“Boldly creative?” “Closer to God?” “Magical?” These terms have been associated with the mentally ill. Let’s look at how mental disorders have been regarded and treated throughout history.

Like in early stone-age civilizations, ancient Egyptian societies regarded people with mental disorders as magical or religious. The Egyptians’ fixation on the health of the Ka (soul) launched an exploration of treatments for the mentally ill.

Opium was used in rituals and prayers for the insane. The Ebers and Kahun Papyri, dating back to 1534 B.C., were some of the first psychiatric texts ever written. They reveal that the Egyptians considered mental disorders to be physical maladies of the heart and uterus.

Medieval European society identified mental illness as a form of witchcraft. Victims, believed to be “possessed,” were tortured and often brutally murdered. The Malleus Maleficarum, a treatise on witches, was used to diagnose the insane. Beginning with the Renaissance, accusations of witchcraft decreased. Instead, the mentally ill were sent to insane asylums. Residents were treated callously. For example, at the Bethlem Royal Hospital in London, sightseers paid to observe patients for entertainment.

During the 19th century, psychologists and activists reformed treatment of the mentally ill. American activist Dorthea Dix conducted research on jails and almshouses before lobbying state legislatures for humane treatment of the insane.

In the 20th century, psychoanalysis—invented by the Viennese neurologist Sigmund Freud—became a common cure for mental illness. Freud uncovered his patients’ unconscious by using hypnosis, free association (the extraction of uncensored emotions and memories) and dream analysis. His work laid the basis for modern psychotherapy.

“When I started in psychology 40 years ago, people thought mental disorders were related to social experiences—not to genetics,” Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Stanford Graduate School of Business Dr. Roderick M. Kramer said.

The use of modern medicine to cure mental illnesses also emerged during the 20th century. “The greatest progress in the last decade has been the development of psychological drugs to cure learning disabilities,” Kramer said. “Scientists are excited about the positive side of drugs. They make people happier and smarter.”

One drug, Lithium, prevents the relapse of bipolar (manic depressive) disorder. Lithium is popular today because it effectively stabilizes mood and reduces the risk of suicide in patients.

There are several contemporary mental health theories about the causes of disorders. “There’s pretty good evidence now that some mental illnesses are caused partly by genetics and partly by social experiences,” Kramer said. “There is also evidence that chemical imbalances contribute to depression or mania.”