Mad, Bad And Sad: A History of Women and the Mind Doctors from 1800 to the Present

Product Information

However, one gets the sense that the loose focus on women came only after the book was written, more as a suggestion from her editor to pare the tome down, rather than being the author's incipient specialization. The developments in the psychiatric field are obviously related to whatever socio-political situation there was in particular periods and therefore, the progress in the understanding and treatment of female patients were naturally tied to the fight for women's rights and liberation in a rampant patriarchal world. I found the sections about the various amendments to the diagnostic manuals for mental health rather heavy going and could quite happily have skipped those bits had I not thought I might miss something interesting in doing so. Following the medical model, clinicians have to say whether an individual should have the label attached to them as a “yes-no” decision based on certain specified criteria.

One comes away from the book, though, with a very clear and deep understanding of the "where are we going and where have we been" of Western psychology---which is a great thing if you're interested---even if it is quite obviously written by an unabashed advocate of psychoanalysis. By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. When homosexuality was illegal in the UK it was regarded as an illness, with its own numerical code.

Menstruation, in whatever form it took was considered dangerous because of its associations with madness and the mysterious condition known as 'hysteria'. it's one of those places where there is no end note giving a source that is most sorely needed when providing those kind of statistics.

It both affirms common perceptions of the field and surprises; taking mental illness out of hospitals, off couches, and into our everyday lives – from popular malaise to the lithium in 7-Up. The sheer density of the material ultimately defeated me, and when I found myself skimming entire chapters I knew it was time to set this one aside. Anorexia does not kill off more women in that age group than any other cause, never mind *12 times* as many deaths as any other single cause. Because Appignanesi has a complex story to tell there is no blaming at work in this wonderful book, but a shrewd and sympathetic apprehension of what is at stake in the difficult histories of both the Mind Doctors and those they seek to help.The Freud Museum would like to thank the Museum Dr Guislain, Ghent, Belgium, for their support in the making of the exhibition.

The deeper I delved, the less credible the author seemed and as I finally read the last 4 pages I have been avoiding for a solid week, I felt judged and stigmatized.At first, hospitals for the mentally ill were nothing more than storage facilities to keep the patient out of the families hair. The usual answer is that since psychopathy cannot be treated effectively then it is a matter for the judiciary. Appignanesi tirelessly explores causes, symptoms and back histories to find answers, refusing to believe that madness comes out of nowhere. The subject is interesting, and the post-Freud chapters were especially fascinating, but the book was poorly executed. Mad, Bad, and Sad' is centred upon Europe and US, so this is mainly included as changes in symptoms and diagnoses over time.