What is mental illness? What is the reasoning behind a diagnosis?
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From: John Jones on 24 Aug 2006 18:58 The rationale behind a diagnosis: "From a behaviour the doctor diagnoses a disorder of the brain, and from this disorder of the brain, the doctor can then confirm that the behaviour was a symptom." What is mental illness? "A behaviour is voted in as a symptom by a majority of the DSMIV panel. Only socially unacceptable behaviours are voted in as illnesses."
From: Nom dePlume on 25 Aug 2006 01:16 "John Jones" <jonescardiff(a)aol.com> wrote in message news:1156460299.893061.61460(a)74g2000cwt.googlegroups.com... > The rationale behind a diagnosis: > "From a behaviour the doctor diagnoses a disorder of the brain, and > from this disorder of the brain, the doctor can then confirm that > the > behaviour was a symptom." > > What is mental illness? > "A behaviour is voted in as a symptom by a majority of the DSMIV > panel. > Only socially unacceptable behaviours are voted in as illnesses." I'm afraid I don't understand your reasoning, but people who see doctors for treatment of their depression generally do so because they feel awful, and want relief. -- Nom dePlume, Ph.D. Why, yes, in fact, I am a rocket scientist. Guide to Medications for Mental Illness: http://www.geocities.com/nomdeplume1000/ =====
From: semiopen on 25 Aug 2006 08:47 John Jones wrote: > The rationale behind a diagnosis: > "From a behaviour the doctor diagnoses a disorder of the brain, and > from this disorder of the brain, the doctor can then confirm that the > behaviour was a symptom." > > What is mental illness? > "A behaviour is voted in as a symptom by a majority of the DSMIV panel. > Only socially unacceptable behaviours are voted in as illnesses." 1) What is the point of using quote marks without citations? 2) Very few criteria in the DSM are *behavioral* and not all behavioral criteria are based on social acceptability. For example, hallucinations are not behaviors. Feeling suicidal is not a behavior. Also - insomna is arguably a behavior but is not socially unacceptable per se (many socially accepted computer programmers, artists, writers, etc. display it). 3) I have no idea what mental illness *is* - which is a different question than whether or not it exists. 4) The existence or nonexistence of mental illness could be the topic of another post. -semiopen
From: marcia on 25 Aug 2006 09:10 semiopen wrote: > John Jones wrote: > > The rationale behind a diagnosis: > > "From a behaviour the doctor diagnoses a disorder of the brain, and > > from this disorder of the brain, the doctor can then confirm that the > > behaviour was a symptom." > > > > What is mental illness? > > "A behaviour is voted in as a symptom by a majority of the DSMIV panel. > > Only socially unacceptable behaviours are voted in as illnesses." > > 1) What is the point of using quote marks without citations? > > 2) Very few criteria in the DSM are *behavioral* and not all behavioral > criteria are based on social acceptability. For example, hallucinations > are not behaviors. Feeling suicidal is not a behavior. Also - insomna > is arguably a behavior but is not socially unacceptable per se (many > socially accepted computer programmers, artists, writers, etc. display > it). Virtually *all* of the criteria listed under Personality Disorders are behavioral; many of the signs of major mental illnesses (depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, etc.) are *observable* by a third-party (which is why they're classified as signs, not symptoms). It's my understanding that a symptom is something subjectively experienced by the patient, whereas as sign is empiric. The OP isn't very clear about whether he means all mental illnesses, certain mental illnesses, personality disorders, etc., or what his definition of behavioral is, etc. The statements are too simplistic, imo. YMMV marcia
From: semiopen on 25 Aug 2006 09:54
marcia wrote: (snip) > Virtually *all* of the criteria listed under Personality Disorders are > behavioral; Good point - I wasn't thinking in terms of PDs. But even there, it doesn't seem clear cut. My (debatable) classification of three are: 1) Schizoid: 6 out of 7 are behavioral 2) Schizotypal: 4 out of 9 are behavioral 3) Borderline: 5 out of 9 are >many of the signs of major mental illnesses (depression, > bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, etc.) are *observable* by a > third-party (which is why they're classified as signs, not symptoms). Not always observable! Don't underestimate the ability of some people to keep things inside ("No frown of mine shall betray the company I keep" - the last line of Sylvia Plath's poem "The Disquieting Muses.") > It's my understanding that a symptom is something subjectively > experienced by the patient, whereas as sign is empiric. Seems like a good distinction. Is it standard? While we are on the subject of signs/symptoms - not all are created equal. Unexplained weight loss and suicidal ideation are both listed as possible criteria of depression in the DSM but clearly suicidal ideation is a much more central criterion of depression than weight loss. A case can be made that the more central criteria of major mental illnesses are, well, *mental*, and not behavioral. > > The OP isn't very clear about whether he means all mental illnesses, > certain mental illnesses, personality disorders, etc., or what his > definition of behavioral is, etc. The statements are too simplistic, > imo. YMMV I agree. -semiopen |