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Re: Labels? » phidippus

Posted by SLS on October 8, 2017, at 20:11:17

In reply to Labels?, posted by phidippus on October 8, 2017, at 16:23:08

I am in total agreement with you, Eric. Thanks for posting this.


- Scott


> Mental diagnosis are no different than any other diagnosis, say cancer.  If you get certain physical symptoms you get a diagnosis of cancer. If you get certain mental symptoms one earns a diagnosis of a mental illnes (and mental illness is based on biological factors just like cancer).  If we called cancer herpes, it wouldn't be treated right, so it goes with mental illness.  We have to label mental illness just like any other illness.  Symptoms are stereotypical for a disorder and symptoms need to be grouped in order to distinguish disorders.   OCD and bipolar disorder have very different symptoms and its important to be able to communicate the differences between each disorder through the use of labels.  If one concentrated on treating symptoms, they may not treat the illness properly.  For example if one focused on treating depressive symptoms in a bipolar patient they may use antidepressants which can worsen mood in bipolar patients.  If I were to just treat the symptom of a cough in one with lung cancer they would die. Labeling mental illness helps providers see the big picture and better treat patients.  Mental illness is labeled according to the DSM-V which "is published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and offers a common language and standard criteria for the classification of mental disorders. It is used, or relied upon, by clinicians, researchers, psychiatric drug regulation agencies, health insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, the legal system, and policy makers together with alternatives such as the ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders, produced by the WHO."  By design, the DSM is primarily concerned with the signs and symptoms of mental disorders, rather than the underlying causes. It claims to collect them together based on statistical or clinical patterns. As such, it has been compared to a naturalist's field guide to birds, with similar advantages and disadvantages.  Many criticisms exist of the DSM (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diagnostic_and_Statistical_Manual_of_Mental_Disorders#Criticism) but it is important that such a standard exists and can provide a framework for the understanding of mental illness.  Being labeled bipolar or schizophrenic only means your doctors have a better idea of where to start treating you


Some see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.

- George Bernard Shaw

 

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