Drop The Disorder!: Challenging The Culture Of Psychiatric Diagnosis

Description

In October 2016 Jo Watson hosted the very first ‘A Disorder for Everyone!’ event in Birmingham, with psychologist Dr Lucy Johnstone, to explore (and explode) the culture of psychiatric diagnosis in mental health. To provide a space to continue the debate after the event, Jo also set up the now hugely popular and active Facebook group ‘Drop the Disorder!’.   

Since then, they have delivered events in towns and cities across the UK, bringing together activists, survivors and professionals to debate psychiatric diagnosis. How and why does psychiatric diagnosis hold such power? What harm it can do? What are the alternatives to diagnosis, and how it can be positively challenged?   

This book takes the themes, energy and passions of the AD4E events – bringing together many of the event speakers with others who have stories to tell and messages to share in the struggle to challenge diagnosis.   

This is an essential book for everyone of us who looks beyond the labels.

Author description

Jo Watson is a psychotherapist and activist. She has worked therapeutically for the last 24 years with those who have been victims of sexual abuse/violence and has campaigned on women’s survivor issues for the past three decades. She is, with Dr Lucy Johnstone, the founder and organiser of the ‘A Disorder For Everyone!’ events, she represents the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) on the steering committee for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Prescribed Drug Dependence and is part of the ‘Mad in the UK’ team and a founding member of ‘United for Integrity in Mental Health’ (UIMH).