A “GENERAL THEORY OF MENTAL SUFFERING”, AND THE ROLE OF AN INNOVATIVE NARRATIVE THERAPEUTIC APPROACH
Psychological Thought October 30, 2021 DOI: 10.37708/psyct.v14i2.572 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractMental disorders classified in the DSM (third through fifth editions) can be understood as manifestations of a general theory of mental suffering, in which negative life discourses capture the mind. Recent research indicates the psychedelic psilocybin produces safe and effective outcomes for such states. Drawing on brain plasticity, the article explains how a person can move away from subjection to these dominant discourses and intentionally adopt more acceptable, preferred subjectivities. Using depression as an example, it proposes that an innovative form of narrative therapy could be a safe, effective, and meaningful approach for conditions including anxiety, addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and anorexia nervosa.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Interventions | narrative therapy psilocybin |
| Topics | Addiction Anxiety |
| Keywords | Psychotherapist Narrative Context archaeology |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key finding | An innovative form of narrative therapy, grounded in brain plasticity and the concept of escaping negative discourses, could be a safe, effective, and meaningful approach for mental suffering such as depression, anxiety, addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and anorexia nervosa. |
Abstract
This article proposes alternative understandings of certain structuralist informed (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - DSM-IIIrd to 5th Eds.) configurations of mental disorders. Life’s negative discourses and the mind’s captive responses present a “general theory of mental suffering” which phenomena are classified as modernist, DSM mental disorders, such as addictions, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. Recent research has indicated that the psychedelic drug, psilocybin, has produced safe and effective outcomes for these mental suffering states. In this context, the article draws on the concept of brain plasticity order, firstly, to identify the means for a person to move away from subjection of life’s negative, dominant discourses that “capture” the brain, and then to intentionally move towards more acceptable, preferred, ethical subjectivities. These explanations, using the phenomenon of depression, provide the foundation for further proposals that an innovative form of narrative therapy could be a safe, effective and meaningful approach for persons in relationship with other similar ways of mental suffering, such as, anxiety, addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and anorexia nervosa.