Posted by alexandra_k on December 8, 2004, at 21:15:02
In reply to Re: Anyone else have Brain Damage? » alexandra_k, posted by GeishaGirl on December 5, 2004, at 12:25:27
Hmm. Well I guess I pretty much go with the DSM view of mental illness. Not because it is the word of god, or because it hits upon the ultimate truth, but because after loads of research, despite its imperfections, it is the best we've got.
I mean sure, some mental illnesses are the result of chemical imbablances in the brain (and the evidence for this is that if you can rectify the imbalance, then the mental illness ceases). But that is not to rule out 'a reaction to trauma and/ or a spiritual crisis' being the cause of the chemical imbalance in the brain.
It is hard to establish whether some symptoms are caused by medication or not. It may be that that symptom would have popped up in that person whether or not they took their medication. It may be that the medication prevents them having that symptom much worse. It is hard to know whether symptoms are side-affects from meds, or whether they would have occured regardless. I read some Christopher Frith a while back "The Cognitive Neuro-Psychology of Schizophrenia" and he considered that some of the symptoms of tardive dyskinesia (such as motor and verbal difficulties) might actually occur as part of the negative symptomology of schizophrenia and might not be the direct result of anti-psychotic medications after all.
>Others may be ways of coping in difficult times and go away when a person is feeling more balanced.
Sure, but then I guess 'feeling more balanced' is getting better (sort of...well depending on their condition I guess). Some people may need medication for a little while, or even a long while to help them be able to feel more balanced. I do not think that psychiatry is an exact science, though. We do not know enough about how talking (e.g., therapy) alters neural connections, and how positive experiences can alter neural connections, and we do not know enough about how altered neural connections may 'balance out' neuromodulation...
poster:alexandra_k
thread:423854
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20041202/msgs/426440.html