Below are recommendations for books, articles, and podcasts relating to mental health. Please feel free to comment with any recommendations of your own to add to this list!
Books
Mad at School: Rhetorics of Mental Disability and Academic Life
By Margaret Price Foreword by Tobin Sieber
“Mad at School explores the contested boundaries between disability, illness, and mental illness in the setting of U.S. higher education. Much of the research and teaching within disability studies assumes a disabled body but a rational and energetic (an “agile”) mind. In Mad at School , scholar and disabilities activist Margaret Price asks: How might our education practices change if we understood disability to incorporate the disabled mind?Mental disability (more often called “mental illness”) is a topic of fast-growing interest in all spheres of American culture, including popular, governmental, aesthetic, and academic. Mad at School is a close study of the ways that mental disabilities impact academic culture. Investigating spaces including classrooms, faculty meeting rooms, and job searches, Price challenges her readers to reconsider long-held values of academic life, including productivity, participation, security, and independence. Ultimately, she argues that academic discourse both produces and is produced by a tacitly privileged “able mind,” and that U.S. higher education would benefit from practices that create a more accessible academic world.Mad at School is the first book to use a disability-studies perspective to focus on the ways that mental disabilities impact academic culture at institutions of higher education. Individual chapters examine the language used to denote mental disability; the role of “participation” and “presence” in student learning; the role of “collegiality” in faculty work; the controversy over “security” and free speech that has arisen in the wake of recent school shootings; and the marginalized status of independent scholars with mental disabilities.” – UMichiganPress
Fatigue
By: Jennifer Acker
Description:
A work about chronic fatigue and its affects on her life as a writer and in academia as an editor and teacher.
“An inspiring true story about the twists of fate that challenge a couple’s expectations of love, marriage, and reliance.
Jennifer Acker and her husband had been married for eleven years when she was blindsided by a mysterious and undiagnosed incapacitation. Accustomed to their independent routines, they will have to reform both their lives to accommodate the enervating illness. As Jennifer’s sense of self falls away, however, the couple is struck again. Her husband’s “frozen shoulder” all but locks one side of his upper body, leaving him in excruciating pain, partially immobilized, and as dependent on Jennifer as she is on him. But their needs are not in competition. In communion and reciprocal caregiving, they learn to love—and to explore—each other anew.”
Committed
By: Susan Burch
“Between 1902 and 1934, the United States confined hundreds of adults and children from dozens of Native nations at the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians, a federal psychiatric hospital in South Dakota. But detention at the Indian Asylum, as families experienced it, was not the beginning or end of the story. For them, Canton Asylum was one of many places of imposed removal and confinement, including reservations, boarding schools, orphanages, and prison-hospitals. Despite the long reach of institutionalization for those forcibly held at the Asylum, the tenacity of relationships extended within and beyond institutional walls.
In this accessible and innovative work, Susan Burch tells the story of the Indigenous people—families, communities, and nations, across generations to the present day—who have experienced the impact of this history. Drawing on oral history interviews, correspondence, material objects, and archival sources, Burch reframes the histories of institutionalized people and the places that held them. Committed expands the boundaries of Native American history, disability studies, and U.S. social and cultural history generally.” –UNC PRESS
Free US Access via Amazon.com
https://www.amazon.com/Committed-Remembering-Institutions-Critical-Indigeneities-ebook/dp/B08HGXQ396/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1612885331&sr=8-1
Journals
Wordgathering: A Journal of Disability Poetry and Literature
Wordgathering: A Journal of Disability Poetry and Literature (ISSN: 2690-7089) is a digital, Open Access journal of disability poetry, literature, and the arts. Submission and quarterly publication are free. Authors and other contributors retain copyright to their work. Effective Volume 14, Issue 2 (June 2020), work is published here under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license. This arrangement is made possible by generous support from the Office of Interdisciplinary Programs and Outreach at the Burton Blatt Institute (housed in the College of Law at Syracuse University) and the Syracuse University Libraries.
One of our MHM Organizers, Chanika Svetvilas, has her artwork featured in this volume! Congratulations Chanika!
