Victory: FDA Panel Votes to Require Testing of ECT Device After Survivors Testify at FDA Electroshock Hearing

Info GAITHERSBURG, MD: A panel for the US Food & Drug Administration voted to ask the FDA to require testing of the device used for electroshock. MindFreedom members testified at these public hearings on whether to regulate electroshock device. Loretta Wilson, electroshock survivor from Michigan, plans to testify. 29 January 2011  Victory: Food & Drug…

Media Ignore Key Perspective About Arizona Tragedy

Info Mass media have aired many perspectives about the tragic shooting in Tucson. MindFreedom director David Oaks points out media have largely ignored the voices of groups representing mental health consumers and psychiatric survivors, with very few exceptions. Congresswoman Gabrielle “Gabby” Giffords has often expressed concern about mental health issues. Read blog entries by David…

Robert Whitaker on MFI Live Web Free Radio: Why are discussions about psychiatric drug controversies so often silenced?

Info On Saturday, 9 October 2010, MFI held a live, free Internet show with special guest author Robert Whitaker, and you can hear the archive. The US government has funded an annual meeting of mental health consumers and psychiatric survivors for the past 25 years. But when their conference organizers decided to address controversies involving…

SAMHSA, the Alternatives Conference, and the Story of an Opportunity Lost

Info Document Actions Print this Author/journalist Robert Whitaker was picked to keynote at the Alternatives Conference 2010, bringing together more than 1,000 mental health consumers and psychiatric survivors. His topic: Challenging mental health industry hype that inflates the benefits of psychiatric pharmaceuticals. Federal funders pressured organizers to disinvite him, but MindFreedom organized a public campaign…

“Undue influence of pharmaceutical industry” opposed by USA mental health consumer/psychiatric survivor leaders.

Info 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…