http://mindovermatterzine.tumblr.com/

[Trigger Warning: Discussion of deaths/abuse in police custody and following police contact] Adebowale Commission findings

Fri, 10 May 2013 12:38:09 +0100

[Trigger Warning: Discussion of deaths/abuse in police custody and following police contact] Adebowale Commission findings:

The Adebowale Commission published its findings today (pdf behind link above). Lord Adebowale is the Chief Executive of social care charity Turning Point and chaired this group of 13 experts to independently examine cases of death or serious injury of people with a mental illness, after contact with police, within the last 5 years.
Previous research suggests that approximately half of all deaths in or following police custody involve people with some form of mental health issue.

BBC Radio 4: All in the Mind

Thu, 09 May 2013 21:58:58 +0100

BBC Radio 4: All in the Mind:

Super interesting radio show available in the UK about the upcoming new DSM-V (Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Volume V) and its implications, as well as a feature on the relationship between mental illness and sleeping patterns. Check it out!

ourcatastrophe: I’m really mad/sad about how many women are having (consensual, but) unsatisfying...

Sun, 05 May 2013 10:48:16 +0100

ourcatastrophe:

I’m really mad/sad about how many women are having (consensual, but) unsatisfying sex b/c of inconsiderate partners, heterosexism, trauma, dysphoria, other mental health issues that make it hard to inhabit your body, etc

I believe that someday we can talk about this without it devolving into “have more sex to be more liberated” but I’m not holding my breath

[Trigger Warning: Discussion of violence and abuse] Domestic violence and mental illness: "I have honestly never felt so alone in my life"

Thu, 02 May 2013 22:15:48 +0100

[Trigger Warning: Discussion of violence and abuse] Domestic violence and mental illness: "I have honestly never felt so alone in my life":

Hello loves, you may remember my asking for people to share their experiences of intimate partner violence and mental illness a few weeks ago for an article I was thinking of writing.

Thank you so much to everyone who got in contact with me, your openness and eloquence in explaining your various situations and experiences was totally humbling.

I was worried I wouldn’t be able to do you all justice in one small post, but the New Statesman saw fit to publish it as part of their mental health series this week and so far it’s had a good reception, including from the Royal College of Psychiatrists. I’ve seen some interesting dialogue about it across the internet and I’m so glad people are talking about how mental illness isn’t always a consequence of domestic violence, it’s often a vulnerability that many abusers seek out and play on.

Anyway, the article is behind the link above, Trigger Warning for discussion of violence and abuse in romantic partner settings.

Thanks again, and stay safe, xo

genderedintelligence: ‘Domestic Violence: A resource for trans people’ was produced in 2009 by The...

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 16:33:29 +0100

genderedintelligence:

‘Domestic Violence: A resource for trans people’ was produced in 2009 by The Greater London Domestic Violence project, in collaboration with the LGBT Domestic Abuse Forum and NHS Barking & Dagenham.

The resource has been written primarily to assist trans people who experience domestic abuse. There is information as well as links to UK resources.

To view the full booklet, click here.

This is your daily reminder that self-indulgence can be a form of self-care. That ‘because it makes...

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 10:10:34 +0100

This is your daily reminder that self-indulgence can be a form of self-care.

That ‘because it makes me feel better’ is a completely valid reason to do something.

That if something makes you happy then it is not pointless or a waste of time.

That if doing something makes you feel better then it is not something that is unproductive to do.

And that doing things that make you feel okay is just as important as anything else.

"Be kind to yourself. Stop telling yourself that whatever you are struggling with “should” be easy...."

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:47:07 +0100

“Be kind to yourself. Stop telling yourself that whatever you are struggling with “should” be easy. If something is hard for you, it is hard for you. There are probably Reasons, though those may just be how you are wired. Acknowledge these things. When you finish something hard, be proud! Celebrate a little.

And really, just stop saying “should” to yourself about your thoughts and feelings in any context. You feel how you feel. The things in your head are the things in your head. You can’t change either directly through sheer force of will. You can only change what you do. Stop beating yourself up for who and what you are right now–it isn’t productive. Focus on moving forward.