Volume 15, Issue 1 – Spring 2021
Use the links below to view the works:
Podcasts
Disability Visibility
Hosted by Alice Wong
“This is life from a disabled lens. Disability Visibility is a podcast hosted by San Francisco night owl Alice Wong featuring conversations on politics, culture, and media with disabled people. If you’re interested in disability rights, social justice, and intersectionality, this show is for you. It’s time to hear more disabled people in podcasting and radio. Named one of the 15 best podcasts by women that you’re not listening to by Refinery 29 in 2021. Disability Visibility is a production of the Disability Visibility Project, an online community dedicated to creating, sharing, and amplifying disability media and culture.” – Disability Visability Project
Link for Podcast: https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/podcast-2/
Articles
Even If You Can’t See It: Invisible Disability and Neurodiversity
By: Sejal Shah
Our 2019 Mental Health Month Keynote Speaker, author Sejal Shah writes about coming to terms with living with a major mood disorder and the complex cultural, practical, and emotional ramifications of that experience while a graduate student and as an academic.
Shah, Sejal. “Even If you Can’t see It: Invisible Disability and Neurodiversity”. Kenyon Review Online, (2019).
Admission: Madness and (Be)coming Out Within and Through Spaces of Confinement
Abstract:
This article examines, through a performative narrative, an installation artwork that I created in May 2008 titled Admission. This artwork and reflective writing embodies a form of creative inquiry into issues surrounding and the intersections of (be)coming out, nonvisible disabilities, and representations of mental illness. Deleuze and Guattari’s concepts of becoming and the rhizome inform my investigation into (be)coming out, not as an event thought of as a singular moment defined through a fixed notion of the subject, but as an ongoing process of creating connections between subjects understood as multiplicities. In its conclusions, this article proposes that the kind of inquiry characteristic of artmaking can offer unique opportunities for understanding the complexities of the intersections of subjectivity and (be)coming out as a person with a mental illness
Eisenhauer, J. Admission: Madness and (Be)coming Out Within and Through Spaces of Confinement. Disability Studies Quarterly 29, (2009).
Leading with Panic. Why Leaders Need to Talk More Openly About Anxiety
By: Sanjit Sethi
Excerpt:
“Just over twenty years ago I was diagnosed with severe anxiety / panic disorder. I have been careful to only share my struggles around this illness with a few family members and close friends. That is, until now. I am a father, husband, son, brother, curator, artist, and president of a remarkable college of art and design. I have decided to speak about this now because I am witnessing an epidemic across our academic institutions, workplaces, and communities regarding anxiety and mental illness and believe we can no longer speak about this in the third person.”
Sethi, S. Leading with Panic. Medium https://medium.com/@sanjitsethi/leading-with-panic-bb6e076f4145 (2019).
Yale Will Not Save You
By: Esmé Weijun Wang
From the collection Schizophrenias
Excerpt:
“”I went to Yale” is shorthand for I have schizoaffective disorder, but I’m not worthless.”
Wang, Esmé Weijun. Yale Will Not Save You. The Sewanee Review http://thesewaneereview.com/articles/yale-will-not-save-you.
Common Academic Experiences No One Talks About: Repeated Rejection, Impostor Syndrome, and Burnout
By: Lisa Jaremka, Joshua M Ackerman, Bertram Gawronski, Nicholas O Rule, Kate Sweeny , Linda R Tropp, Molly A. Metz, Ludwin Molina, William S. Ryan, & S Brooke Vick
Abstract:
Academic life is full of learning, excitement, and discovery. However, academics also experience professional challenges at various points in their career, including repeated rejection, impostor syndrome, and burnout. These negative experiences are rarely talked about publicly, creating a sense of loneliness and isolation for people who presume they are the only ones affected by such setbacks. However, nearly everyone has these experiences at one time or another, and thus talking about them should be a normal part of academic life. The goal of this article is to explore and destigmatize the common experiences of rejection, impostor syndrome, and burnout by sharing a collection of short personal stories from scholars at various stages of their career with various types of academic positions. Josh Ackerman, Kate Sweeny, and Ludwin Molina discuss how they have dealt with repeated rejection. Linda Tropp, Nick Rule, and Brooke Vick share experiences with impostor syndrome. Finally, Bertram Gawronski, Lisa Jaremka, Molly Metz, and Will Ryan discuss how they have experienced burnout.
Jaremka, L. et al. Common Academic Experiences No One Talks About: Repeated Rejection, Impostor Syndrome, and Burnout. Perspectives on Psychological Science (2019).
