Book Review: The Myth of Mental Illness by Thomas S. Szasz

pile of sparkling drug capsules scattered on pink surface

IN HIS BOOK The Myth of Mental Illness: Foundation of a Theory of Personal Conduct, psychiatrist Thomas S. Szasz argued that mental and physical maladies are about as similar as apples and oranges. Szasz believed it was erroneous to conflate the impact of environmental stressors on the mind with physical disease. Moreover, he did not believe that the subjective experience of life as problematic was tantamount to having a sickness.

“The notion of mental illness derives its main support from such phenomena as syphilis of the brain or delirious conditions—intoxications, for instance —in which persons are known to manifest various peculiarities or disorders of thinking and behavior.” Szasz explained, “Correctly speaking, however, these are diseases of the brain, not of the mind.” 

The level of rigorous self-examination Szasz applied to his field of study is as edifying as it is exacting. For example, he felt it was inaccurate to presume that minor neurological defects or psycho-chemical factors were at the root of all so-called mental illnesses. He saw this notion as absurd as it bypassed the influence of other factors such as individual needs, standards, aspirations, and value systems. 

It is important to note when reading The Myth of Mental Illness that it was published prior to the development of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) technologies that arrived in the 1970s. Though neuroimaging had existed since the late 1800s, it was primitive and unable to harvest the kind of detailed data available today. For example, current research shows that there are gray matter abnormalities in patients with narcissistic personality disorder and structural and functional differences in antisocial brains. This kind of evidence did not exist when Szasz wrote his book.

“The notion of mental illness thus serves mainly to obscure the everyday fact that life for most people is a continuous struggle.”

Thomas S. Szasz

In absence of the evidence available today, it makes sense that Szasz held that the theoretical concept of mental illness was a metaphor rather than a real malady. He spent much of his career vehemently opposing what he regarded as coercive psychiatry, something that is truly admirable considering that he practiced in an era when it was common for husbands who had grown tired of their wives to label mentally ill and have them institutionalized. Such practices are still widespread today, the most high profile example being the conservatorship of performing artist Britney Spears.

Szasz audaciously argued that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders (DSM) was a collection of unsubstantiated diagnoses that could be used to serve systems of oppression. He was determined to hold his profession to the highest standards and demand proof for the theoretical frameworks put forth in the DSM, which are constantly evolving. In the absence of proof, Szasz argued that the idea of mental illness was a superstition invented in a feeble attempt to understand people who were “disabled by living” as opposed to diseased. 

“The role of all these belief systems [is] to act as social tranquilizers.”

Thomas S. Szasz

“The notion of mental illness thus serves mainly to obscure the everyday fact that life for most people is a continuous struggle,” Szasz writes, “Not for biological survival, but for a ‘place in the sun,’ ‘peace of mind,’ or some other human value.”

Szasz believed that psychiatry was as dogmatic as any theology. He held that psychiatry is to democracy as religion is to theocracy, pointing to involuntary, court-ordered mental health treatments as a social scourge. Instead, Szasz advocated for informed consent so that mental health treatment could function as a partnership instead of an expression of might.

Szasz believed that, “…the notion of mental illness has outlived whatever usefulness it might have had […] it now functions merely as a convenient myth.” He described it as the “true heir to religious myths in general, and to the belief in witchcraft in particular.”

He issued a stern warning, “the role of all these belief systems [is] to act as social tranquilizers, thus encouraging the hope that mastery of certain specific problems may be achieved by means of substitutive (symbolic-magical) operations.”

If society is to improve and evolve it needs curmudgeons like Szasz to turn a jaundiced eye on its practices and exercise critical thinking to challenge the status quo. He had no illusions about the reality that the concept of mental illness is lucrative for pharmaceutical companies and neither should we.

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Book Review: ‘Unmasking Manipulation’ by Meredith Wesley

Unmasking Manipulation: Maneuvering the Undertow with Shrewdness and Innocence by Meredith Wellesley

MEREDITH WESLEY’s Unmasking Manipulation: Maneuvering the Undertow with Shrewdness and Innocence is the first book I’ve selected to review because it is an excellent self-help resource.

I had the honor of endorsing the book in 2020, the year of its publication after the author sent me an advanced copy. I knew that the focus of the book was psychological manipulation but what came as a pleasant surprise was that Wesley had written a how-to manual for women seeking to untangle themselves from the powerful tentacles of psycho-emotional abuse.