”

- How to keep moving forward, even when your brain hates you.

calmingmanatee: [Image description: A photograph of a person...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:19:03 +0100

calmingmanatee:

[Image description: A photograph of a person with a ponytail in waist deep water, cradling a baby manatee and holding a bottle to its mouth. TEXT: “You do not always have to do everything by yourself. There is nothing wrong with letting those who love you, help you.”]

bartonesque: friendly reminder that you don’t have to be around people who upset you or make you...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:13:39 +0100

bartonesque:

friendly reminder that you don’t have to be around people who upset you or make you uncomfortable, even if those people are “friends” or “family”. you don’t owe them anything and you don’t deserve to be treated that way. you should surround yourself with people that are emotionally supportive because you deserve to be happy.

strangelanguage: Study Reveals Depression is a Miscommunication Between Brain Cells A new study...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:10:28 +0100

strangelanguage:

Study Reveals Depression is a Miscommunication Between Brain Cells

A new study from the University of Maryland School of Medicine suggests that depression results from a disturbance in the ability of brain cells to communicate with each other. The study indicates a major shift in our understanding of how depression is caused and how it should be treated. Instead of focusing on the levels of hormone-like chemicals in the brain, such as serotonin, the scientists found that the transmission of excitatory signals between cells becomes abnormal in depression.

Read More

I just think everybody should be aware that the autism-vaccination research was literal fraud. Like, Wakefield's medical license got taken away because of it. He falsified medical histories and results for the purpose of financial gain. There is ACTUALLY no basis to his research, and it's clear the kind of damage it has done to public health. It all just makes me very sad.

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:54:23 +0100

Thanks for clarifying it for me! That's exactly what I meant, and I definitely could have worded it better :)

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:54:12 +0100

No problem. I worry of speaking “on behalf” of other people, especially when I’m speaking about lived experience which is theirs, not mine… but as long as you’re comfortable with my interpretation/clarification then that’s ok I guess.

allibys replied to your post: @bonesandwhatnot: autism is _not_ a mental illness- that implies that...

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:51:42 +0100

allibys replied to your post: @bonesandwhatnot: autism is _not_ a mental illness- that implies that it can be cured...

@everyone: You’re right. I’ve been doing some thinking and autism, in a technical sense, is a mental illness I actually have clinical depression and an anxiety disorder, and I feel like my autism is somewhat… “separate” from those? They’re things that I WANT to be rid of. I want to be happy and unafraid. I don’t want to be neurotypical. Basically, mindovermatter hit the nail on the head in the edit.

@bonesandwhatnot: autism is _not_ a mental illness- that implies that it can be cured. And preventing their (our) "pain"? Fuck that. I _like_ the way my brain works, and most of the autistic people I've spoken to online like theirs, too. We don't want to be cured! And we (everyone) don't need people like you perpetuating lies and putting children at risk.

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:58:00 +0100

Edit: Some folks have asked what about “mental illness” implies cure, and “why do get people get so defensive when autism is referred to as a mental illness?”. I agree mental illness can’t necessarily be “cured” (you can undergo periods of recovery and remission, and recovery is a deeply personal process that doesn’t necessarily imply that you are no longer ill), but the psychiatric community is built on the concept of lessening mental illness / returning people to “mental health”. So, I think what allibys is referring to is the belief that Autism isn’t something that you ‘have’ or ‘don’t have’ - it’s a state of neurological difference that is no better or worse than being neurotypical: it’s not a state of illness so it’s not something that needs to be ‘cured’ or ‘recovered from’ or changed:

Autism has traditionally been seen as a shell from which a ‘normal’ child might one day emerge. But some advocates contend that autism is an integral part of their identities, much more like a skin than a shell, and not one they care to shed.

The effort to cure autism, they say, is not like curing cancer, but like the efforts of a previous age to cure left-handedness. Some worry that in addition to troublesome interventions, the ultimate cure will be a genetic test to prevent autistic children from being born

(Read more)

My brother is severely Autistic. As a result, my mother has opted to never vaccinate us unless it is required by our schools. I receive the necessary vaccinations but abstain from the optional vaccinations. I never felt unsafe or not well-protected by this decision from my mother. Also, I never perceived it as a negative reaction to Autism. Rather, I viewed it as my mother attempting to be preventive. We should accept mental illnesses, but I think their pain is worth preventing.

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:42:00 +0100

…Except there’s no evidence that Autism is caused by vaccinations.

tattooed-yogi replied to your post: What you just posted about autism and the MMR vaccine is very...

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:45:00 +0100

tattooed-yogi replied to your post: What you just posted about autism and the MMR vaccine is very controversial!...

