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Psychiatrists Cast Doubt On Biomedical Model of Mental Illness
jones_supa writes "British Psychological Society's division of clinical psychology (DCP) will on Monday issue a statement declaring that, given the lack of evidence, it is time for a 'paradigm shift' in how the issues of mental health are understood. According to their claim, there is no scientific evidence that psychiatric diagnoses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are valid or useful. The statement effectively casts doubt on psychiatry's predominantly biomedical model of mental distress – the idea that people are suffering from illnesses that are treatable by doctors using drugs. The DCP said its decision to speak out 'reflects fundamental concerns about the development, personal impact and core assumptions of the (diagnosis) systems', used by psychiatry. The provocative statement by the DCP has been timed to come out shortly before the release of DSM-5, the fifth edition of the American Psychiatry Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The manual has been attacked for expanding the range of mental health issues that are classified as disorders."
If they want a replacement they will need to provide one. Until then, people are being treated, with varying degrees of success, with the current model. Even if the model isn't actually an accurate description of what is going on, it is still a fairly useful guide to approaching the problems. Sort of like classical physics versus relativity. A real breakthrough in understanding would be great - and maybe with all of the brain imaging and various other things going on, that will emerge. But so far it seems to mainly be individual studies that aren't producing a cohesive theory or useful guide to treatment. They will need to find their equivalents of Einstein and Dirac.
Another problem with the recent releases of the DSM is that what is considered a disorder sometimes seems to be a question of politics or political correctness.
much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot - George Orwell
Would most people be better off undiagnosed?
In a word, yes. Since "most people" would not be ill, neither physically nor mentally. This new edition of the DSM risks to change that, as in it provides a convenient way to slap "diagnostic" labels on quite a few people who're today considered pretty much normal.
Cue the observation occasionally voiced that what today is called "ADD" (and but yesterday called "ADHD") and results in prescriptions of ritalin, only a few short decades ago was called "being a kid". We are going a little bonkers with the mental, yes.
Would be nice if true. Fact of the matter is most people get 15 minutes, a prescription, and sent home.
Violence is like duct tape. If it doesn't solve the problem, you didn't use enough.
I was diagnosed as bi-polar about 6-7 years ago after suffering a serious manic episode with full scale hallucinations. While it was not the first time this had happened to me, it was "the final straw" that led to me being diagnosed.
Since then I've been on Resperidone to control the manic phases, and Effexor to limit the depressive phases. I've had no hallucinations, breakdowns, suicidal thoughts, or any other problems since being put on the medication, except when I've run out of medication, thinking "Maybe I don't need it any more."
But the return of symptoms after 2-3 weeks without medication has me convinced that the diagnosis is valid and the medication effective.
I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
As someone on venlafaxine, I concur about the ups and downs being gone more than through CBT. CBT requires such an effort that at least to me it seemed that if I could seriously benefit from CBT, I wouldn't need it in the first place since then I wouldn't have the problems I've had functioning. Venlafaxine is not an ideal medication for me but because I have epilepsy, it reduces the options what doctors can prescribe me. Out of curiosity, I ask if you notice the effects some other way? For me, an unfortunate effect has been a lowered ability to concentrate. At first, I noticed that every time I was getting a bad, depressive thought, I just forgot it and thus didn't end up in my depression cycle. It's, however, not a "precision weapon" so other thoughts are often "collateral damage" so I often forget what I'm thinking of even if I try to concentrate really hard. In the past, I instead associated to something negative in my life from almost anything and thus my productivity was lower not because I forgot thoughts but precisely because I didn't - I was able to constantly make jumps like "I heard this unusual word the first time when I saw movie X and there was a poster for movie X in location Y which was where I met girl Z for the last time" and even much more far-fetched associations to anything that made me feel sad and I just couldn't stop those associations from being constantly formed. Now that i no longer do that, I'm also a lot less angry with myself and that might have harmed my productivity in a different way, I'm more forgiving to myself if I skip exercising, do a shitty job and so on (although I know that prior to my medication, my perfectionism was quite extreme by most peoples' standards). So how has your productivity level changed on lithium?
And to "normal" people, i.e. those few that have never gone through depression or had to take antidepressants: If you're curious to find out what it can be like, you can first think about what it's like to suddenly be reminded of something by making an association Then imagine that you constantly associate things with something negative - as if you had had e.g. pictures of all bad things you've ever experienced and all people that have hurt you placed all over your room/cubicle/house...
CBT is a wonderful advance in psychology.
but most honest practitioners of it will concede that a short course of (the correct) meds will make CBT a lot more effective.
how do you tell someone to calm down when they can't hear you above their own screaming? sometimes people get into a state where they're simply not going to be receptive of any talk-based therapy. if this happens to somebody in your life, you'll be glad that drugs exist, and in enough variety that one of them is quite likely to be just the ticket.
an analogy i've heard is that the patient is like someone walking through snow wearing nothing but underwear. giving them meds is like handing them a coat and scarf. it'll work, but eventually that person has to get themselves out of the snow because it's pretty damn cold.
I suffer from major depression. When I go off my mess I feel like crap. I stop being able to concentrate and I feel overwhelming hopelessness. On the wrong medication I was failing basic courses at uni. On the right medication I got credit/distinctions on average and have not only held down a job for 3 years but excelled at it.
I have gone off my medication in the past because I wasn't convinced that the problem was chemical rather than environmental. When I go off my medication I'm sometimes fine for months. But eventually things get worse. I've been on the same medication for 4 years now, I've yet to have any issues.
I explored several options before settling on medication. Even then I explored the possibility that the depression was environmental or situational. I've been proven wrong each time.
Are some people incorrectly medicated? Definitely. But the idea no-one needs this medication to live a fulfilling life is reckless and ill informed.