Introduction: Beyond the Therapeutic StateChapter One: The triumph of American psychiatry: How it created the modern therapeutic stateChapter Two: Children's mental health: Time to stop using psychiatric diagnosisChapter Three: Psychiatric diagnosis, 'thought styles' and ex post facto fact fallaciesChapter Four: Radical Presence: Alternatives to the therapeutic stateChapter Five: The extended therapy roomChapter Six: From victimhood to sisterhood - A practice-based reflexive inquiry into narrative informed work with women who have experienced sexual abuseChapter Seven: Psychotherapy and its alternatives: Commentary on a critiqueChapter Eight: Dark CloudsChapter Nine: Altermodernity and the unfortunate need to train critical psychotherapists and counsellors

The therapeutic state is a pervasive set of practices and ideologies which have been ever present in the twentieth century. This book of international contributors is about bringing into question many of these reified, dogmatic ideologies. Classifications, diagnosis and the treatments have been shown to be ineffectual for many populations across the globe, but still we persist with redundant, defunct methods and techniques. Why? Because, as some would suggest, we have nothing better. The danger that the state is taking away one of the last confidential spaces for people to allow thoughts to come to them has never been greater. This book invites readers to think beyond the state and its therapeutics. It will be relevant to many professions, professionals, service users, families, survivors and organisations; and those who are looking for something different. This book was originally published as a special issue of the European Journal of Psychotherapy & Counselling.