History of the treatment of psychological diseases

Various beliefs about psychological disorders have existed since the stone age. It was then believed that evil and supernatural forces, such as demons were motivating people to reflect unusual behavior. In order to ward off such occult practices, prayers, sorcery and hanging were used.

The first written evidence of mental disorders comes from China. They state that the human body is made up of two forces, positive and negative, and that when they lose balance they become sick and mad. They also say that emotions are caused by the Vital Air which flows from the internal organs of the body.

Greek physician Hippocrates (460 - 377 BC) was the first physician to investigate mental disorders according to western medicine. He believed that a break in the balance of fluids caused such abnormal behavior. Other Greek and Roman physicians, who accepted his argument pointed out that the treatment of the mentally ill was inaccurate. They pointed out that beneficial environmental factors, physical exercise, pure nutritional nutrition, anti-depressants, massage and bathing techniques are appropriate.

Since there were no institutions for the cure of mentally retarded people at that time, they were looked after in places of worship dedicated to god.

Later, by the middle ages, this situation had gradually subsided and people began to be treated inhumanely, again as usual. Thousands of patients were thus sentenced to death.

Early Asylums

By the end of the middle ages, each municipality had established mental hospitals to care for people with mental disorders in their area. But these places took the form of prisons. It was inhumane to treat patients in them too.

But in 1792, psychiatrist Philippe Pinelle became head of the Paris psychiatric shelter. Later, Philippe Pinelle launched a humanitarian ideological campaign to care for people with mental disorders. Accordingly, he released the mentally retarded persons in the luncheon and kindly cared for them. This method was highly successful. There, the patients recovered to a great extent and were released from the madhouse and returned to their normal lives.

However, by 1900, the general public was not aware of mental illness and Clifford Beers, a psychiatrist began to teach people about mental illness and their prevention. There he wrote a book entitled "Mind That Found Itself", based on his experiences. The public's attention was drawn to the mentally ill and to such hospitals. Beers also organized the National Committee on Mental Health in the United States.