Dealing With Problems of Daily Living

Today, courtesy of Monica, I came across an article by Marilyn Wedge, PhD. It’s called Six Problems with Psychiatric Diagnosis for Children. You can read it here. Here are some quotes: "Psychiatric diagnoses contained in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders are not classified by causes like genuine medical diseases." "Perhaps worst of all, a child who has been labeled with a psychiatric diagnosis grows up believing that there is something wrong with her, that she is somehow “abnormal.” ...

There’s an interesting new article by Paula Caplan here. It discusses the harmful effects of psychiatric “diagnoses,” including the fact that because of these labels, people have lost their “… jobs, custody of children, health insurance, and the right to make decisions about their medical and legal affairs.” Paula also mentions a petition she created in December 2011 calling for “Congressional Hearings about Psychiatric Diagnosis.” The petition is still up. You can find it here ...

BACKGROUND I recently wrote a post called DSM-5: Another Step in the Wrong Direction. In that article I argued that DSM-5 was simply another step in the APA’s ongoing agenda to medicalize all human problems and to legitimize the administration of drugs as the front line “solution” to these problems. I also expressed concern that the widely publicized movement to develop an alternative diagnostic system might not look all that different from what we have today. ...

The Newtown mass murders have generated widespread demand for improved “mental health” services, and even for mandatory mental health screenings for schoolchildren. The notion embedded in these demands is that the perpetrators are “mentally ill,” and that early identification will enable psychiatrists to treat (i.e. drug) them before they can do any damage. As I’ve said many times, the APA’s definition of a mental disorder is essentially: any human activity that entails significant problems. So, of course, provided we accept this definition, all the mass murderers are mentally ill. But all we’re saying here is that mass murder is problematic behavior. (Wow – such wisdom!) ...

Important updates on this subject can be found at the posts listed at the bottom of the post. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I've recently come across an article by Matt Samet called Social Vacuum. It's dated March 2013, and was published on Robert Whitaker's website Mad in America. Matt had been taking a benzodiazepine for some time, and while on a tapering withdrawal, he experienced some distressing symptoms, including some acute social discomfort. (For a full account of benzo withdrawal – click here.) ...

It’s widely known that the initial drafts of DSM-5 received a great deal of negative comment. It’s also known that some of the more controversial proposals have been scrapped, but that others have been retained and sent for printing. All of this was fairly predictable. The APA’s agenda is to widen the “diagnostic” net to include as many people as possible. But they’re not complete fools. They know that there’s a good deal of anti-psychiatry feeling out there, so in my view, they floated some very contentious proposals, fully accepting that these would be withdrawn under pressure, thereby creating the perception that they are reasonable folk just trying to do what’s right. Meanwhile, other proposals go under the wire unscathed, and the “diagnostic” net is widened. Mission accomplished. ...

The central theme of this website is that there are no mental illnesses, and that the widespread medicalization of ordinary human problems is spurious and destructive. These concepts have been around for decades, but in the last four or five years have “taken off,” and are finding a good deal of acceptance among practitioners, academics, clients, and the general public. Change is in the air. A matter that is sometimes overlooked, however, is that the concept of “mental illness” and its “treatment” by psychiatrists and other professionals is deeply embedded in the legal system of most states and countries. ...

In recent times a good deal of criticism has been directed towards the practice of involuntarily committing individuals to state and private mental hospitals. Most of this criticism focuses on the lack of effective due process; conflicts of interest in the case of private facilities; and failure to adequately explore alternatives. In my view, all of these criticisms are valid, and warrant attention. But there is another side to the story that is seldom aired outside the mental health centers. A great many clients like going to the mental hospital; they plan their trips in advance and “freak out” at the appointed time, knowing that the knee-jerk response of the mental health center will be a court-ordered admission. ...

When we were young, most of us devoted a good deal of time and energy to squabbling with other children. To the dismay of our parents, we because adept in the use of impolite language, and kept our stock of insulting words and phrases up-to-date. As adults we are more socially sophisticated. We no longer call one another rude names – at least not openly. Tragically, however, many people go through their entire adult lives calling themselves names, which although not as vulgar as the insults of childhood, are considerably more destructive. ...