A Myth in Creation

VICE News published the article ' The Movement Against Psychiatry ' yesterday by Shayla Love. The article examines the anti-psychiatry and critical psychiatry movements, and also features several quotes from me. My communication with Shayla Love was more than just the featured quotes, and it has become apparent to me after conversations with several friends that I should offer more context and background. So, this blogpost is an attempt to do that. I occupy a somewhat uncomfortable position on the critical spectrum. I do not identify as a "critical psychiatrist" because I do not think "critical" serves well as an identity function. The word also means different things in different contexts, and has different nuances and connotations, ranging from fertile and philosophically robust critiques to serving as a euphemism for views that embody anything but critical virtues. I am wary of extreme criticisms of psychiatry – of which there is no shortage – that rely