A Systematic Review of Empirically Based Universal Design for Learning: Implementation and Effectiveness of Universal Design in Education for Students with and without Disabilities at the Postsecondary Level
By: Soonhwa Seok, Boaventura DaCosta, Russ Hodges
Abstract:
This systematic review explored methods of UDL implementation for postsecondary students with and without disabilities and the degree to which these methods are effective. The authors examined 17 empirically based studies published across 12 journals focused on the application of UDL principles. The studies were analyzed with regard to 1) participant information, 2) courses and delivery mode, 3) independent and dependent variables, 4) implementation strategies, and 5) effectiveness of implementation. The analysis revealed that 15 of the studies reported effective outcomes, one study resulted in blended effects, and one did not discuss implementation. Two studies used a blended delivery mode for special education courses, and four studies used online delivery modes for a teacher education course and three professional development programs. Other studies used face-to-face instruction for teacher education, general courses, and workshops. The most common independent variables were UDL principle-based course design and implementation, followed by hands-on activities, training of instructors, peer-led team learning, and a collaborative professional development model. The dependent variables included course evaluation, learning outcomes, such as revision of lesson plans and technology use, and level of confidence or acquisition of knowledge about UDL and disabilities. Finally, multiple instructional strategies focusing on the UDL principles were utilized, to include web-based computer-mediated communication, web-based class management systems, interactions with technology and other participants, and learning community. Overall, the findings revealed promising learning outcomes as supported by the existing literature regarding the effectiveness and practicality of UDL for students with and without disabilities at the postsecondary level.
Ph.D. students face significant mental health challenges
Excerpt:
” Approximately one-third of Ph.D. students are at risk of having or developing a common psychiatric disorder like depression, a recent study reports. Although these results come from a small sample—3659 students at universities in Flanders, Belgium, 90% of whom were studying the sciences and social sciences—they are nonetheless an important addition to the growing literature about the prevalence of mental health issues in academia. One key message for scientific trainees that are struggling with these types of challenges, write co-authors Katia Levecque and Frederik Anseel of Ghent University in an email to Science Careers, is that “you are not alone.” Beyond that, the authors encourage Ph.D. students to appreciate how important it is to take care of themselves. “Mental health problems can develop into serious threats to one’s wellbeing and career, and can have detrimental consequences in the long-term,” they write. So, if you’re struggling, it’s important to “[s]eek professional help or seek help in your personal environment, even if you think it’s probably a temporary thing.” “
Should Suicidal Students Be Forced to Leave Campus?
By Rachel Aviv
Excerpt:
“After three days in the hospital, W.P. was preparing to leave when his mother was informed, through a phone call from Princeton’s director of student life, that W.P. was no longer allowed to attend classes or return to his dorm. At a meeting the next day, two university administrators, who had reviewed some of W.P.’s medical records, expressed concern about the fact that he had checked himself out of the hospital a day early, against the hospital’s recommendation. They noted that this was his third suicide attempt in three years. (The previous two times he had been home with his parents, and, he said, the suicide attempts were pleas for attention.) The administrators urged him to voluntarily withdraw from the university for a year, so that he could get intensive psychiatric treatment. They explained that in cases where students pose a threat to themselves this was “always the outcome.” They told him that if he didn’t take a leave of absence he would be involuntarily withdrawn, which would be reflected on his transcript. They also instructed him that he was not permitted on campus.”
Aviv, R. Should Suicidal Students Be Forced to Leave Campus? The New Yorker. (2014).
A Prominent Economist’s Death Prompts Talk of Mental Health in the Professoriate
By: Emma Pettit
“Alan B. Krueger, a titan in economics, died by suicide last weekend. As colleagues and admirers mourned, they also engaged in a conversation about mental illness in the professoriate and how professional success does not suppress personal struggles.”
Pettit, E. A Prominent Economist’s Death Prompts Talk of Mental Health in the Professoriate. The Chronicle of Higher Education (2019).
How Colleges Today Are Supporting Student Mental Health
By: Amy L. Eva
“Colleges and universities are addressing well-being in students with new and innovative approaches.”
Eva, Amy L. How Colleges Today Are Supporting Student Mental Health. Greater Good (2019).
3 Ways Colleges Can Help Faculty Members Avoid Burnout
Excerpt:
“Faculty well-being should not be a difficult cause to rally behind. Happy, healthy faculty members make better teachers and better researchers and are less likely to leave their jobs. If institutions hope to flourish, it’s in their interest to make sure their faculty members flourish, too.”
On Faculty and Mental Illness: An Interview with Margaret Price
Excerpt:
“Finally, a resource guide has been published that focuses specifically on how to deal with psychiatric disabilities in the academic workplace. The free guide — Promoting Supportive Academic Environments for Faculty With Mental Illnesses — is the culmination of many years of research.
What follows is a Q&A (edited for clarity and brevity) with one of the guide’s authors, Margaret Price, an associate professor of English at Ohio State University. With the recent high-profile suicide of the beloved professor Will Moore at Arizona State University, and the prevalence of mental-health problems among graduate students and others in academe, this resource guide — if it’s put to good use by institutions — will be invaluable.”