Social Psychiatry

We deal with forms of psychological injuries and their consequence, the post-traumatic stress disorder. What does it look like for individuals and what support is available for those affected? What do employees and teams experience and how does dealing with traumatized people affect them? Addiction disorders are another topic that needs attention.

In recent years, there have been repeated indications in specialist journals and public media that mental and neurological illnesses have increased dramatically. There is talk of a three- to fourfold increase in depression and Alzheimer’s disease since 2019.

This increase is not immediately apparent in the care systems, since it usually takes a number of years before a condition becomes chronic and a person is classified as a so-called “person entitled to benefits”. For years, a disproportionate increase in the proportion of people with “mental disabilities” has been recorded in various scientific publications.

On October 1, 2025, a founding meeting of this working field as part of our Section took place in Dornach.
There was a great resonance, which shows how many colleagues worldwide are looking for and need support and networking in the face of the current challenges facing humanity.

On our digital platform, you can register and access the documents that have been created.

At the Autumn Conference 2026, a forum for interested people will be offered again.

Initiative group

Fiona Bay (emergency pedagogy at the Friends of Waldorf Education, Germany), Sara Colonna (La Monda, Italy), Walter Dahlhaus (psychiatrist), Veronika Freisler (Anfora, Switzerland), Silvian Bittner (Christian e.V., Germany), Erika Schär (Anfora, Switzerland)

Contact person for the subject matter is Erika Schär.

The contact person in the leadership team of the section is Sonja Zausch: sonja.zausch@goetheanum.ch