Chemical Imbalance Theory of Depression: Clearing Up Some Misconceptions
By MARK HOROWITZ (UCL) and JOANNA MONCRIEFF (UCL) The scale of the response to our recent study finding that there was no support for the idea that low serotonin causes
Depression is Probably Not caused by a Chemical Imbalance in the Brain – New Study
By JOANNA MONCRIEFF (UCL) and MARK HOROWITZ (UCL) For three decades, people have been deluged with information suggesting that depression is caused by a “chemical imbalance” in the brain –
How We Have Been Misled About Antidepressants
By JOANNA MONCRIEFF (UCL) Our umbrella review that revealed no links between serotonin and depression has caused shock waves among the general public, but has been dismissed as old news by psychiatric opinion leaders.
2021 CPN conference: ‘Visions of Psychiatry’
Following its cancellation in 2020, the CPN conference returned online in 2021. 75 members met over a May afternoon to hear from three speakers, the talks sharing reflections on socio-political
Update on the RADAR study
By Joanna Moncrieff. Long-term antipsychotic treatment remains the standard recommended treatment for people who have psychotic episodes or a diagnosis of schizophrenia. People who have had just one episode may
Developments of the Shared Experiences and Local Mental Health Systems Project prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic
By Pino Pini. A summary from the SE&LMHS project presentation at the HPFT Recovery Conference, Watford 8/10/2019. The SE&LMHS project is based on the assumption that mental health is not
Why I don’t like the idea that mental disorder is a disease
By Joanna Moncrieff. This blog was inspired by a talk I gave at the conference of the American Association for Philosophy and Psychiatry in May 2017. The title of this talk was: Many
Toronto Critical Psychiatry Reading and Discussion Group
The Toronto Critical Psychiatry Reading and Discussion Group has been meeting since 2018. It has been open to all interested people. The aims of the group have included: 1) a
Critical Psychiatry Network Conferences – A Retrospective
By Hugh Middleton. During the pre-Covid years, the Critical Psychiatry Network ran a series of successful one-day conferences at the University of Nottingham each April. A move to London was
Psychiatry in Transition – Critical Psychiatry Network 2017 conference report
By Joanna Moncrieff. The Critical Psychiatry Network’s 2017 conference “Recovery in a Time of Austerity” raised some tricky issues for the audience and like-minded people, but also pointed to the potential