To think psychiatry is misogynistic?

[tvde]

I have been reading works of feminist psychologists such as Jess Taylor and critical works of people such as Joanna moncrieff.

the argument is:

• Trauma responses to abuse are normal, rational, and proportionate to what someone has experienced.
• What is often labelled as “mental illness” can actually be understandable reactions to violence and oppression.
• The mental health system has a history of pathologising women’s responses, especially after abuse, instead of addressing the trauma itself.
• This can become a form of victim blaming, where women are judged for their reactions (e.g. being “too emotional,” “unstable,” or “making bad choices”).
• These patterns are shaped by broader systems like patriarchy and racism, which influence how people are diagnosed and treated.
• Common narratives shift responsibility away from perpetrators and subtly place it on victims (e.g. questioning behaviour, choices, or credibility).
• Widespread rape myths reinforce this—such as believing it’s not “real” rape without physical resistance or injuries, or that men “didn’t mean to.”
• theyre given drugs which don’t actually have good success rates (see moncrieff)

I see this countless times working with women and child victims.
Have you experienced this to?

In terms of OPs original post - I do think psychiatry is misogynistic - because society is, and historically has been, so psychiatry will naturally follow. This doesn't necessarily mean that men will be treated better by psychiatry, but that treatment will be influenced by sexism. Also psychiatry can be/has been used as a tool of control, so it will have (or have had) elements that discriminate against the group without power (women, black people, gay people, etc).

But in general ... there are FAR bigger issues than sexism! The whole understanding of and framing of MH issues, behaviour, trauma responses ... psychology seems to have an idea but psychiatry and thus MH services have lagged far behind.

I was pondering recently (I still sometimes feel overwhelmed, angry, and sad at how I was treated and the knock on effect on my life to this day) one particular aspect of all this. Related to the idea of what a "normal" response is, and the idea of taking into account the person's social circumstances.

I had the misfortune to have been (mis)diagnosed as having BPD/EUPD. Therefore every issue I had involving other people was seen as my fault, resulting from me being difficult and a terrible person. They completely failed to take into account that if you are traumatised and vulnerable, abusers are drawn to you. Plus you don't have the same resources around you (eg. financial, or solid trustworthy friendships) so you end up in more dodgy situations (eg. homeless or housed in upsetting/difficult situations) or having to rely on people you'd rather not. As well as perhaps needing to be encouraged to believe you deserve to be treated well and taught to spot red flags! (Rather than be told it's all your fault which makes you bend over backwards to accommodate abusers and chancers.)

Just one example of psychiatry majorly fucking up, where sexism is only a side order.

Anyone with an agenda can scope any argument to support it. Being anti-pharma straight out of the gate distorts and undermines any arguments you may make.
Some MH conditions do respond to drugs, indeed some are totally reliant on drugs to allow the patient to function.

Someone has outed me as working at Camhs. Of course from the people I work with I’m going to be anti pharma. That’s why I invite discussions and challenges to my thinking.
children are impacted by this too, what are your thoughts when this impacts them?

I know more kids helped by meds than harmed by them, although I acknowledge that they are not always the answer.
My daughter is under CAMHS at the moment.
It has been very unimpressive tbh, but we haven’t had the issue of meds/no meds.
It’s a shame the staff have pre-determinations though, as they are likely to miss cases where they would help.

Whilst I get what you mean I also have to disagree.

If someone comes out of a war zone with mental illness it’s still a mental illness. A perfectly understandable response yes but there brain has been altered. Whether you want to call that ‘ill’ or use some other words it’s the same thing people are talking about.

As someone who has had a lot of ECT treatment from some very compassionate and caring clinicians, I find it really hard to hear it referred to only as a "vile" treatment. It remains a hugely stigmatised treatment and I find it very difficult to be open about it even with my closest friends and colleagues because of attitudes like this.

