Hearing Voices Network
Encyclopedia
The Hearing Voices Network is a self-help
user-run organization for people who experience auditory hallucination
s ("hear voices"). Although members may have a psychiatric
diagnosis, the group promotes an alternative approach, where voices are not necessarily seen as signs of mental illness
.
might do more harm than good in people who can otherwise function adequately.
The organization was founded in 1988 in Manchester
, England
by five mental health workers, but has somewhat distanced itself from the psychiatric profession through its alternative philosophy. The general approach of the network is shared with other groups around the world, which are often grouped as the Hearing Voices Movement
.Currently, there are over 40 groups in the network across Britain. In these groups voice hearers are afforded the opportunity in a non-medical setting to share their experiences, coping mechanisms and explanatory frameworks. These groups are exclusive to individuals who hear voices. Since its inception the network has developed considerably as an institutional body and now publishes newsletters, guides to the voice hearing experience and workbooks where individuals can record and explore their own experiences with voice hearing.
Dutch
psychiatrist
Marius Romme
, the co-author of Accepting Voices, has provided an intellectual basis for this group. He advocates a view that the hearing of voices is not necessarily an indication of mental illness, and that patients should be encouraged to explore their voices and negotiate with them.
Self-help
Self-help, or self-improvement, is a self-guided improvement—economically, intellectually, or emotionally—often with a substantial psychological basis. There are many different self-help movements and each has its own focus, techniques, associated beliefs, proponents and in some cases, leaders...
user-run organization for people who experience auditory hallucination
Auditory hallucination
An auditory hallucination, or paracusia, is a form of hallucination that involves perceiving sounds without auditory stimulus. A common form involves hearing one or more talking voices...
s ("hear voices"). Although members may have a psychiatric
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
diagnosis, the group promotes an alternative approach, where voices are not necessarily seen as signs of mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
.
Description and philosophy
They argue that since some people can lead a valuable and productive existence while hearing voices, the largely drug-based and potentially coercive treatment of mainstream medicineMedicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
might do more harm than good in people who can otherwise function adequately.
The organization was founded in 1988 in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
by five mental health workers, but has somewhat distanced itself from the psychiatric profession through its alternative philosophy. The general approach of the network is shared with other groups around the world, which are often grouped as the Hearing Voices Movement
Hearing Voices Movement
Hearing Voices Movement is a philosophical trend in how people who hear voices are viewed. It was begun by Marius Romme, a professor of social psychiatry at the University of Limburg in Maastricht, the Netherlands; and Sandra Escher, a science journalist, who began this work after being challenged...
.Currently, there are over 40 groups in the network across Britain. In these groups voice hearers are afforded the opportunity in a non-medical setting to share their experiences, coping mechanisms and explanatory frameworks. These groups are exclusive to individuals who hear voices. Since its inception the network has developed considerably as an institutional body and now publishes newsletters, guides to the voice hearing experience and workbooks where individuals can record and explore their own experiences with voice hearing.
Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
Marius Romme
Marius Romme
Marius Anton Joannes Romme is a Dutch psychiatrist. He is best known for his work on hearing voices and regarded as the founder and principal theorist for the Hearing Voices Movement....
, the co-author of Accepting Voices, has provided an intellectual basis for this group. He advocates a view that the hearing of voices is not necessarily an indication of mental illness, and that patients should be encouraged to explore their voices and negotiate with them.