abnormal is the new normal.
Spent my entire day revising Abnormal Psychology today. Thanks to a friend (ahem) who was commenting on my status about the DSM-IV-TR, I have inspiration to write yet another rambling, cynical, pessimistic entry.
Diagnoses of psychiatric problems are increasing. Abnormality is becoming more normal. If you think of the population's mental health as a normal distribution, this means that more and more people are getting under the curve at the left tail, which means that the distribution is slowly but surely becoming skewed. Either that, or the entire distribution is shifting leftwards. Now that is actually rather scary, perhaps even more so than income inequality (see previous rambling rant).
As much as abnormality is becoming more normal, society still sanctions those who have been diagnosed with psychiatric disorders. When you apply for a job, there is a good chance you'll be asked whether you have had any mental disorder. You can lie, yes, and pretend you are perfectly okay, even if you're not. Patients are protected with confidentiality. (Must suck to be a psychiatrist/psychologist, keeping all those things to yourself.) This would probably be no problem with milder cases that aren't apparent and Axis V still remains relatively high and current functioning is not impaired. Unfortunately, the stigma still remains. You can't get rid of it. Obviously, you can choose not to tell people, but it is incredibly hard to just repress it. Trust me on this - I know exactly how it feels. For me, it was over in a relatively short while - less than 1.5 years. I have no idea how some people can just keep silent about it.
The reason why people keep silent is most probably due to the fear of negative reactions and rejection, even by close friends and relatives. Maybe it was easier for me because I'm close to no one, and I felt accountable to my friends and DB teammates about withdrawing from them.
I digress. Back to the topic. Stigma is always attached to psychiatric problems, mild or serious. Is it really that bad to be at the other end of the curve (the left), especially when your Axis V is still fine and you seem quite normal? With things like schizophrenia and severe OCD, I can definitely understand why negative sanctions are applied. My mum's brother and sister have severe schizophrenia and OCD (or so my mother claims, but I think there's more to it) respectively, and even though I am by no means a psychiatrist, I can tell that their Axis V is lower than 40-50, probably 20 for my uncle.
It is apparent some people malinger (ie. fake their symptoms). Those people are really nuts. To not be able to weigh the negative consequences and the short-term gains, maybe they do have a problem. This is such an interesting paradox. There are somatoform disorders like Somatization and Conversion Disorders, and that have to do with physiological symptoms.
But why the heck would you fake mental symptoms just to have a "crazy" tag stuck on you, possibly for the rest of your life?!
I am glad I am not going to be a psychologist or psychiatrist. (Then what am I doing PL as a second major for?? *facepalm*)
I digress again. Why is it that "normal" people impose sanctions (I just love this word) on people with mental disorders, but actually feel sympathy for those with physical disabilities (anything from sight or hearing impairments to those involving the limbs? The brain (and the nervous system) controls your whole f***ing body, dammit. Arguably, the brain is the most important organ in the body.
I admit that I myself would sanction those who are severely mentally ill - even my own relatives (no kidding, it's that bad). If you were a threat to the safety of others due to your mental disorder (like people who go around massacreing others during peacetime; and also my uncle, who once went into a store with a chopper and was arrested), to the hell with ethics, you need to be institutionalized. But for milder forms of mental disorders, I 100% advocate fair treatment for all. It's hard to draw a line between what's acceptable and what's not; in fact, it is actually pretty hard to make a diagnosis.
I believe 人性本恶 - that human nature is intrinsically evil. Adam and Eve were the first sinners, defying what God told them. Cain was the first murderer in human history, killing his brother Abel. It's socialization that balances the evil parts of us and makes us good human beings. The point is, because we are a naturally evil species, we are self-interested and seek to protect our own interests. And one of the ways is to impose sanctions on those who are different. There's a in-group, out-group mentality inherent in all of us - "us" versus "them". In fact, I can argue that the DSM itself is a tool to impose sanctions on those who are qualitatively different. Why does the APA have the authority to define abnormality? Of course, the DSM is not all bad, considering that there are treatment options listed in it to help those who are tagged with the specific illnesses. The whole nosology and nomenclature sucks though. Once you're different, you'll always be different.
There's a whole debate about the social construction of mental illnesses, and Thomas Szasz's "The Myth of Mental Illness". Those things are when psychology and sociology come together. :D
That's the sad/tragic thing about all this is that it's already written in history, and history cannot be changed. The best you can do is to not let it repeat itself.
And one of the downsides of being a SC-PL double major is that you start becoming extremely paranoid, both of yourself and those in your immediate environment; and also increasingly cynical of the world around you. Yep. Yep. I go around diagnosing myself with mental illnesses (I actually have a copy of the DSM-IV-TR on my computer) and bemoaning the sad state of society.
