Psychology Today Hit Piece Labels Conspiracy Thinking A Psychotic Illness

Is everyone done jabbing at each other yet?
 
sallylou said:
The psychologists and psychiatrists are not against us. They are trying to help. They don't like to give diagnosis numbers to people for fear that it will follow them later in life and give them difficulty with insurers. Sometimes, they have to give a diagnosis number to treat the patient. They don't want people to be in pain (which occurs when a person is depressed).

Poor mental health outcomes are going to happen during economic crisis. It's a symptom of society defining people as what they do (their work). There have already been numerous suicides in the large urban area where I live. One poor guy jumped off a garage downtown after being laid off. Another unemployed guy killed himself when a sheriff showed up to foreclose on his house. It's tragic.

Where ever you fall on the political spectrum, take a moment to communicate to others around you that they are important and valuable as a human being. You might be that one person between the victim and despair. You'll also find that helping others improves your own mental health.
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I dont understand how mental health became a political issue? There are people with mental illnessness and they need support and help.
 
Shel, it's not a political issue. That's my point. We all need to help each other.
 
sallylou said:
Shel, it's not a political issue. That's my point. We all need to help each other.
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I meant I dont understand some who make it into a political issue. :roll:
 
yizuman said:
You mean emotional intelligence and emotional creative thought.

I have yet seen evidence that a liberal actually uses a brain for intelligence and creativity.

Yiz
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No that is not what I mean. But it doesn't surprise me that you are having difficulty understanding the topic. You are a conservative are you not?

Conspiracy thinking and paranoia are not the domain of any particular political persuasion.
 
sallylou said:
Shel, it's not a political issue. That's my point. We all need to help each other.
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When people use it for political issues as a scare tactic ... no one would take psychology seriously anymore. They would just think "oh, another liberal labeling us again...." And may just reject psychology all together because they think psychology are for liberals who don't like our way of thinking so they have to put a label on us. And when you have a person who truly need help, they have a hard time trusting one, or don't believe there is a psychologist who is acceptable to his political beliefs without making it into another mental disorder.

If I ever go to one, I would find a pastor or a christian type (some don't think a christian should be a psychologist, that's how bad it is), but I never been to one in my life, never got to the point where I needed one either.

Look how many mothers who reject ADHD? they think teachers are overly using it because they want a perfect classroom.
 
Lighthouse77 said:
Look how many mothers who reject ADHD? they think teachers are overly using it because they want a perfect classroom.
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In a way, it is. However one shouldn't reject or rule out ADHD, however it is grossly over-diagnosed if 20%-40% of the population have the attention-deficit labels. Problem is that there are many other disorders out there that resemble attention-deficit as well.
 
souggy said:
In a way, it is. However one shouldn't reject or rule out ADHD, however it is grossly over-diagnosed if 20%-40% of the population have the attention-deficit labels. Problem is that there are many other disorders out there that resemble attention-deficit as well.
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That's right, that's what I am talking about, when people see how it is over-diangnosed, the ones who really need help will think his is overly diagnosed too.. Then people say "oh the heck with all this psychology mumble jumble"
 
Lighthouse77 said:
That's right, that's what I am talking about, when people see how it is over-diangnosed, the ones who really need help will think his is overly diagnosed too.. Then people say "oh the heck with all this psychology mumble jumble"
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Then the two-weeks cap (in term of many sessions are paid for) put forward by many insurance coverage should be abolished so psychologists can make the proper diagnosis. I went through many psychologists, and many of them applied different labels throughout the years.
 
It doesn't really stop liberal using it as a scare tactic (so they will stop being a conservative and become one of them)
 
oh another biggest fear people have is losing their children. They won't go to a psychologist because they are afraid someone will take their children away. So they rather keep their problems a secret.

I already know several people who lost custody of their child to the father because of this.

BUT I think if one love their children very well, they should seek help and not worry about losing their children. Their children will be ok no matter where they live (but the court should allow them have a say so in their education and such even if they can't have custody, still allow them be a part of their life) . Because I had a close neighbor who killed herself and her preteen son found her on her bed. He is very torn up... if she had help. he would be happy today.
 
Lighthouse77 said:
oh another biggest fear people have is losing their children. They won't go to a psychologist because they are afraid someone will take their children away. So they rather keep their problems a secret.

