So, what does this mean for the average person? It’s unclear. What this could mean is that
children with temper tantrums (that would be most kids, right?) could
potentially be thought of and evaluated and/or treated for a psychiatric
illness. Tantrums may become more than tantrums, but rather potential symptoms
of mental illness. That’s a pretty frightening prospect, as in most cases these
children are not likely to go on to struggle with bipolar disorder. Or, it could mean that seemingly normal
grooming behavior, such as skin picking, may become associated with mental
illness, bringing legions of those struggling with acne to therapists’ offices.
We may be on the verge of a societal shift in what is viewed
as normal behavior being over-pathologized. Or, perhaps these are mere over-reactions and these problems will only
be seen as problems when manifested in their extremes. Only time will tell.
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/therapy-that-works/2013/05/redefining-mental-illness-or-not/
children with temper tantrums (that would be most kids, right?) could
potentially be thought of and evaluated and/or treated for a psychiatric
illness. Tantrums may become more than tantrums, but rather potential symptoms
of mental illness. That’s a pretty frightening prospect, as in most cases these
children are not likely to go on to struggle with bipolar disorder. Or, it could mean that seemingly normal
grooming behavior, such as skin picking, may become associated with mental
illness, bringing legions of those struggling with acne to therapists’ offices.
We may be on the verge of a societal shift in what is viewed
as normal behavior being over-pathologized. Or, perhaps these are mere over-reactions and these problems will only
be seen as problems when manifested in their extremes. Only time will tell.
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/therapy-that-works/2013/05/redefining-mental-illness-or-not/
The new guideline “is really an example of psychiatric
imperialism,” said Gordon Parker, Scientia Professor of
psychiatry at Sydney-based University of New South Wales. It has
“a flawed logic and a flawed model which leads to compromised
research and also compromises management.”
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-05-15/doctors-protest-psychiatric-manual-revision-in-global-petition
imperialism,” said Gordon Parker, Scientia Professor of
psychiatry at Sydney-based University of New South Wales. It has
“a flawed logic and a flawed model which leads to compromised
research and also compromises management.”
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-05-15/doctors-protest-psychiatric-manual-revision-in-global-petition
To:
"eurorealist@yahoogroups.com" <eurorealist@yahoogroups.com>
This Monday, May 13, 2013 photo shows the books "The Book of Woe" by Gary
Greenberg and "Saving Normal" by Allen Francis on display in Chicago.
Recent criticism of changes in an update of psychiatry's most widely
used guidebook for diagnosing mental illness include these books by two
respected therapists. They argue that the American Psychiatric
Association's guidebook is turning normal human conditions into mental
illness and will lead to even more overuse of psychiatric drugs. The
association is introducing the updated guide at its annual meeting in
San Francisco in May 2013. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)
CHICAGO - In the new psychiatric manual of mental disorders, grief soon after a loved one's death can be considered major depression. Extreme childhood temper tantrums get a fancy name. And certain "senior moments" are
called "mild neurocognitive disorder."
Those changes are just some of the reasons prominent critics say the
American Psychiatric Association is out of control, turning common human problems into mental illnesses in a trend they say will just make the
"pop-a-pill" culture worse.
Says a former leader of the group: "Normal needs to be saved from powerful forces trying to convince us that we are all sick."
At issue is the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical
Manual of Mental Disorders, widely known as the DSM-5. The DSM has long
been considered the authoritative source for diagnosing mental problems.
The psychiatric association formally introduces the nearly 1,000-page revised version this weekend in San Francisco. It's the manual's first
major update in nearly 20 years, and a backlash has taken shape in
recent weeks:
— Two new books by mental health experts, "Saving Normal" and "The
Book of Woe," say the world's most widely used psychiatric guide has
lost credibility.
— A British psychologists' group is criticizing the DSM-5, calling
for a "paradigm shift" away from viewing mental problems as a disease.
An organization of German therapists also attacked the new guide.
— Even the head of the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health complained that the book lacks scientific validity.
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/grief+mental+illness+Psychiatrists+critics+face+over+revised/8389251/story.html
Books blast new version of psychiatry's bible, the DSM
Critics take aim at changes envisioned for psychiatry's
bible, the DSM.
Psychiatry's battle-scarred bible of mental disorders — known as the
DSM — continues to face a barrage of criticism even as the latest
version (DSM-5) is just days away from official release.
The
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has been published since 1952 by the American Psychiatric Association to identify and
classify mental disorders. Its last major revision was in 1994. With
every revision, there are critics.
But among the legions roiling
against this new version, a literary assault has now emerged. An array
of books strategically timed to the new version being released at the
organization's annual meeting in San Francisco (which begins Saturday)
are largely aimed at its failings.
"This is not just an academic
debate," says psychiatrist Allen Frances, who was chairman of the DSM-IV task force. "It's not just inside psychiatry. It has a huge impact on
how lives are lived, how mental health dollars are spent and on the
public health of the country."
His book, Saving Normal: An
Insider's Revolt Against Out-of-Control Psychiatric Diagnosis, DSM-5,
Big Pharma, and the Medicalization of Ordinary Life, is out Tuesday.
