Ivor Browne: Music and Madness [Hardcover]

This is a marvelous book and was quite a surprise really. Most of the book is biographical and seems at first to be a bit unfocused and meanders among many varied subjects (such are many peoples' lives!), but when Ivor gets to his ideas nearer to the end he is very clear and shows a great independent mind, again covering many topics but always with an unbiased interest in identifying Truth.

This is a very Irish book in the sense that its style at times reflects aspects of Irish storytelling, replete with many colourful characters the like of which it would be hard to find anywhere else but Ireland! The book also paints a very full picture of Ireland, Irish society and Irish establishment (and institutional) mentality, albeit several decades ago in a different era but which is readily identifiable today. What was impressive to me was, despite all the obvious inherent difficulties, how progressive Ivor and others managed to be in an Ireland that was in many ways backwards and poor, yet he managed to hold up a torch very industriously pushing for change using the most progressive and innovative ideas available anywhere.

The other thing that impressed me was how fatedly Ivor's life seems to have opened up for him. Medicine was not really his choice, and the way the Harvard position appeared to him - whether or not this is simply modesty on his part - seemed a stroke of great luck at the very least. Then there are the number of interesting people he had the opportunity to be involved with. He paints himself almost as the accidental hero!

This book goes through Ivor's background and early life, his interest in Jazz music, his studies and early work experience including time in Oxford, Harvard and London, his professional experiences with LSD, the state of psychiatric care in Ireland from the 1950s right through his career, a lot of wonderful community work done in both Dublin and the North of Ireland, including amazing ideas and innovations, and fine tributes to some deeply dedicated people involved in both places with some lovely stories and background history.

The book stretches across the subjects of history, nationalism, politics, sociology, community, psychology, psychiatry, music, and finally to philosophy and spirituality. Ivor has much of interest to contribute on each one of these topics.

He is correct when he points out that current psychiatric thinking, with its deep interdependence with the pharmaceutical industry, is mostly flawed thinking. The unquestioned belief that "chemical imbalance" is the primary source of psychiatric problems he refers to as "manifest nonsense." He points out that for the majority of people with psychiatric problems, if they were allowed and supported to feel their own pain - instead of reinforcing the natural tendency to suppress and run away from it - that much of psychiatric illness would be healed. The idea of giving attention and support to people is ignored, despite all the evidence that this is exactly what is most productive in helping people to heal.

The topic of living systems is explored and the connections between individuals and the system in which they participate, including the relationship of mental illness to community; the anatomy of PTSD; human patterns and Karma; the nature and origin of consciousness; globalisation and Earth (Gaia) consciousness, spirituality and the place of The Heart.

By the end of the book you have a lovely picture of a man who is very human, full of integrity, and who, like all men worth their salt, gives his loyalty to the Truth above all else. A wonderful book!

I do think the world of Psychiatry is changing, but it is a pity there aren't more forward and alternative thinking psychiatrist like Prof Ivor Browne out there. I did really enjoy this book and at times found it hard to put down. It was a pity it ended when it did as I really felt that during the third and final section in the book, Ivor was getting more into the 'nitty gritty' of where he felt psychiatry, our conciousness and us as the human race were going. I would have like to have read more of ideas and theories as I did feel he had a lot more to say, but maybe ran out of time or didn't want to give too much away.

The biography of his life was interesting and well written. It is hard to believe in this day and age being able to get into medicine without completing the Irish Leaving Certificate, let alone not having near 600points/all A grades. You can tell from fairly early on that he was going to be more free-minded and alternative in his profession. Some of the middle section, I guess I found a little hard to follow as with respect to the group dynamics work, I think 'you have to be there' to get a full understanding of how they function, so this part left me somewhat confused and with questions. But as I said, the latter section was by far what I enjoyed most and wished it could have been longer. It is amazing that this man in his 80's is still practicing his profession. That is admirable.

I think nowadays people have to go beyond the old medical model and really start to take a more holistic approach with aspects of medicine, psychology and the whole unexplained part which often involves something of a spiritual nature when treating patients with mental health disorders. Many people having breakdown's going through what Stan Grof would call a 'Spiritual Emergence' or crisis. I don't think the answer to these breakdowns lies completely in our physiological make-up and I think more and more we need to maybe cross boundaries and examine the more spiritual aspects of mental health issues. Candace Pert does tackle some of the aspects of the emotional aspects of our physiological make up, but I feel this needs to be addressed more with quantum physics and that of what conciousness actually is. Breathwork, meditation and shamanic work all now seem to be becoming more accepted as methods of treating these issues with promising results.

I also liked how Ivor would have a very practical approach to people with mental health issues and getting them to exercise, get a routine in their day to day lives and work as well as having goals. This is so important and often overlooked. I do feel that exercise and a healthy body can do wonders for the mind and I think as well as more spirtually aware professionals that many psychiatrists need to get out of the mind and our thought process and focus simply on the health and wellbeing of the body. I know in the UK many Psychiatric wards have physiotherapy departments and get patients to exercise, but that aspect is lacking in so many places. I think this is one of the keys in dealing with depression which due to its symptoms is causing more lifestyle disease to emerge due to inactivity and causing a huge cost to health services in developed countries. It is a pity from reading this biography, that mental health care in Ireland seems to be only going backwards in some respects in the public health sector. Every year there are more and more cuts to it, it just seems to be the first target when our pockets need to be kept tight. I feel if more money and resources were put into this field, that the rewards and cost benefits would show themselves quite quickly within the next decade. This book is an inspiration and I hope that many psychiatrists in the field will read it and give thought to combining their current work methods and practice with some of those more alternative approaches outthere and maybe someone will start those group sessions again in St Brendan's Hospital.