On February 2, 2001 distinguished sleep and dream researcher Professor J. Allan Hobson had a stroke in his brain stem. For 10 days Hobson could neither sleep nor dream. Then he realised the stroke was localised to the exact part of the brain he had been studying experimentally in his sleep research with cats. Call it poetic justice, or just sheer bad luck, either way Hobson approached the experience like a scientist and decided to document it, just as he had with the cats, but this time from the inside.
In 1938 Orson Wells spooked the American nation with his classic War of the Worlds broadcast.
[Photo by Almight Photography]
In 1938 Orson Wells spooked the American nation with his classic War of the Worlds broadcast. A psychology study of the event makes me wonder if we could be hoodwinked again.
On October 28, 1938 many Americans believed they were being invaded by Martians. This was the result of a Halloween stunt orchestrated by Orson Wells in which he adapted H. G. Wells’ ‘War of the Worlds’ to the radio and broadcast the play as though it was actually happening.
It is estimated that of the 6 million people who heard the broadcast, fully 1.7 million thought it was the news, not a play, while a further 1.2 million were frightened. A few even bought train tickets or drove off in the opposite direction to New York, the supposed epicentre of the alien invasion.
In her new book, Elyn, R. Saks describes the monumental challenges she faced in her journey through madness.
In her new book, Elyn, R. Saks describes the monumental challenges she faced in her journey through madness, but this autobiography is profoundly hopeful. Highly recommended.
Do you know what it’s like to be crazy – not just angry, I mean psychotic? Do you know what it feels like to believe your very thoughts can kill, that your loved ones are imposters conspiring against you? Do you know what it feels like to be restrained with such force you can barely breath, to be pumped full of powerful, toxic drugs, to feel your own self splinter, recede, then disappear? In short, do you know what madness is?
Elyn R. Saks does, and she is determined her diagnosis will not be a death sentence. In her new book ‘The Center Cannot Hold‘, the Professor of Law, Psychology, and Psychiatry at the University of Southern California tells the story of her ongoing battle with schizophrenia. Considering the psychotic breaks she endures, it is incredible she’s managed to build a successful academic career. And yet she has, and this book is the story of her battle through madness, searching for some understanding of the illness she is both fighting and trying to accept as part of herself.
“Elyn Elyn, watermelon”
Elyn R. Saks
Battle. Fight. Struggle. These are all words Saks uses to describe her experience. Nothing sets off these battles more effectively than transition points. When she leaves home to go to university, when she returns home from university, when she begins her academic career, when she has to present a paper at a conference. Each time she’s forced through a period of change or stress, her illness gets worse. Again and again she retreats to the barricades of her mind, sometimes winning, sometimes losing and ending up in hospital.
The descriptions of madness produce some otherworldly writing. Saks recreates the so-called ‘word salad’ (schizophasia) that is often characteristic of those having psychotic breaks. At their first meeting one psychiatrist asks her name:
“My name is Elyn. They used to call me ‘Elyn, Elyn, watermelon.’ At school. Where I used to go. When I am now and having trouble.’
“What kind of trouble?” she asked.
“There’s trouble. Right here in River City. Home of the New Haveners. Where there is no heaven, new or old. I’m just looking for a haven. Can you give me a haven? Aren’t you too young? Why are you crying? I cry because the voices are at the end of time. Time is too old. I’ve killed lots of people.”
And later:
“There’s the killing fields,” I said. “Heads exploding. I didn’t do anything wrong. They just said ‘quake, fake, lake.’ I used to ski. Are you trying to kill me?”
Battle with medication
Like many suffering from serious mental illness, Saks has a love-hate relationship with medication, which is both sworn enemy and occasional saviour. Anti-psychotics in hefty doses can work wonders for some people, clearing the fog of psychosis. But they also exact a price. Side-effects include rapid involuntary movements like lip smacking and rapid blinking, behaviours that can be permanent. The drugs can also cause impotence, lethargy, weight gain and…the list goes on.
Saks’ doctors tell her to keep taking the drugs, but she is scared the side-effects will become permanent. For Saks, the very fact that drugs are required is a sign of weakness; she is continually trying to wean herself off medication, but normally with disastrous consequences.
Fighting stigma and injustice
Saks is well aware of the stigma attached to schizophrenia, learning her lesson early that job offers do not come unless she is economical with the truth. She explains that people with schizophrenia are not psychotic all the time, they have ‘psychotic breaks’ which vary in frequency from one person to another. They are not dangerous to others – their behaviour and language might appear frightening but they pose the greatest threat to themselves.
