The International Society for Psychological and Social Approaches to Psychosis (ISPS) has produced a 'Liverpool Declaration' before its upcoming 20th International Congress. As the declaration says, psychosis needs to be understood as largely a response to life experiences. For too long, social and psychological experiences have been "viewed as simply ‘triggering’ underlying disease processes, a perspective no longer supported by research". Social and cultural psychiatry should not merely be a diluted form of biomedical psychiatry (see previous post).
Dear members. A call to arms! I have 20 years experience specialising in using music psychotherapy for treating the psychoses. All that time working within the NHS and the now predominant pharmacological culture that is propped up by the idea that many schizophrenia 'cases' are genetic neurological and life long conditions. What we need is a national centre for psychosis, outside of the state framework, that can safely treat patients (as people as much as anything else...) but also treat the condition while incrementally reducing the medication given in good faith but given none the less for too long at too high doses in many instances. Real treatment involves first understanding the patient, and this takes time because it involves learning the patients psychotic language and then communicating in a way that the patient feels understood. Ego growth and joy and optimism are vital but this is a slow process and requires consistency and concentration on the therapist's part. I am looking to work with a psychiatrist particularly (but also other interested parties) who might be interested in collaborating on a research project to show the efficacy of this combination of interventions over a three year window, hopefully offering this to patients who are initially inpatients under section. Please do get in touch. Andy 0774 333 8750 andylale@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteAndy - you must be aware of the growing concern about the adverse effects of ant-depressants especially SSRs. Please read the RxISK campaign and do what you can to help. Can you alert others too as the suffering for many is serious and often irreversible as yet.
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