Mad Epistemologies and Crip Doulaing: A Study of Select Zines on Mental Health

Abstract

While the biomedical model dominates global understanding of mental distress, mad zines emerge as a unique site of resistance. This paper draws on crip theory and mad studies to critically analyse how these non-commercial, self-published works challenge dominant biopsychiatric discourses and champion survivor/user voice from the margins. Moving beyond mere personal confessionals, the zines operate as borderlands rhetoric and carve out a ‘third space’ that navigates the intersections of minority identities. Lilith Cooper has demonstrated how zines on disability could act as ‘crip doulas’ that offer practical, lived wisdom to individuals entering the disability community. This study extends that framework to the realm of mad zines, examining their unique thematic and stylistic features. Beyond their role as counter-cultural artefacts, these zines provide the necessary tools for prefigurative politics and internal coalition-building. Additionally, the study asserts that mad zines contribute significantly to a distinct mad epistemology by demonstrating madness as a productive and legitimate way of being in, interacting with and understanding the world.