The Far Side Of Madness by John Weir Perry (30-Apr-2005) Paperback

by John Weir Perry

"John Weir Perry (1914-1998) first met C. G. Jung in Switzerland as a young medical student, where he was intrigued by Jung's assertion that schizophrenia is a natural healing process. During the 1970s, he founded an experimental residential facility called Diabasis in Berkeley, California, designed as a supportive home for young adults who were experiencing the initial days of their first "acute schizophrenic break." At Diabasis, these full-blown "schizophrenics" were able to emerge "on the far side of madness," as Perry put it, "weller than well," without any treatment by medication, electroshock, or locked doors." When The Far Side of Madness was first published in 1974, Perry's deep insight into the nature of so-called "schizophrenia" opened the way for a radically new, more compassionate approach to this condition. This pioneering work of Jungian psychiatry reframes acute psychotic episodes in the context of visionary experience of schizophrenic patients and describes innovative methods of handling them.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Psychiatry

Paperback

First published January 1, 1974

Reviews

[Maxwell Purrington · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readers ought to be aware of the following historical facts regarding John Weir Perry:

Over the years he [John Perry] became sexually involved with female analysands.

In the early 1970s he was put on probation by the California State Medical Board, but, in spite of the warning, continued his practice of having sexual relations with female clients. ~Thomas Kirsch, The Jungians, Page 85

In 1981 Perry was brought before the Ethics Committee of the San Francisco Jung Institute where his behavior toward female clients was investigated.

The committee decided to place him on “indefinite suspension,” which was a painful process and difficult decision, because Perry was valued as an analyst, teacher, lecturer, writer, and because he had one of the most creative minds in the San Francisco Institute. ~Thomas Kirsch, The Jungians, Page 85

Over the years he [John Perry] became sexually involved with female analysands. In the early 1970s he was put on probation by the California State Medical Board, but, in spite of the warning, continued his practice of having sexual relations with female clients. ~Thomas Kirsch, The Jungians, Page 85

Eventually, his [Perry] connection to the Institute was severed when he was forced to surrender his medical license to the State Licensure Board of California. ~Thomas Kirsch, The Jungians, Page 85

[Mike McMahon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perry, a psychiatrist, discusses psychotic disorders from a Jungian perspective. He proposes that the content of delusion thought is meaning and is actually a renewal process where mythological themes, such as rebirth of the king, the hero's journey, being a new messiah, etc. is the psyche's attempt to move beyond a limiting mental framework. Perry believed that people can go thru this process and arrive at a state of being weller than well, on the far side of madness. I agree with Perry's argument but found that the book took a long time to say things that could have been said suciently in less pages. Nevertheless, it is an important book for Jungian oriented psychologists and students of psychology.

[Mary]

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