Manic Depressives’ Self-Help Group

In the Jan. 12 Orange County View Section, there was an article by Penelope Moffet regarding the Manic Depressive Assn., a self-help group.

This seemingly harmless article was saying how great it is that the manic depressive can now be helped. “Helped” is a real joke. These advisers to the self-help group are psychiatrists. Their help consists of masking the problem with very dangerous drugs and electro-convulsive (shock) therapy. Therapy? They are not fixing any problem, just controlling people with drugs.

When are the psychiatrists going to admit that they have no answers? Their solution is drugs and more drugs--hide the problem, don’t confront it. And at what price? By their own admission lithium can cause memory loss, confusion and irreversible kidney damage.

Wake up, society! We have delegated the responsibility of the mental health of our nation to a group (psychiatrists) who have had no major achievements in the field of mental health. Unless, of course, you think psychiatric drugs (of which LSD is one) have helped our society.

As a society, we demand excellence in every profession--except psychiatry. And yet somehow we allow ourselves to be brainwashed by this cult of the medical profession into believing that one cannot really expect to cure anyone’s mental disorder. And thus we are lulled into accepting their mediocrity or outright damaging treatments.

The Times needs to stop acting as a public relations arm to the field of psychiatry and demand that workable technologies be found.

DOLLY STOKES

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