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Thread of FREE introductory resources on Mad Pride, Mad Studies and the Anti-Psychiatry Movement 
— Follow the numbers for a comprehensive course on the area, & check out the extras for alternative or supporting reads. If you’re only interested in the very bare basic stuff to get some familiarity with the topic, I’ve marked them up with stars.
Approaching Mad & Disability Studies is absolutely essential for socialists, specially in the recent rise of interest on the politics of Abolition. We’re a very vulnerable group but with big revolutionary potential so I hope you’ll lend us an ear.
1. Mad in America 
Traces the history of the social construction of mental illness & creation of psychiatry to the contemporary industry; pretty much the educational backbone of contemporary Mad politics.
https://b-ok.lat/book/1252556/01d2cf
Traces the history of the social construction of mental illness & creation of psychiatry to the contemporary industry; pretty much the educational backbone of contemporary Mad politics.
https://b-ok.lat/book/1252556/01d2cf
2. Anatomy of an Epidemic
The follow-up on MIA which analyses the present situation of the psychopharmaceutical industry & the role of psychiatry in the current stage of global capitalism.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2207194/21455a
The follow-up on MIA which analyses the present situation of the psychopharmaceutical industry & the role of psychiatry in the current stage of global capitalism.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2207194/21455a
+ Cracked
An alternative to the previous two, it draws an accessible shortcut through the history & current state of the psychiatry. Not as throughout, but the writing is charismatic & might be a good fit for those who aren’t used to academic writing.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2085684/32a90f
An alternative to the previous two, it draws an accessible shortcut through the history & current state of the psychiatry. Not as throughout, but the writing is charismatic & might be a good fit for those who aren’t used to academic writing.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2085684/32a90f
3. Decolonizing Global Mental Health
The consequences of Western psychiatry on the Global South, also dips a little into alternative understandings of mental health. VERY important for anti-imperialist organizing even if you don’t work on Mad politics.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2514668/594321
The consequences of Western psychiatry on the Global South, also dips a little into alternative understandings of mental health. VERY important for anti-imperialist organizing even if you don’t work on Mad politics.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2514668/594321
+ Crazy Like Us
Complimentary to Decolonizing, this one investigates four case studies of psychiatric imperialism in a suprisingly captivating language. If you want to take your time diving into it, I’d recommend reading this one first.
https://b-ok.lat/book/1185326/6c8163
Complimentary to Decolonizing, this one investigates four case studies of psychiatric imperialism in a suprisingly captivating language. If you want to take your time diving into it, I’d recommend reading this one first.
https://b-ok.lat/book/1185326/6c8163
4. Madness, Distress, and the Politics of Disablement
Theory DENSE but absolutely essential on the “What is to be done?” of Mad Politics. I highly recommend it if you work in ambients with vulnerable people like schools, hospitals, & nursing homes.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2656639/ce5c7e
Theory DENSE but absolutely essential on the “What is to be done?” of Mad Politics. I highly recommend it if you work in ambients with vulnerable people like schools, hospitals, & nursing homes.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2656639/ce5c7e
+ Psychiatry and the Business of Madness
A lighter alternative to above, this one is a passionate mix of scientific metanalysis, theory, & sociological documentation. I appreciate how directly it connects the reader to the survival movements too.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2945329/7430cc
A lighter alternative to above, this one is a passionate mix of scientific metanalysis, theory, & sociological documentation. I appreciate how directly it connects the reader to the survival movements too.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2945329/7430cc
5. Psychiatry Disrupted
A start on more advanced, integrative & especulative approaches if you’ve come this far & decided to apply Mad politics into your organizing of feminism, marxism, & anarchism.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2613114/cf301a
A start on more advanced, integrative & especulative approaches if you’ve come this far & decided to apply Mad politics into your organizing of feminism, marxism, & anarchism.
https://b-ok.lat/book/2613114/cf301a
+ Doctors of Deception
A side-story on the history of ECT & its survivors, but can be used as a moment of reflection on the culture & industry of psychiatric treatment as a whole.
https://b-ok.lat/book/934520/3181ab
A side-story on the history of ECT & its survivors, but can be used as a moment of reflection on the culture & industry of psychiatric treatment as a whole.
https://b-ok.lat/book/934520/3181ab
For those already familiar with Mad politics looking into Szasz helps to learn the history of the field as he was one of the first professionals to extensively critique psychiatry, but I don’t really endorse his libertarian praxis on the matter either.
https://b-ok.lat/g/Thomas%20Szasz
https://b-ok.lat/g/Thomas%20Szasz
An extra reading list for content on the entertainment and/or fiction side of Mad studies, possibly in constant update: https://twitter.com/schizogender/status/1275252694144425986?s=21 https://twitter.com/schizogender/status/1275252694144425986
Material extra para brasileiros: https://twitter.com/schizogender/status/1275257748494712835?s=21 https://twitter.com/schizogender/status/1275257748494712835
Keeping up-to-date with matters on madness & neurodiversity, as created by neurodivergent people:
Mad in America — @Mad_In_America
Recovery in the Bin — @RITB_
Autism Self-Advocacy Network — @autselfadvocacy
Asylum Magazine — @AsylumMagUK
Hearing Voices Network — @HVN_England
Mad in America — @Mad_In_America
Recovery in the Bin — @RITB_
Autism Self-Advocacy Network — @autselfadvocacy
Asylum Magazine — @AsylumMagUK
Hearing Voices Network — @HVN_England
From here under I’ll be updating with shorter reads & news on the area as I come across there. If you or somebody you know is a complete noob on the topic of mental health politics, I suggest these for an ease-into it:
Essay: Is Mental Ilness Real?
