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Getting rid of mental health diagnosis


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12 minutes ago, PolarBear said:

What you are describing as problems with a diagnosis are actually misconceptions that need to be addressed.

Well they are partly misconceptions driven by the biomedical model of mental health problems which diagnosis is closely related to. 

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On 17/01/2018 at 14:04, gingerbreadgirl said:

The argument against diagnosis seems to be that having a mental health diagnosis on your records can lead to being labelled and stigmatised by society.  But surely we should fight the stigma, not the diagnosis?

This is my feeling on the issue. :yes: 

A diagnosis is a signpost to suitable treatment, not an end in itself. If society views mental health diagnoses as stigmatising then it is that attitude/ignorance we need to address, not the labelling issue.

People have enough problems getting their need for CBT recognised and finding a suitably qualified therapist. The government uses diagnostic statistics to evaluate what services should be provided, so removing the diagnosis would likely result in fewer CBT therapists being available in the future (in my opinion.)

I think there is a valid issue for concern around labelling which is worthy of discussion and debate among professionals. Whether the public arena (and social media with limited characters per statement, ie. Twitter) is the right place for this is another matter entirely. :dry: But the problem (as I see it) ins't labelling as such but the overuse of labels and sloppy labelling.

For example, there's a difference between OC and OCD. There's a difference between PTS and PTSD. (Continue the list for as many diagnostic disorders as you like.) Adding the 'D' for DISORDER ought to be used only when the symptoms have resulted in a disorder of thinking/disorder of processing. But instead we see people who like things neat and tidy (having obsessions and compulsions, or OC) being misconstrued as having a thinking disorder (OCD) which we know is a totally different 'diagnosis'. Numerous people who have suffered a traumatic event which has been upsetting are being told they have PTSD, when for many all they need is time to complete their perfectly healthy processing response. They have post traumatic stress (normal), not PTSD (an abnormal response with faulty processing.) Most people who experience trauma do not develop PTSD. 

I think (in part) it's the automatic addition of the 'D' by professionals and public alike that confuses the issue and leads to overuse of (otherwise helpful) diagnostic labels. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Diagnosis gave me a causation of OCD rather than me going mad - so it was brilliant. 

I told my work colleagues, so that they could understand how I felt in my episodes. 

And latterly when I was struggling to meet my work targets my therapist wrote to my Employer, the company doctor interviewed me and confirmed that my OCD was sufficiently bad to be deemed a disability under the Equalities Act. As a result the firm was happy to consider reasonable adjustments to help me at work. 

My workload and targets were reduced, care taken with stressors. 

But to get that help I needed a diagnosis. 

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On 01/02/2018 at 07:06, gingerbreadgirl said:

Have been getting into some debates about this on twitter and have been speaking with a clinical psychologist who believes CBT can be treated with psychotherapy and 'exploration'.  Genuinely disturbed by this.  Should he even be practising if he believes that?

What's the guys name? 

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6 hours ago, gingerbreadgirl said:

But to be honest, the way he's being so dogmatic and inflexible about this actually reminds me a lot of Charles.  He doesn't want people to read up on their condition just trust what the psychologist says, etc.

I don't follow him so not seen many of his latest postings.   But based off his therapeutic beliefs I'm glad he's not my Dr. 

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