@Silverwombat

It was inhumane for my Nan. It resulted in her being institutionalised for decades. She was raped by her father as a child. She needed support. Not electrodes attached to her head to “shake it out of her”.

do you not think that in 20/30 years it will be viewed like chemo? Like it was all we had but fuck me I wish we had better?

That is a horrible experience and I'm sorry for your nan. The point I'm making is that ECT (like many other medical treatments) has evolved over time and my experience of it now has been very different to the treatment it was decades ago. However it remains hugely stigmatised and that is hard for those of us who continue to have it (and benefit from it in many cases, there's a better evidence for ECT than many other medical treatments)

I hope so - that would be amazing! We shall see.

I know the conversation has moved on but I do think people need to know what Jessica Taylor is about.

https://savageminds.substack.com/p/a-psychologists-victim-ponzi-scheme

Yes probably. And someone to do something meaningful to try and stop it happening to someone else. Didn’t help my second birth was equally poor in terms of care. Both times I didn’t need a c section but lazy doctors pushed for it to make their life easier. After the second the head of midwifery promised me a dedicated specialist midwife if I had anymore kids but the damage has been done tbf.

Look do we really need to silence female academics bringing light to sexual abuse and misogyny just because they’re a bit controversial?

Do you call publishing women’s stories of abuse without their consent ”bringing light to sexual abuse”? I don’t.

The issues with Jessica Taylor are really not that she is “a bit controversial”.

I didn’t read the whole thing because it was really long but do you think she’s the only person doing this? Isn’t that an issue with the law? I’m not going to defend that because it’s morally indefensible but I do find that she gets so much shit for things that men do all the time

Blimey 😳

I’m a bit beyond words that that’s your response.

Why? I’m looking into this at the moment.
do you know legally I could go to any ai platform and request all disclosures of abuse, anonymise them and write about them at length, legally, and publish them? What’s your feelings on that?

My feelings on that are that just because someone can legally do something that doesn’t make it morally or professionally acceptable to do so. And if you can’t see why using abused women’s stories without their consent is of relevance to an “academic’s” work on sexual abuse, I don’t really know how to start to explain this to you.

I think it’s completely morally disgusting but unfortunately legal. My point is that she’s getting so much shit for this. But she’s not the only or first person to do this. And unfortunately it’s not illegal.

What’s happening in family courts is equally appalling. Children not wanting to go to contact with abusive fathers and mothers being pathologized as alienators ruining their relationship and psychologists and cafcasssuggesting custody changes or contact holidays to force a bond with the abuser (via Stockholm syndrome I guess)

I have met many, many psych patients. Most of them have/ had suffered abuse either before they became ill or after, often both. If you are talking about someone diagnosed with PTSD or anxiety/ depression, that is one thing, but when the person has personality disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective, bipolar, unipolar etc, it is very much a problem that requires whatever the appropriate, available treatment is.
Some psychiatrists are crap, like any type of medical professional, but overall they treat patients on an individual basis and they do take into consideration the traumatic experiences a patient has had but the first thing they need to do is get that person to a place where they can basically function properly. You can only get help processing past trauma once you are reasonably well and able.

Maybe it’s not illegal but it is definitely the kind of thing that would get her struck off any professional register. The issue is she doesn’t have a professional body and so can do this with no repercussions.

I know for a fact my brain does not like massive fluctuations of female hormones. I had a great pregnancy, textbook birth, amazing support and zero trauma. Ended up with severe PND.
Subsequently suffered PMDD. I could literally feel the black clouds lifting the moment my period started.
Medication has been life changing for me.
Some mental ill health has nothing to do with trauma.

@LifesabagofRevels

Giving birth to a baby and becoming a mother is a form of small T trauma. Even if you’re not consciously accepting that.

I know and it’s incredibly annoying once someone is operating outside of them.
the problem is she makes a lot more money publishing books, posting on social media, selling courses etc than she would being a licensed professional. I’ve looked at her social media and she doesn’t seem to be giving medical advice. She seems to be an annoying woman who won’t shut up using any means possible to bring attention to her cause.