Introducing a critique on how we conceptualize mental illness medically & culturally for people who haven’t investigated the idea yet. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/12/is-mental-illness-real-google-answer
Introducing a critique on how we conceptualize mental illness medically & culturally for people who haven’t investigated the idea yet. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/12/is-mental-illness-real-google-answer
Report: Understanding Psychosis and Schizophrenia
An informative booklet that explains psychosis highlighting the approaches of self-advocacy & depathologization, specially for friends & professionals working with people experiencing it.
https://www.bps.org.uk/what-psychology/understanding-psychosis-and-schizophrenia
An informative booklet that explains psychosis highlighting the approaches of self-advocacy & depathologization, specially for friends & professionals working with people experiencing it.
https://www.bps.org.uk/what-psychology/understanding-psychosis-and-schizophrenia
Report: Understanding Bipolar Disorder
An informative booklet that explains altered mood states highlighting the approaches of self-advocacy & depathologization, specially for friends & professionals working with people experiencing it.
https://shop.bps.org.uk/understanding-bipolar-disorder
An informative booklet that explains altered mood states highlighting the approaches of self-advocacy & depathologization, specially for friends & professionals working with people experiencing it.
https://shop.bps.org.uk/understanding-bipolar-disorder
Article: A critical analysis on the biomedical model of mental disorder
Objective compilation on why the popular ‘chemical imbalance’ theory is a myth, how it’s used as a capitalist marketing strategy, & why it’s harmful to mental health in society.
https://www.madinamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Deacon-biomedical-model-and-stigma-2013.pdf
Objective compilation on why the popular ‘chemical imbalance’ theory is a myth, how it’s used as a capitalist marketing strategy, & why it’s harmful to mental health in society.
https://www.madinamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Deacon-biomedical-model-and-stigma-2013.pdf
Manifest: What is “Nothing About Us Without Us”?
Why self-advocacy is essential in resisting psychiatric oppression of neurodiversity. Autism-specific, but ASAN has been a blueprint for many other movements of neurodivergent peoples across the world. https://go.shr.lc/2SPqLLU
Why self-advocacy is essential in resisting psychiatric oppression of neurodiversity. Autism-specific, but ASAN has been a blueprint for many other movements of neurodivergent peoples across the world. https://go.shr.lc/2SPqLLU
Manifest: Nothing about us without us – ALL OF US
Why do we need to abolish the ‘personality disorder’ label? (PD self-diagnosis has become strangely popular among people outside the system, & this should shed some light on why that’s innappropriate too) …https://personalitydisorderinthebin.wordpress.com/2016/12/03/a-public-response-regarding-the-formation-of-a-pd-consensus/
Why do we need to abolish the ‘personality disorder’ label? (PD self-diagnosis has become strangely popular among people outside the system, & this should shed some light on why that’s innappropriate too) …https://personalitydisorderinthebin.wordpress.com/2016/12/03/a-public-response-regarding-the-formation-of-a-pd-consensus/
Essay: Recovery Versus Mad Pride
Critical considerations on the dialetics between the recovery & Mad pride ideologies https://www.madinamerica.com/2019/05/recovery-versus-mad-pride/#
Critical considerations on the dialetics between the recovery & Mad pride ideologies https://www.madinamerica.com/2019/05/recovery-versus-mad-pride/#
Article: No More Psychiatric Labels
A very condensed exposition on the case for abolition of psychiatric diagnosis
https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/S169726001400009X?token=144D0064873DCBD010A417A40D3BADBB506902245DC537AA1176E2E3DABA3751E89439A96C67724C449C48B84F8FC143
A very condensed exposition on the case for abolition of psychiatric diagnosis
https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/S169726001400009X?token=144D0064873DCBD010A417A40D3BADBB506902245DC537AA1176E2E3DABA3751E89439A96C67724C449C48B84F8FC143
Article: Reconceptualizing Psychosis
Rather than sharing a manifest directly from the Hearing Voices Movement, here’s a scientific report on why their depathologizing approach to psychosis is better than the medical (“mental disorder”) model https://www.hhrjournal.org/2020/06/reconceptualizing-psychosis-the-hearing-voices-movement-and-social-approaches-to-health/
Rather than sharing a manifest directly from the Hearing Voices Movement, here’s a scientific report on why their depathologizing approach to psychosis is better than the medical (“mental disorder”) model https://www.hhrjournal.org/2020/06/reconceptualizing-psychosis-the-hearing-voices-movement-and-social-approaches-to-health/
Article: The biomedical model of mental disorder - A critical analysis of its validity, utility, and effects on psychotherapy research
Why the biomedical approach is unscientific & separating patients into diagnostic labels is detrimental for recovery.
https://www.madinamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Deacon-biomedical-model-and-stigma-2013.pdf
Why the biomedical approach is unscientific & separating patients into diagnostic labels is detrimental for recovery.
https://www.madinamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Deacon-biomedical-model-and-stigma-2013.pdf