I mentioned that Unmasking Manipulation is written for women, as it uses the feminine gaze and its contents speak directly to anyone who has experienced manipulation in the context of misogyny. Keeping in mind that the women’s rights movement began in 1848 and has been in progress for less than two hundred years, it is essential that women share their stories and perspectives in a world that has historically erased them. 

Perhaps the most valuable part of the book is Wesley’s ability to detail a range of manipulation tactics and teach readers to recognize them in daily life. However, another characteristic of the book I found especially useful is the practical way that it is structured into sections, each one addressing common aspects of the manipulation process. Wesley excels at explaining complex topics in clear and direct language, which is helpful for readers in the early stages of recovery from psycho-emotional abuse who may be struggling with anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress.

In Unmasking Manipulation Wesley compares misogynistic abusive power and control to warfare and illustrates why she has come to this conclusion. She effectively articulates the shocking sensation of having one’s face pressed up against the glass of the systemic oppression of women.

Unmasking Manipulation: Maneuvering the Undertow with Shrewdness and Innocence by Meredith Wesley is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other fine book stores.

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Dylan Farrow’s Statement on Episode 2 of Allen v Farrow

Dylan Farrow | Complete Statement | Allen v Farrow | Episode 2

FOR THREE DECADES powerful people have spoken for and spoken over Dylan Farrow, silencing her voice and robbing her of the opportunity to tell her story in her own words. Despite relentless and public gaslighting from people who ought to have protected her, she has never wavered in her testimony.

Tonight Episode 2 of the documentary miniseries Allen v Farrow will air on HBO. It features disturbing audiovisual footage of 7-year-old Dylan disclosing the abuse she allegedly suffered at the hands of her father in 1992. Dylan Farrow reminds us that in the post #MeToo era, it is important to create safe spaces for survivors of sexual abuse to tell their stories.

Dylan Farrow’s Statement on Episode 2 of ‘Allen v Farrow’

Today, Dylan Farrow posted the following statement on Twitter:

“I’m writing this because to be totally honest I have been losing sleep and overcome with anxiety. Tonight’s episode of Allen v. Farrow docuseries features a video of me as a seven-year-old child disclosing my abuse to my mother.

“My mother gave me this video when I became an adult to do whatever I wanted with it.

“It shows me as I was then, a young, vulnerable child. “Little Dylan,” whom I’ve tried since to protect.

“Deciding to allow this tape to be viewed now publicly in this way has not been easy. I myself had resisted ever watching it until now. It had been long stored away in a closet. Scared. Buried.

“I almost didn’t offer it to the filmmakers, because being this vulnerable in public is absolutely terrifying for me. My fear in letting this tape come to light is that I am putting Little Dylan in the court of public opinion.

While I have been able to take the stones thrown at me as an adult, to think of that happening t this little girl is stomach-churning. But I decided to let them share in the hopes that Little Dylan’s voice might now help others suffering in silence feel heard, understood, and less alone. And that my testimony might also help parents, relatives, friends, loved ones, and the world, in general, understand first-hand how an abused child might speak and interpret these horrific events.

“There is a third reason as well.

“Personally, I had for decades pushed “Little Dylan” away as a coping mechanism. So part of my goal in allowing her to now speak is also to try and find some healing for me and my childhood self. It’s an attempt to make them whole again, and find some peace and closure.

“Ever since news of her abuse was inadvertently made public, I, my siblings, and my mother have all been subjected to an endless barrage of vitriolic slander and baseless rebuke; derision so painful that I separated myself from her in self-defense. I hid her away in a closet with the tape too – hidden, afraid, sad, and hurt.

“If you watch this video, I very much hope you will do so with empathy, compassion, and an open mind and heart and not use this as an opportunity to attack, turn away, criticize, mock; or to further shun “Little Dylan” and in doing so shame and silence the millions of abused children who are suffering in the world today. This is the most vulnerable part of who I am.

“I hope this tape helps us all find ways to allow painful secrets to come safely out of their closets so we can all heal and move forward in strength and peace. No longer ashamed, buried, scared, sad, and silent.

“To all other survivors, please know that your truth is valid and there are those who will listen. RAINN is always available at 800-656-4673.”

References

  • Farrow, Dylan. (2017) Official Twitter, Twitter.com. Retrieved February 28, 2021.

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