Diagnoses of psychiatric problems are increasing. Abnormality is becoming more normal. If you think of the population's mental health as a normal distribution, this means that more and more people are getting under the curve at the left tail, which means that the distribution is slowly but surely becoming skewed. Either that, or the entire distribution is shifting leftwards. Now that is actually rather scary, perhaps even more so than income inequality (see previous rambling rant).
As much as abnormality is becoming more normal, society still sanctions those who have been diagnosed with psychiatric disorders. When you apply for a job, there is a good chance you'll be asked whether you have had any mental disorder. You can lie, yes, and pretend you are perfectly okay, even if you're not. Patients are protected with confidentiality. (Must suck to be a psychiatrist/psychologist, keeping all those things to yourself.) This would probably be no problem with milder cases that aren't apparent and Axis V still remains relatively high and current functioning is not impaired. Unfortunately, the stigma still remains. You can't get rid of it. Obviously, you can choose not to tell people, but it is incredibly hard to just repress it. Trust me on this - I know exactly how it feels. For me, it was over in a relatively short while - less than 1.5 years. I have no idea how some people can just keep silent about it.
The reason why people keep silent is most probably due to the fear of negative reactions and rejection, even by close friends and relatives. Maybe it was easier for me because I'm close to no one, and I felt accountable to my friends and DB teammates about withdrawing from them.
I digress. Back to the topic. Stigma is always attached to psychiatric problems, mild or serious. Is it really that bad to be at the other end of the curve (the left), especially when your Axis V is still fine and you seem quite normal? With things like schizophrenia and severe OCD, I can definitely understand why negative sanctions are applied. My mum's brother and sister have severe schizophrenia and OCD (or so my mother claims, but I think there's more to it) respectively, and even though I am by no means a psychiatrist, I can tell that their Axis V is lower than 40-50, probably 20 for my uncle.
It is apparent some people malinger (ie. fake their symptoms). Those people are really nuts. To not be able to weigh the negative consequences and the short-term gains, maybe they do have a problem. This is such an interesting paradox. There are somatoform disorders like Somatization and Conversion Disorders, and that have to do with physiological symptoms.
But why the heck would you fake mental symptoms just to have a "crazy" tag stuck on you, possibly for the rest of your life?!
I am glad I am not going to be a psychologist or psychiatrist. (Then what am I doing PL as a second major for?? *facepalm*)
I digress again. Why is it that "normal" people impose sanctions (I just love this word) on people with mental disorders, but actually feel sympathy for those with physical disabilities (anything from sight or hearing impairments to those involving the limbs? The brain (and the nervous system) controls your whole f***ing body, dammit. Arguably, the brain is the most important organ in the body.
I admit that I myself would sanction those who are severely mentally ill - even my own relatives (no kidding, it's that bad). If you were a threat to the safety of others due to your mental disorder (like people who go around massacreing others during peacetime; and also my uncle, who once went into a store with a chopper and was arrested), to the hell with ethics, you need to be institutionalized. But for milder forms of mental disorders, I 100% advocate fair treatment for all. It's hard to draw a line between what's acceptable and what's not; in fact, it is actually pretty hard to make a diagnosis.
I believe 人性本恶 - that human nature is intrinsically evil. Adam and Eve were the first sinners, defying what God told them. Cain was the first murderer in human history, killing his brother Abel. It's socialization that balances the evil parts of us and makes us good human beings. The point is, because we are a naturally evil species, we are self-interested and seek to protect our own interests. And one of the ways is to impose sanctions on those who are different. There's a in-group, out-group mentality inherent in all of us - "us" versus "them". In fact, I can argue that the DSM itself is a tool to impose sanctions on those who are qualitatively different. Why does the APA have the authority to define abnormality? Of course, the DSM is not all bad, considering that there are treatment options listed in it to help those who are tagged with the specific illnesses. The whole nosology and nomenclature sucks though. Once you're different, you'll always be different.
There's a whole debate about the social construction of mental illnesses, and Thomas Szasz's "The Myth of Mental Illness". Those things are when psychology and sociology come together. :D
That's the sad/tragic thing about all this is that it's already written in history, and history cannot be changed. The best you can do is to not let it repeat itself.
And one of the downsides of being a SC-PL double major is that you start becoming extremely paranoid, both of yourself and those in your immediate environment; and also increasingly cynical of the world around you. Yep. Yep. I go around diagnosing myself with mental illnesses (I actually have a copy of the DSM-IV-TR on my computer) and bemoaning the sad state of society.