I already know several people who lost custody of their child to the father because of this.
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Oh, the irony. I ended up seeing therapists because I was too afraid to confront them about my problems in the first place since I was afraid of what other people would think, in which my severe problems ended up being exposed by a former close friend. Should had gotten help before my issues spiralled out of control.
 
Is there a perception that shrinks and therapists are liberal? If so, I was not aware of that. I've never discussed anything remotely political with my shrinks or therapists. I have no idea what their political propensities are and do not care. They are professionals who are providing mental health services. IMHO, political ideas don't even enter the equation.

For many people, there is a stigma associated with getting help and that needs to change. Getting help is not a sign of weakness. It's a sign of being healthy enough to get needed care. It's very common to need mental health care in a divorce situation. Divorce is a loss like a death and many people need assistance.

I've had clients be concerned about getting mental health treatment and I tell them to disclose it and not worry about it. In my jurisdiction custody is joint unless a parent is proven unfit. Seeking necessary mental health care does not make a person an unfit parent. A parent is unfit if the parent neglects or abuses the child. This requires real evidence. The parties may agree to mental health or drug testing in a custody case. The judge will only order a psych evaluation if there is evidence of a mental health issue (more than an accusation). Ordering drug testing is far more common. If anyone is concerned about this, she should consult an attorney in her jurisdiction.

I understand that many people are uncomfortable discussing mental health issues and that's part of the problem. People need to be informed and seek help when needed.
 
souggy said:
In a way, it is. However one shouldn't reject or rule out ADHD, however it is grossly over-diagnosed if 20%-40% of the population have the attention-deficit labels. Problem is that there are many other disorders out there that resemble attention-deficit as well.
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Agreed. Too often diagnosed by a general physician based on teacher's reports without proper testing.
 
I believe that only specialists like psychiatrists or neurologists should diagnose ADD.

I have a bias in favor of specialists because they have a duty of a higher standard of care than a general physician. I especially hate when gynocologists prescribe patients antidepressants. Why should a reproductive specialist mess with a person's brain chemistry?
 
sallylou said:
Is there a perception that shrinks and therapists are liberal? If so, I was not aware of that. I've never discussed anything remotely political with my shrinks or therapists. I have no idea what their political propensities are and do not care. They are professionals who are providing mental health services. IMHO, political ideas don't even enter the equation.

For many people, there is a stigma associated with getting help and that needs to change. Getting help is not a sign of weakness. It's a sign of being healthy enough to get needed care. It's very common to need mental health care in a divorce situation. Divorce is a loss like a death and many people need assistance.

I've had clients be concerned about getting mental health treatment and I tell them to disclose it and not worry about it. In my jurisdiction custody is joint unless a parent is proven unfit. Seeking necessary mental health care does not make a person an unfit parent. A parent is unfit if the parent neglects or abuses the child. This requires real evidence. The parties may agree to mental health or drug testing in a custody case. The judge will only order a psych evaluation if there is evidence of a mental health issue (more than an accusation). Ordering drug testing is far more common. If anyone is concerned about this, she should consult an attorney in her jurisdiction.

I understand that many people are uncomfortable discussing mental health issues and that's part of the problem. People need to be informed and seek help when needed.
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Trust me, we come from all political persuasions, in varied colors, genders, sexual orientation, religions, and theoretical perspectives.
 
sallylou said:
I believe that only specialists like psychiatrists or neurologists should diagnose ADD.

I have a bias in favor of specialists because they have a duty of a higher standard of care than a general physician. I especially hate when gynocologists prescribe patients antidepressants. Why should a reproductive specialist mess with a person's brain chemistry?
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Agreed.
 
And not all disorders are necessarily bad. There is a reason why some professionals use the terms "adaptive" and "maladaptive." Like.. Martha Stuart is a OCPD, however she's an adaptive one at that. If she was maladaptive, then she wouldn't be on TV; rather be she would be floundering somewhere else if she was maladaptive-- think "compulsive hoarding" in an apartment.

So... conspiracy thinking being an illness? Once it start interfering with the person's quality of life, then it become a maladaptive trait. When it's manageable, there is nothing wrong with that line of thinking.
 
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