Public Media from Michigan State University

Mysteries of Mental Illness

Opened in 1880, The Buffalo State Asylum for the Insane was once a state-of-the-art facility, built according to the Kirkbride Plan: a system for mental asylum design named after the physician who developed it.
Courtesy of Pangloss Films

Tuesday–Wednesday, Jun. 22–23, at 9pm & 10pm | Explore the evolution in understanding and the dramatic attempts across generations to unravel the difficult questions surrounding mental illness with which people have grappled throughout history: What causes it, and how is it best treated?Evil or Illness | Tue. Jun. 22 | 9 p.m.
Examine ancient conceptions of mental illness and the establishment of psychiatry.

What's Normal? | Tue. Jun. 22 | 10 p.m.
Trace efforts to develop guidelines for diagnosing mental illness based in science instead of dogma.

Rise and Fall of the Asylum | Wed. Jun. 23 | 9 p.m.
Follow the origins and the downfall of mental asylums in the United States.

The New Frontiers | Wed. Jun. 23 | 10 p.m.
Explore today’s most cutting-edge treatments for mental illness.

Watch each episode at video.wkar.org during or after the premiere date.

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