Giving people with mental health issues a diagnostic label could do more harm than good
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Giving people with mental health issues a diagnostic label could do more harm than good

ABC  

At the end of last year, I was doing some research for this story when I stumbled upon an online quiz inviting me to test for ADHD — attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. And Professor Haslam found that, as a society, we have been broadening the definition of what counts as mental illness — something he calls "concept creep". Pros and cons of diagnostic labels Professor Haslam says diagnostic labels are helpful because they encourage people to take their problems seriously, and encourage them to get help. Psychologist Rebecca Sims, who completed a recent PhD at Bond University titled "Label with care", agrees there are positive and negative effects of diagnostic labels. Looking at the broad array of possible diagnostic labels that people apply to their mental health, Professor Haslam agrees there are concerns that providing substantial social benefits for "relatively mild problems" can be costly for society, and possibly bad for people.

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History of this topic

What's the point of a mental health diagnosis?
2 years, 4 months ago

What's the point of a mental health diagnosis?

Hindustan Times  

Imagine: Your partner breaks up with you. Spanish psychiatrist Eduard Vieta, an expert on the neurobiology and treatment of bipolar disorder, agrees with Kinderman that diagnosis isn't always necessary — in cases of mental distress that are not extreme. When dealing with non-serious conditions, a diagnosis requirement can push mental health care providers to "medicalize a normal reaction or a …

Labels like ‘psycho’ or ‘schizo’ can hurt. Here are alternative clinical terms
2 years, 10 months ago

Labels like ‘psycho’ or ‘schizo’ can hurt. Here are alternative clinical terms

Hindustan Times  

It is common to hear people use stigmatising, discriminatory and hurtful labels such as “psycho”, “schizo” or “totally bipolar”. Thoughts from those ‘at risk’ Currently, “ultra-high risk ”, “at-risk mental state” and “attenuated psychosis syndrome” are used to describe young people at elevated risk of developing psychosis. At Orygen, new, less stigmatising ways to describe the “risk for psychosis” concept …

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