Perspectives and controversies
History and philosophy of mental health
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One woman’s six-word mantra that has helped to calm millions
Ahead of her time, yet largely ignored by psychiatry, Claire Weekes taught millions of readers how to overcome anxiety
by Judith Hoare
History and philosophy of mental health
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Chinese philosophy has long known that mental health is communal
The early Chinese philosophers knew that a healthy mind comes from a harmonious community, not a matter for individuals alone
by Alexus McLeod
Mental health
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Mental disorders aren’t diseases, they’re networks of symptoms
Mental disorders are usually seen as the causes of symptoms. In the network perspective, symptoms are causes themselves
by Richard J McNally
Stigma and taboo
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Let’s avoid talk of ‘chemical imbalance’: it’s people in distress
The ‘chemical imbalance’ trope is appealing but dehumanising, and has heightened stigma towards people with mental illness
by Joseph E Davis
History and philosophy of mental health
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For Donald Winnicott, the psyche is not inside us but between us
For Donald Winnicott, your psyche isn’t just in your head – it emerges from your relationships with others and the world
by James Barnes
Socioeconomics of mental health
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Why we shouldn’t push a positive mindset on those in poverty
Living in poverty is not caused by a faulty mindset, it’s a response to scarcity and marginalisation
by Jennifer Sheehy-Skeffington
Love
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What I’ve learned about relationships as an agony uncle
I am an agony uncle. This is what I’ve learned about men, women and how relationships work in my 10 years of giving advice
by James McConnachie
Imagination
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See faces in the clouds? It might be a sign of your creativity
Long considered a sign of mental illness, ‘pareidolia’ or seeing patterns in randomness might be a useful measure of creativity
by René Müri & Nicole Göbel
Therapeutic relationships
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Psychodynamic therapy helped me overcome trauma when CBT couldn’t
The toxic memories of trauma governed my life for years. But psychodynamic therapy made me feel seen and set me free
by Lucia Osborne-Crowley
The self
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A stable sense of self is rooted in the lungs, heart and gut
Exciting new research findings are validating ancient folk beliefs that root the sense of self deep in the body’s organs
by Alessandro Monti
History and philosophy of mental health
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Frantz Fanon and the crisis of mental health in the Arab world
Where is Frantz Fanon’s postcolonial ‘new man’ to be found in the persistence of psychiatric institutions in the Arab world?
by Joelle M Abi-Rached
Mental health
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If you stay mentally well your entire life, you’re not normal
Surveys suggest only a minority of people live lives entirely free from mental disorder. What can we learn from them?
by Jonathan D Schaefer