Through her life she shows it is possible for people with schizophrenia to have a life, to work, to find love, although sadly Saks may be an exception to the general rule.
It is clear that her illness influenced Saks in her choice of academic discipline. Early in her career she worked for a charity championing the rights of those with psychiatric diagnoses. Later she explored the legal ramifications of multiple personality disorders. Now, as a professor at USC she is a leading expert in mental health law.
Hope
Although Saks describes many depressing things, ultimately this is not a depressing book. Yes, it is an honest portrayal of inner torture, but the book is also filled to the brim with determination. Here is a woman who will not give in to the vagaries of her body, who finds a way around, through or under the obstacles life throws at her. From this determination emerges hope. Hope for the future. For Saks, like all of us, nothing is more important than hope.
Most industries have long since adopted the mantra that increasing choice means increasing profits.
For this diverting TED talk Malcolm Gladwell of ‘The Tipping Point’ and ‘Blink’ fame, is asked to discuss the pursuit of happiness. So he talks about the development of spaghetti sauce, quite naturally. This pean is particularly interesting as it shows exactly why consumer markets are incentivised to offer us more choice. The polar opposite of what Barry Schwartz explains in his TED talk: why too much choice is bad for us. The best balance probably lies somewhere in between.
Here’s a puzzle. Some of my favourite research in psychology finds that expressive writing can benefit both physical and mental health. And yet research on the social sharing of negative experience tells us that it doesn’t change the original memory and fails to bring relief. How come benefits are seen from expressive writing – which is often about sharing negative experience – and yet social sharing of emotions doesn’t bring relief? Let’s take a closer look.
‘thanks!’, argues that practising gratitude benefits our happiness, satisfaction with life and physical health.
Dr. Robert A. Emmons’ new positive psychology book, ‘thanks!‘, argues that practising gratitude benefits our happiness, satisfaction with life and physical health.
“Gratitude is the secret to life” – Albert Schweitzer
“Dear God, we paid for all this stuff ourselves, so thanks for nothing.” – Bart Simpson
Invoking the words of the great philosopher Bart Simpson, along with other mere mortals, Dr Robert Emmons makes a great case for the importance of gratitude in life. Thankfully it’s not just the words of Bart Simpson and a few nicely chosen anecdotes on which Emmons is relying, he has scientific evidence. Emmons opens the book with experimental evidence showing how gratefulness can increase happiness by 25%.
Psychology is now the third most popular subject at degree level in the UK. If you’re thinking of studying for a psychology degree and you’re not sure whether it’s for you, then these free Psych 101 lectures from Berkeley are just the thing.
The course covers some basic areas of psychology: learning, sensation, perception, personality and development. The instructor on this course, Professor John Kihlstrom, is a highly respected psychologist at Berkeley, so well worth listening to. You can download the courses to your computer or mp3 player to listen to on the move.
Time and time again research on gaining or losing romantic partners, passing or failing exams, winning or losing elections has found they have little effect on our long-term happiness.
Here’s a really fun lecture by psychologist Dan Gilbert of Stumbling on Happiness fame. He explains why we’re poor at simulating the effect future events will have on us.
Time and time again research on gaining or losing romantic partners, passing or failing exams, winning or losing elections has found they have little effect on our long-term happiness. In fact, Gilbert quotes a recent study finding that almost anything that happened more than three months ago has no effect on our current levels of happiness.
The Manipulation of Human Behavior, published in 1961, contains techniques for interrogation and brainwashing.
The Manipulation of Human Behavior, published in 1961, contains techniques for interrogation and brainwashing. The book’s publication was sponsored by the US Air Force who were worried about what psychological techniques prisoners-of-war might face behind enemy lines. It contains chapters on:
The Use of Drugs in Interrogation
The Potential Uses of Hypnosis in Interrogation
Countermanipulation through Malingering
…and plenty of other fun subjects.
The book itself actually only contains reviews of the publicly available psychological literature on each of these gruesome techniques. The authors do point out, however, that it is likely that parallel, secret investigations have been carried out by police and intelligence agencies.
and 
fame, is asked to discuss the pursuit of happiness. So he talks about the development of spaghetti sauce, quite naturally. This pean is particularly interesting as it shows exactly why consumer markets are incentivised to offer us more choice. The polar opposite of what Barry Schwartz explains in his TED talk: 
‘, argues that practising gratitude benefits our happiness, satisfaction with life and physical health.
fame. He explains why we’re poor at simulating the effect future events will have on us.