"The reason there is so much controversy about DSM-5 is that psychiatric
diagnosis has become, if anything, too important — not only in clinical
decisions but also in school services, disability and in the courtroom.
There's a tremendous amount at stake," says Frances, of Coronado,
Calif., a professor emeritus at Duke University in Durham, N.C.
Because the DSM contains a detailed list of psychiatric disorders, it's a
guidebook for the U.S. health care system and insurance coverage.
Revisions aren't taken lightly. This latest took more than a decade and
included more than 1,500 experts and extensive public comment.
"When DSM-5 happened, everything was up for grabs. That has the risk of
causing changes to be made that really didn't need to be," says Michael
First, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University in New
York who has been an editorial consultant for the DSM-5. He says any
future revision will be a modification and will be termed 5.1, etc.,
which is why they switched from Roman numerals.
The common theme of these new books is to take aim at the heart of the manual.
Psychotherapist Gary Greenberg, of New London, Conn., has written about the DSM for
more than a decade and says the DSM disorders are "simply collections of symptoms that some experts agree constitute mental illnesses. There's
not a single diagnosis in DSM that lives up to the standards of medical
diseases."
"If I as a therapist tell you (that) you have a mental
disorder, it's not the same thing as my telling you you have diabetes or cancer because diabetes and cancer are diseases that can be confirmed
through biochemical findings. They meet the requirements for a disease
in the way we generally think of a disease. There is not a single
disorder in DSM-5 or any DSM that does that," says Greenberg, author of The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry, out earlier this month.
"The whole disease model that underlies the DSM has been an utter scientific failure," says Stuart Kirk, a professor emeritus of social welfare at
UCLA, who has been tracking DSM for decades. "There's not a single
biological marker for any of the 300-plus disorders. What we do instead
is descriptive. This describing is creating a disorder and pretending
it's a medical illness rather than just human behavior."
Kirk is co-author of Mad Science: Psychiatric Coercion, Diagnosis, and Drugs, out last month.
In his book, The Intelligent Clinician's Guide to the DSM-5,
out last month, psychiatrist Joel Paris of McGill University in Montreal suggests that DSM has some pluses but a lot of minuses.
"The
strong points would be that the manual does provide a useful guide to
severe mental illness and it always has," he says. The closer that it
gets to what people would consider normal behavior, the less useful the
DSM is, he says.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/12/dsm-psychiatry-mental-disorders/2150819/
Purcell: No-fault internet addiction :: ))
http://www.pekintimes.com/article/20130512/OPINION/130519956/-1/news
The lying liars who lie about psychiatry
Are 40 Percent of Europeans Mentally Ill?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu7NDUc5TD4
Number Of Ways To Go Nuts To Increase: DSM-V
http://wmbriggs.com/blog/?p=4349
Increasing Mental Health Awareness: Too Much of a Good Thing?
But a few weeks ago, physician H. Gilbert Welch wrote an op-ed in the LA Times
that questioned whether the pendulum has swung too far the other way. Have we
become a nation of people who will get diagnosed for all sorts of sub-clinical
problems at the drop of a hat?
Indeed, I think there is a very real danger of that becoming the case. And
nowhere is that more likely than in mental health.
Dr. Ron Pies talked about some of these same issues in his article a year and a
half ago, Is Grief a Mental Disorder? No, But it May Become One! We, as a
society, are in danger of medicalizing and turning everyday human experiences
into disorders and diseases needing treatment.
http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2011/05/18/increasing-mental-health-awareness-too-much-of-a-good-thing/
We Will Soon All Be Mentally Ill: DSM V & Testing All Children For Mental
Disease
Greenberg and "Saving Normal" by Allen Francis on display in Chicago.
Recent criticism of changes in an update of psychiatry's most widely
used guidebook for diagnosing mental illness include these books by two
respected therapists. They argue that the American Psychiatric
Association's guidebook is turning normal human conditions into mental
illness and will lead to even more overuse of psychiatric drugs. The
association is introducing the updated guide at its annual meeting in
San Francisco in May 2013. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)
CHICAGO - In the new psychiatric manual of mental disorders, grief soon after a loved one's death can be considered major depression. Extreme childhood temper tantrums get a fancy name. And certain "senior moments" are
called "mild neurocognitive disorder."
Those changes are just some of the reasons prominent critics say the
American Psychiatric Association is out of control, turning common human problems into mental illnesses in a trend they say will just make the
"pop-a-pill" culture worse.
Says a former leader of the group: "Normal needs to be saved from powerful forces trying to convince us that we are all sick."
At issue is the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical
Manual of Mental Disorders, widely known as the DSM-5. The DSM has long
been considered the authoritative source for diagnosing mental problems.
The psychiatric association formally introduces the nearly 1,000-page revised version this weekend in San Francisco. It's the manual's first
major update in nearly 20 years, and a backlash has taken shape in
recent weeks:
— Two new books by mental health experts, "Saving Normal" and "The
Book of Woe," say the world's most widely used psychiatric guide has
lost credibility.