“plenty of research out there to suggest a link”…um WHERE!? what peer-reviewed research journals are you (not) reading?

raptorallen replied to your post: What you just posted about autism and the MMR vaccine is very controversial!...

“There is plenty of research out there to suggest a link” - sorry anon, but I don’t think there is. The recent Cochrane review (they summarise all findings of related papers in as unbiased, statistical way as poss) doesn’t think so.

awfulwafflewalker replied to your post: What you just posted about autism and the MMR vaccine is very controversial! ...

There’s no research suggesting a link! Anytime Wakefield’s research has tried to be replicated it’s been proven false!

A+ (I failed to pick up on that bit - I love that there’s always so many clued up followers willing to pitch in!)

What you just posted about autism and the MMR vaccine is very controversial! Everyone's entitled to their opinion but if parents choose not to vaccinate their children then that's their business. There is plenty of research out there to suggest a link, so of course many parents would be worried and think it's risky. Don't you think that in some children vaccinations overwhelm their immune system? Not every child will react the same, everyone's body is different and some have a sensitivity.

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:23:00 +0100

Yeah everyone’s entitled to their opinion but when the opinion is “Ew Autism” that’s when I have a problem. I think you’re deliberately misconstruing my post because it’s quite clear I’m not talking about issues parents might have with vaccinations in general, I’m talking about the MMR ~scandal~. Many parents who denied their children the MMR vaccine were happy for them to have other vaccines, which suggests that their overwhelming consideration was a fear of Autism rather than a generic problem with vaccinations as a concept.

mindovermatterzine: [Trigger Warning: Discussion of violence and abuse against people with mental...

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:59:00 +0100

mindovermatterzine:

[Trigger Warning: Discussion of violence and abuse against people with mental illness, particularly intimate partner violence]

Mental illness and experience of intimate partner violence: A call for submissions

I just want to clarify: “intimate partner violence” doesn’t just cover physical aggressions.

I’ve had a couple of people write to me with words to the effect of “I’m not sure if this is intimate partner violence but…” and then detailing what is clearly to me as an objective observer sexual, emotional, psychological, verbal and economic abuse.

If your partner restricts where you can go, what you can do, who you can see or what you can wear - that’s an act of violence

If your partner controls your access to or use of money - that’s an act of violence

If your partner threatens you or intimidates you - that’s an act of violence

If your partner initiates sexual activity with you without your consent - that’s an act of violence

If your partner humiliates you or deliberately undermines your self-esteem in private or in public - that’s an act of violence

An intimate partner doesn’t have to lay a hand on you to be violent towards you. Your experiences are valid and real.

Stay strong, xo

[Trigger Warning: Autism discrimination]

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:37:00 +0100

mirrored-mazes:

mindovermatterzine:

If you would rather put your children at (proven) risk of death via Measles than (unproven) risk of Autism via the MMR vaccine, you need to re-examine your attitudes to disability and neurodivergence because essentially you are saying you’d rather your child was dead than autistic.

(The measles outbreak in Swansea, Wales, has hit over 800 this week in a ‘missing generation’ of un-vaccinated children)

The study on the MMR vaccine linking to autism was poor and should have never been published anyway. It’s sad that so many children are now suffering the consequences of not being vaccinated. People are far too misinformed and untrusting for their own good sometimes.

Absolutely, that’s one of the points I was driving at:

Measles can be deadly. It’s a proven fact. In 2011 the World Health Organisation estimated that there were 158,000 deaths caused by Measles worldwide.

The ‘research’ linking the MMR vaccine to Autism was shoddy, unreplicated and since discredited. The chump who conducted it was struck off the medical register for it because it was so flawed.

Yet still there are people who refuse to vaccinate their kids… because of what? Rumour? Mythology? Is Autism that abhorrent to them that they’d put the lives and health of their kids and others at risk? Baffling.

[Trigger Warning: Discussion of Eating Disorders and mental illness exploitation]

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:26:00 +0100

Officials at one of the largest eating-disorder treatment centers in the world have complained that modeling agencies have been scouting for “new talent” among their patients.

“We think this is repugnant. People have stood outside our clinic and tried to pick up our girls because they know they are very thin,” the chief doctor at Sweden’s Stockholm Center for Eating Disorders, Dr. Anna-Maria af Sandeberg, told the Metro newspaper.