Perhaps you are like me and check your email every thirty minutes or less? This internet addiction could well be defined as a mental disorder before long. Or are you subject to outbursts of temper? Or do you eat more than you should 12 times in a three month period?
According to the latest edition of the DSM, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual V, (just published at a bookshop near you!), the above scenarios could be signs of new mental disorders and treatment with psychiatric drugs will be the norm. The book I am referring to is the standard manual in the USA for psychiatrists and mental health specialists when diagnosing patients. Have they all gone mad, you may ask?
A scary scenario
There has been a storm of protests and fierce controversy as to how mental illness is diagnosed and treated and this had gained momentum with the latest edition of the DSM V. The sad fact is that there is more than enough evidence that the psychiatric profession is hand in glove with Big Pharma.
The increase in both the enormous quantities of psychiatric drugs prescribed and the galloping inflation of labels associated with previously unheard of so called mental disorders is more than enough to raise red flags.
We are now getting to the stage where any slight irregular or unconventional human behavior is going to have some disorder label slapped on the sufferer. The following are under scrutiny as being over diagnosed and hyped up to a disturbing level:-
- temper outbursts in children
- ADHD
- eating disorders
- shy children
- defiant children
- bipolar disorder
The scary scenario is that all or most of these conditions will be treated with psychiatric drugs. The scariest fact of all is that the vast majority of the USA school shooters (90%!) were being treated with either antidepressants, stimulants or some other type of psychotic drug!
What do official bodies say?
It depends which one you look at. Let us take the UK’s Division of Clinical Psychology (DCP) as an example. This body has 10,000 members (psychologists and psychiatrists) so presumably they know what they are talking about. Let me sum up their main worries and concerns about how mental illness is diagnosed and treated. They say that:-
- Diagnosis is often stated as a fact.
- The reality of any diagnosis is subjective and rarely can be objective
- Diagnosis of ADHD , schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are often not reliable
- Many diagnosis are of doubtful validity.
Are anti depressants helpful?
To add fuel to the fire, the British Medical Journal has published an article recently which states that only one in seven people will benefit form taking anti depressants! They also make the point that 75% of those who have been involved in defining mental illness have close connections with the pharmaceutical industry in one form or another.
In defence of the DSM
Many bodies have argued in favour of the contents and principles of the DSM. They defend their position by saying that the guidelines in it are merely tools to help in the whole procedure and that they look at many factors besides the biological ones. For example:-
- Guidelines and questionnaires in the DSM are useful pointers
- They do look at the whole person
- They consider social and psychological causes of the disorder or disease.
- They consider biological causes and treatments as just one element in a very complicated equation
The debate will rage on.
There is no easy answer here except to be aware that we urgently need to change our perception of mental illness. Above all, we should be wary of easy prescriptions when lifestyle changes and other complementary treatments should be actively considered. This is especially true in the case of ADHD children where an ADHD friendly home and active support can often be more effective than dosing them with psychostimulants.
Now, before you check your email for the umpteenth time today, why not switch off your computer and go for a walk instead?
About the author
Robert Locke MBE is an award winning author and has written extensively on ADHD and related child health problems. His new book on ‘Facts about ADHD Children – Tips on ADHD Parenting’ has just been published. Visit his Problem Kids Blog to get more details of how you can get a FREE copy from June 1 through June 3.
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