Coverage of Mental Health Month May 2010 to reporter Joseph Brean from Canada's National Post. Brean horribly mis-covered the May 2010 international PsychOUT conference of psychiatric survivors activists and allies, who gathered from five nations to resist psychiatric human rights violations.
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Dispute Goes Public: International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology (ICSPP)

(Published: May 01, 2010 12:05 AM)
Dispute Goes Public: International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology (ICSPP)
Update2: For years, ICSPP has been one of the main networking organizations for dissident psychiatrists, psychologists, mental health professionals, allies and others to question mental health system. ICSPP is a sponsor group in MFI. Psychiatrist Peter Breggin founded ICSPP. In 2002, Dr. Breggin announced he was turning over stewardship of ICSPP to new leadership. However, apparently Dr. Breggin disagreed with a decision by the ICSPP board of directors. In April 2010 he suddenly redirected the ICSPP web site to a new, personal effort of his own. The ICSPP board of directors has issued the below public statements in response. [Update2 on 4 Sept. 2010]
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USA News

Robert Whitaker's new book takes on mental health myths about psychiatric drugs.

(Published: Jul 21, 2010 08:05 PM)
Robert Whitaker's new book takes on mental health myths about psychiatric drugs.
The new book by journalist Bob Whitaker -- Anatomy of an Epidemic -- challenges the massive psychiatric drugging inundating our society. He also spotlights MindFreedom's activism more than once as a model of effectiveness.
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Alert helps free Emily Darguzhyte who was locked inside Western State Hospital

(Published: Jun 10, 2010 08:15 PM)
Alert helps free Emily Darguzhyte who was locked inside Western State Hospital
A 28-year-old woman from Lithuania, who has trouble with English, was being heavily forcibly drugged while held in extended ongoing involuntary lock-ups at the notorious Western State Hospital. Her family and friends asked that she be released. MindFreedom issued the below alert. UPDATE 24 AUGUST 2010: THIS CAMPAIGN HAS WON! Emily was freed 24 August 2010.
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Recently published articles of interest

Child's Ordeal Shows Risks of Psychosis Drugs for Young

(Published: Sep 03, 2010 07:16 PM)
The New York Times covered the way even very young children - even 18 months old - are being put on the super-powerful family of psychiatric drugs known as the neuroleptics or antipsychotics.

Review: Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America

(Published: Sep 03, 2010 07:09 PM)
In this review of journalist Robert Whitaker's book exposing the psychiatric pharmaceutical industry, psychologist Bruce Levine mentions how MindFreedom International helped campaign to 're-confirm' Whitaker as a keynote speaker at a federally-funded conference.

Making a Killing

(Published: Sep 03, 2010 04:00 PM)
Those interested in an investigation by a journalist of psychiatric drug company research fraud are encouraged to obtain the Sept./Oct 2010 issue of Mother Jones and read the "Making a Killing" article here. Carl Elliott reveals how clinical trials and even whole universities are manipulated by the pharmaceutical industry.

Robert Whitaker on Neuroleptic "Brain Damage" Debate

(Published: Aug 20, 2010 06:00 PM)
In the "climate crisis" controversy there are deniers, people who are putting out misinformation to cloud the debate about the greenhouse effect. The same thing is true in the debate about brain damage caused by the neuroleptic drugs, also known as antipsychotics. Some scientists, instead of warning the public about the many studies regarding massive brain changes induced by neuroleptics, are hypothesizing - based on fragmentary and contradictory research - that neuroleptics somehow help prevent brain damage. Here Robert Whitaker, in his Mad in America blog, analyzes some of these claim as aired on the PBS national television show, PBS.

GUEST VIEWPOINT: It's time to end this grand experiment with psychiatric drugs

(Published: Aug 15, 2010 10:35 PM)
Journalist and author Robert Whitaker wrote this column that was published in the main daily newspaper of Eugene, Oregon, USA, The Register-Guard. Whitaker mentions MindFreedom's work for human rights as a sign of hope. (In an event co-sponsored by MindFreedom and LaneCare, Whitaker speaks in Eugene on 8/20/10, free.)

Misguided Thinking: Mental health at a crossroads

(Published: Aug 15, 2010 10:25 PM)
Chuck Areford, a long-time mental health worker in Lane County, Oregon, wrote this column challenging the current drug-oriented model of the mental health system. The column was published by the Eugene Weekly, which is the second-biggest newspaper in Lane County, Oregon. Chuck is a long-time member and supporter of MindFreedom International.

Psychiatry Considers Eliminating "Bereavement Exclusion" for Depression Diagnosis

(Published: Aug 02, 2010 01:35 PM)
The American Psychiatric Association currently excludes people who have had a death of a loved one from being diagnosed with "depression" in the short term. For the APA's next edition of their 'label bible' -- called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual -- they are considering eliminating this exclusion. In other words, an individual who has just suffered the death of a loved one may get a "mental disorder" diagnosis of "clinical depression" on their 15th day of experiencing extreme grief. Even an editor of the current "DSM," feels that this is overly-medicalizing people's experiences. MindFreedom has long warned that psychiatric labeling can result in prescriptions for needless psychiatric drugs, as well as discrimination and hopelessness.

Treat the cause

(Published: Jul 22, 2010 08:04 PM)
Here's a letter-to-the-editor about by MindFreedom board member Mary Maddock, founder of MindFreedom Ireland, published in the Irish Examiner. Mary's letter was part of a series of a letter and article published by the Irish Examiner highly critical of involuntary psychiatry, and psychiatric drugging.

Mental disorders - diagnoses or discriminating?

(Published: Jun 11, 2010 11:16 AM)
The Torch is the newspaper for Lane Community College in Eugene, Oregon, USA. After student columnist Haydenn Harper was widely criticized for his language in an article he wrote for the Torch about allegedly "crazy" people he saw on the bus, he investigated the topic of psychiatric labeling with several interviews, including with David Oaks, Director, MindFreedom International. Harper looks into the origins of labeling via the psychiatry's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, also known as the DSM.

Mental health hospitalizations up for troops

(Published: May 18, 2010 12:37 PM)
The number of hospitalizations of USA troops for psychiatric reasons has been climbing for years, and now exceeds any other cause.

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Cookie Gant

Cookie (1949 - 2003) was a founder of MindFreedom International's coalition, and was a rolling coalition herself: African American lesbian disabled psychiatric survivor artist photographer! Cookie served on the MFI board for several years, and co-founded MindFreedom Michigan. (Photo by Tom Olin at an MFI international strategy conference.)