— A British psychologists' group is criticizing the DSM-5, calling
for a "paradigm shift" away from viewing mental problems as a disease.
An organization of German therapists also attacked the new guide.
— Even the head of the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health complained that the book lacks scientific validity.
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/grief+mental+illness+Psychiatrists+critics+face+over+revised/8389251/story.html
Books blast new version of psychiatry's bible, the DSM
Critics take aim at changes envisioned for psychiatry's
bible, the DSM.
Psychiatry's battle-scarred bible of mental disorders — known as the
DSM — continues to face a barrage of criticism even as the latest
version (DSM-5) is just days away from official release.
The
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has been published since 1952 by the American Psychiatric Association to identify and
classify mental disorders. Its last major revision was in 1994. With
every revision, there are critics.
But among the legions roiling
against this new version, a literary assault has now emerged. An array
of books strategically timed to the new version being released at the
organization's annual meeting in San Francisco (which begins Saturday)
are largely aimed at its failings.
"This is not just an academic
debate," says psychiatrist Allen Frances, who was chairman of the DSM-IV task force. "It's not just inside psychiatry. It has a huge impact on
how lives are lived, how mental health dollars are spent and on the
public health of the country."
His book, Saving Normal: An
Insider's Revolt Against Out-of-Control Psychiatric Diagnosis, DSM-5,
Big Pharma, and the Medicalization of Ordinary Life, is out Tuesday.
"The reason there is so much controversy about DSM-5 is that psychiatric
diagnosis has become, if anything, too important — not only in clinical
decisions but also in school services, disability and in the courtroom.
There's a tremendous amount at stake," says Frances, of Coronado,
Calif., a professor emeritus at Duke University in Durham, N.C.
Because the DSM contains a detailed list of psychiatric disorders, it's a
guidebook for the U.S. health care system and insurance coverage.
Revisions aren't taken lightly. This latest took more than a decade and
included more than 1,500 experts and extensive public comment.
"When DSM-5 happened, everything was up for grabs. That has the risk of
causing changes to be made that really didn't need to be," says Michael
First, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University in New
York who has been an editorial consultant for the DSM-5. He says any
future revision will be a modification and will be termed 5.1, etc.,
which is why they switched from Roman numerals.
The common theme of these new books is to take aim at the heart of the manual.
Psychotherapist Gary Greenberg, of New London, Conn., has written about the DSM for
more than a decade and says the DSM disorders are "simply collections of symptoms that some experts agree constitute mental illnesses. There's
not a single diagnosis in DSM that lives up to the standards of medical
diseases."
"If I as a therapist tell you (that) you have a mental
disorder, it's not the same thing as my telling you you have diabetes or cancer because diabetes and cancer are diseases that can be confirmed
through biochemical findings. They meet the requirements for a disease
in the way we generally think of a disease. There is not a single
disorder in DSM-5 or any DSM that does that," says Greenberg, author of The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry, out earlier this month.
"The whole disease model that underlies the DSM has been an utter scientific failure," says Stuart Kirk, a professor emeritus of social welfare at
UCLA, who has been tracking DSM for decades. "There's not a single
biological marker for any of the 300-plus disorders. What we do instead
is descriptive. This describing is creating a disorder and pretending
it's a medical illness rather than just human behavior."
Kirk is co-author of Mad Science: Psychiatric Coercion, Diagnosis, and Drugs, out last month.
In his book, The Intelligent Clinician's Guide to the DSM-5,
out last month, psychiatrist Joel Paris of McGill University in Montreal suggests that DSM has some pluses but a lot of minuses.
"The
strong points would be that the manual does provide a useful guide to
severe mental illness and it always has," he says. The closer that it
gets to what people would consider normal behavior, the less useful the
DSM is, he says.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/12/dsm-psychiatry-mental-disorders/2150819/
Purcell: No-fault internet addiction :: ))
http://www.pekintimes.com/article/20130512/OPINION/130519956/-1/news
The lying liars who lie about psychiatry
Are 40 Percent of Europeans Mentally Ill?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu7NDUc5TD4
Number Of Ways To Go Nuts To Increase: DSM-V
http://wmbriggs.com/blog/?p=4349
Increasing Mental Health Awareness: Too Much of a Good Thing?
But a few weeks ago, physician H. Gilbert Welch wrote an op-ed in the LA Times
that questioned whether the pendulum has swung too far the other way. Have we
become a nation of people who will get diagnosed for all sorts of sub-clinical
problems at the drop of a hat?
Indeed, I think there is a very real danger of that becoming the case. And
nowhere is that more likely than in mental health.
Dr. Ron Pies talked about some of these same issues in his article a year and a
half ago, Is Grief a Mental Disorder? No, But it May Become One! We, as a
society, are in danger of medicalizing and turning everyday human experiences
into disorders and diseases needing treatment.
http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2011/05/18/increasing-mental-health-awareness-too-much-of-a-good-thing/
We Will Soon All Be Mentally Ill: DSM V & Testing All Children For Mental
Disease
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