Tom Greening, a clinical psychologist and professor at Saybrook University, uses poetry to express his concerns with the current mental health system. He writes: “As an existential-humanistic psychologist I try to counter reductionistic, medical model, manipulative trends in psychology and managed care and research with approaches that honor our higher human potential.”

Whose Fault

I’m depressed and hallucinating again,
and need my doctor’s help.
I see things on TV
that aren’t really there,
or at least I hope not—
Strange bursts of light on the dark screen
over some place they call Kabul,
which as far as I can tell
is not in Kansas.
I see bearded men in turbans
who seem angry with me.
I see grim workers in bulky clothing and odd hats
picking through mounds of dusty rubble
in what the announcer claims
is downtown New York.
At the commercial break
I’m told that depression
is a biological illness,
and I’m reassured by the hearty announcer
that Prozac will cure me.
Because I’m such a coward
I’m grateful to be living
in this brave new world
where doctors really care,
and I must say that
when my TV plays tricks on me
even the look of those pretty little pills
cheers me right up.