Between Trauma and the Sacred The Cultural Shaping of Remitting-Rela

This volume develops a dynamic but contextualized multi-level formulation of psychosis and psychotic-symptoms, able to incorporate a range of factors from the biological, through the sociocultural, to the political. The work is truly interdisciplinary dra

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James Rodger Zachary Steel

Between Trauma and the Sacred The Cultural Shaping of Remitting-Relapsing Psychosis in Post-Conflict Timor-Leste

Cultural Studies of Science and Medicine Series editor Atwood D. Gaines Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH, USA

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15110

James Rodger Zachary Steel •

Between Trauma and the Sacred The Cultural Shaping of Remitting-Relapsing Psychosis in Post-Conflict Timor-Leste

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James Rodger South Devon Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service Devon Integrated Children’s Services Totnes, Devon UK

Zachary Steel School of Psychiatry University of New South Wales Sydney, NSW Australia and St John of Health Care Richmond Hospital North Richmond, NSW Australia and The Black Dog Institute Randwick, NSW Australia

Cultural Studies of Science and Medicine ISBN 978-3-319-24422-8 ISBN 978-3-319-24424-2 DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-24424-2

(eBook)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015960238 © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by SpringerNature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland

Very few psychotic episodes last less than 1 month and those that do we know almost nothing about (Keith and Matthews 1991, 60) There is one truly serious question in psychiatry, and that is psychogenesis (Berrios 2003, 9) Perhaps because the sky becomes dark, so too people’s minds become dark (Family member of episodically unwell psychotic person in Timor-Leste)

Preface

This work is the result of a long period of reflection, discussion and further reading, following a nine-month period of field work in Timor-Leste in 2004. While ostensibly the study’s aims were in keeping with that of conventional and cultural psychiatric epidemiology, in the wake of the countries recently won Independence in 1999 and prior history of colonial violenc