Friday, June 7, 2019

Psychiatric Schizophrenic Healing Autobiography Wisdom And Theories

By Donald Lewis


When it comes to writers familiar with psychiatry and theory, the late Ronald David Laing was one of the best. For, Laing had a lot of experience in the area even after having to repeat a series of college exams. In a partial psychiatric schizophrenic healing autobiography wisdom, madness and folly, Laing suggests that the failure was due to remarks made at a university function rather than actual test scores on a number of tests.

Laing was a Scottish psychiatrist whom wrote entirely on the topic of psychosis and schizophrenia. In fact, the psychiatrists has received a number of film and book credits whether related to personal work or, the work of others. Most often, the body of work attributed to Laing is based on the unorthodox treatments and community built for clients with which the psychiatrist worked over the course of a lifetime.

With views which often ran clockwise to orthodoxy in treatment such as medications and electroshock therapy, there was often a great deal of controversy with regards to Laing's work. Regardless, as the psychiatrist saw the feelings of clients as reality rather than symptoms, Laing often saw positive results. Whereas, when it came to schizophrenia and psychosis, Laing saw both as theories rather than mental illnesses.

While labeled as anti-psychiatry by others in the field and a large portion of society, Laing rejected such label and moved forward with a thriving practice. For, the psychiatrist had become accustom to labels as others had been labeling the psychiatrist a New Left thinker for years.

The 2017 film, Mad to Be Normal focuses on Laing's unconventional work in the field of psychiatry. The film portrays the psychiatrist in the 1960s revealing the approach Laing took with regards to the unique community built for clients and unorthodox treatments provided at the time. While this is the case, this is just one of the many films in which the psychiatrist played a part. Whereas, there have been a number of books including the autobiography in which readers can learn a great deal more about Laing, life and the unconventional wisdom placed on society at large during a life well lived.

Even as a child in grammar school, Laing was being labeled as competitive, clever and precocious. For, unlike other children of the same age, Laing loved reading books, participating in track and field and later, becoming a musician and associate at the Royal College of Music. After which, Laing attended medical school and eventually graduated as a mental health care provider from the University of Glasgow.

During the course of studies towards a medical degree, Laing set up a Socratic Club with Bertand Russell as president. After which, Laing failed the first set of final exams. Then, after working in a psychiatric unit for six months, the psychiatrist retook the exams and passed, thus qualifying as a medical health care provider. After which, the psychiatrist became more involved in different areas of the field of psychiatry always pushing for more non-conventional methods of treatment.

Ultimately, while Laing continued to pursue this direction in the field of psychiatry, colleagues continued to reject the ideology presented by the psychiatrist. For, most disagreed with the overwhelming opposition Laing held toward electroshock, insulin shock therapy and medication. Still, Laing moved on providing unorthodox treatment to those whom shared in the same ideology, philosophy and theoretical beliefs and continued to reject the so-called norm when it came to ongoing and more conventional treatments.




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