Category Archives: Children

ADHD vs ADHB

by Harriet Cooke MD, MPH & Rachel Levy, LCSW

It is dangerous to be right on matters on which the established authorities are wrong.  –Voltaire, 1751

hyperactive girlHyperactivity. Lack of focus. Impulsive behavior. Trouble following rules. Difficulty with organization. Many people believe these are symptoms of a disorder, and that medication is necessary to treat this condition. There is a wide movement of dissent, however, that questions the temptation to lump all people with these behaviors into the same condition.

When do such behaviors constitute a disorder? When is ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) simply ADHB (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Behavior)? And is this behavior even a disorder, or simply a personality type? Or is a product of our culture?

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We Survived ADHD Without Drugs! Nov 18, 2015

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Rethinking Psychiatry presents Steve McCrea, MS, author and child advocate, for an interactive evening as he shares his journey raising active, intense, challenging children to adulthood.

Steve will provide perspectives based on personal and professional experience (including scientific research) on challenging questions like:

  • What does the research say about ADHD?
  • Is ADHD a mental disorder or are there other ways to understand it?  Which explanations help our children most?
  • Does stimulant treatment make things better or worse in the long term?
  • What else can be done to help active, intense & adventurous children to thrive?

Steve McCrea MSSteve McCrea, MS is an educator, counselor and author with over 30 years of social services experience. He is the father of three boys, two of whom exhibited all the classic symptoms of ADHD. In addition to doing years of literature research into the ADHD phenomenon, Steve helped create the Trillium Charter School, a child-focused K-12 learning environment where his youngest son thrived. Steve is also the author of “Jerk Radar: How to Stop a Bad Relationship Before It Starts,” a practical guide to avoiding abusive relationships.

Wednesday, November 18, 2015, 7 PM
Blazers Boys & Girls Club
5250 NE Martin Luther King Blvd
Portland, OR

Postpartum Depression: An Epidemic of the 21st Century?

NASW CEU-Logo100x100

1.5 clinical practice CEUs from NASW

Would you be surprised to learn that postpartum depression is  practically unknown in certain cultures?

Virginia Elliott, CD PCD (DONA), examines:

  • What is “Postpartum Depression”?
  • How do different cultures support new mothers worldwide?
  • What is the impact of family, community & societal support on moms’ mental health?
  • What about medical treatment when social support is lacking?
  • How can new moms and babies thrive in the 21st Century?

Virginia L. Elliott, BA, has extensive professional training and expertise in birth trauma, postpartum depression, and domestic violence during pregnancy and new parenthood. She has personal experience of postpartum depression with her youngest son.

Ms. Elliott is an Internationally Certified Birth and Postpartum Doula (DONA International); certified by the International Center for Traditional Childbearing (12 years); and a La Leche League International Leader (14 years).

When: Wednesday, April 15, 2015; 6:45 PM
Where: National College of Natural Medicine (NCNM)

We Survived “ADHD” Without Drugs!

1.5 CEUs from NASW

Rethinking Psychiatry presents Steve McCrea, MS, author and child advocate, for an interactive evening as he shares his journey raising active, intense, challenging children to adulthood.

Steve will provide perspectives based on personal and professional experience (including scientific research) on challenging questions like:

  • What exactly is meant by “ADHD”?
  •  Is it really a “mental disorder?” Or what is it?
  •  Does stimulant treatment make things better or worse in the long term?
  •  What else can be done to help our active, intense and adventurous children to thrive?

When: Wednesday, February 18, 7:00 PM
Where: First Congregational Church, Portland, OR

Foster Youth & the Mental Health System – Feb 19, 2014

What works and what doesn’t?

A young person in foster care is 4.5 times more likely to be on psychotropic medications than youths not in foster care.  In some states, nearly 40% of all foster children are receiving psychotropic medications – often in doses higher than those recommended for adults.

Our featured guest speakers for February will include:

  • Stephen McCrea, Supervisor at the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) for Children of Multnomah and Washington Counties
  • Pamela Butler, Program Director at the Oregon Foster Youth Connection
  • A panel of former foster youths advocating for change in the foster care system

Hear former foster youths tell about their experiences with the mental health system and foster care.  We hope you can join us to hear their stories, and to discuss how we can all better support this very vulnerable population.

October Meeting – Weds, Oct 17, 7pm

Cinder Fisher, founder of MOMSJoin us for our October monthly meeting!  Our special guest speaker will be Cindi Fisher, founder of the MOMS movement.

Meeting details & map

MOMS Fundraiser – Sept 21

Community Building Dinner & Fun Fundraiser!

MOMS logoPlease join MOMS in their vision of transforming mental health care through re-inventing communities where hearts heal.

Fundraising dinner: Sept 21, 2012  Proceeds to send two volunteers to Michael Meade’s Mentorship Training. Event details…

Come and learn why MOMS:

  • Fasted 100 days in 2010
  • Walked 85 miles in 2011
  • Walked 100 miles in 2012
  • Shared their concerns at Oregon State Hospital in Portland, Washington State Governor’s Office, and Western State Hospital’s CEO office.

Can’t make it?  Please make a $10 Paypal donation
More information about MOMS

MOMS 100-mile walk July 23-24

Cindi Fisher, founder of MOMS Movement

Two mothers, each with a child who was failed by the “standard of care” within the current psycho-pharmaceutical treatment model, will be walking 100 miles to shine a light on how our systems are broken and have failed us.

The walk begins in at the Portland First Unitarian Church, July 23 at noon.  From there, stops will include the Portland Oregon State Hospital, the Clark County Courthouse in Vancouver, and the Western State Hospital in Lakewood, Washington.

Download flier with complete details

Support this walk by making a tax deductible donation, and by joining these mothers in their walk.

For more information, contact Cindi Fisher,

Phone: 360-254-8703
Email: momsmovement@gmail.com
Website: http://www.mentalhealthrightsyes.com

Second Annual Symposium

Friday & Saturday, May 11 – 12, 2012

CEU’s available for LCSW’s & LPC’s each day.

Join us at our second annual symposium as we continue to foster collaboration and build community in the mental health arena.  Our theme this year is Renaming and Reclaiming Our Mental Health Story: Highlighting Our Personal Journeys, Experience & Legal Rights

This is an inclusive forum for mental health professionals, organizations, and those seeking to learn more about holistic and integrative treatment options for mental health issues. We will be highlighting personal stories, practitioner experiences, and clarifying individual’s legal rights..

James Gottstein of PsychRights.org

Keynote Speaker, James Gottstein, Esq.

Founder of PsychRights Law Project for Psychiatric Rights whose mission is to mount a strategic litigation campaign against forced psychiatric drugging and electroshock across the United States. Winner of four important Alaska Supreme Court cases involving psychiatric rights.

Click here for details
Symposium program and resource guide (pdf)

Press Release (pdf)

7 Reasons America’s Mental Health Industry is a Threat to Our Sanity

Bruce Levineby Bruce E. Levine in AlterNet

Drug industry corruption, scientifically unreliable diagnoses and pseudoscientific research have compromised the values of the psychiatric profession.

The majority of psychiatrists, psychologists and other mental health professionals “go along to get along” and maintain a status quo that includes drug company corruption, pseudoscientific research and a “standard of care” that is routinely damaging and occasionally kills young children. If that sounds hyperbolic, then you probably have not heard of Rebecca Riley, and how the highest levels of psychiatry described her treatment as “appropriate and within responsible professional standards.”   Read more