Positive Therapeutic Analysis

Mental illness becomes a bigger issue with a long lasting cultural stereotyped due to the manner in which it has long been labelled (Miles, 1988). Although mental illness is very much connected to instabilities in one’s mental health state, as previously mentioned, a person can be mentally healthy but still suffer from a mental illness. What is understood by mental illness is that it

It is sometimes argued that “the creators of DSM-III and DSM-IV sacrificed validity for the sake of reliability”(Wakefield, 1992, cited in Gray, 2002, p 614). This refers to greater emphasis being placed upon superficial symptoms and less upon underlying symptoms and possible cause which could have an important influence upon individuals (Gray, 2002). Since behavior always involve interaction between the individual and their environment, it can be difficult to assess whether the disorder is within the person or whether it is an environmental influence such as a traumatic experience or related to poverty (Gray, 2002, p.612). This can cause problems when diagnosing is extremely difficult to scientifically distinguish between people’s normal responses or whether it is something more (Gray, 2002).

The five participants with no history of mental illness risked being labeled with characteristics of a mental health diagnosis. Two participants received misdiagnoses of a mental illness they did not embody. In the film, Vicky responded to the misdiagnosis by sharing that she felt confident in her mental health ( ). However, the misdiagnosis of an individual who does not have the same confidence as Vicky could have detrimental effects. As a future social worker, I feel it is important to recognize that Vicky’s response and feelings towards the misdiagnosis is likely unusual. Mental health professionals must exercise caution when preforming diagnosis, since it has a profound impact on an individual’s

The DSM is used as a standard of reference for psychological diagnosis. The DSM was originally published in 1952 containing only 106 diagnoses; today the revised DSM-IV-TR contains 365 diagnoses. Throughout the history of the DSM, individuals in the mental health profession have relied on it for clarification of disorders, facilitating research, improving communication with other professionals and improving the collection of clinical information. With a new DSM-V underway, there has been a lot of issues surrounding the contents and classifications of the new DSM. There are

Some people feel that when diagnosed with a mental illness they are being labelled into a category they are seen as mentally ill instead of them having a mental illness unfortunately there are so many negative stereotypes which are pinned with mental illness, according to the labelling theory it’s the thought of a person being labelled mentally ill which can cause you to be ill mentally as a result of its effects described as a self-fulfilling prophecy according to a modified version of this theory. There are assumptions about the negative impact on self-concept, this impact is described in later research about stigma and self-stigma, stigma can have some negative results for self-concept by lowing self-efficacy which can make impaired coping

Within the past two decades there’s been a revival in efforts to reduce stigmatization attached to mental illnesses. It was concluded that if mental illnesses were perceived better as ‘real’ diseases by the public that stigma would go down greatly. Reports proposed the idea that better scientific understanding of mental illnesses by the general public could greatly reduce stigma. Stigma is intensely rooted in social and cultural norms it’s patterns devalue and dehumanize groups of individuals within society (in this case mentally ill people). Stigma constructs barriers for individuals, barriers that limit a person’s abilities to have equal opportunities for employment, safe housing, health care and social relationships.Efforts to reduce stigma in recent years have

Kroska, A. Harkness, S.K. (2008). Exploring the role of diagnosis in the modified labeling theory of mental illness. Social Psychology Quarterly, 71, 193-208

The controversy and criticism surrounding the DSM -5 models has raised questions about its credibility and has raised concerns from the public on the reliability and effectiveness. Problems with this classification system is the attempt to promote preventive psychiatry by introducing how

“Up to 20 percent of people with bipolar disorder may be mistakenly diagnosed with depression” (Scott). This means that if only 20 percent of people are misdiagnosed with depression than if you would include all of the other disorders that they are getting misdiagnosed with it would be a very high number of occurrences. In a study that took place in 2008 it was found that “fewer than half the people in the study who said they had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder met the clinical criteria for the illness” (Scott). Based off of this it means that people who show little to no symptoms are getting the diagnosis of bipolar over a different diagnosis that would help the patient out more in the long

However, one may argue that the Brafman’s explanation of such seemingly complex behaviors is ineffective due to how it is simplified. It is argued that this simplification is ineffective in two respects: the first being how certain sways work, and the latter being how to avoid being swayed. By simplifying these two it can make the book come off as diluted according to Dr. John Grohol. He explains his first discrepancy with Sway by stating that the simplistic manner of the book leaves out important factors in regards to certain sways, for example, diagnosis bias (Grohol). By simplifying the issue with how bipolar disorder is increasingly overdiagnosed it skews information in regards to other illnesses, making it seem as if the issue solely effects bipolar disorder, when in fact this

This article, published by CNN, covers a topic that was thrown into the spotlight following the release of the fourth Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM IV, and has been heavily discussed as the release date of DSM V approaches. The article, which is supported by anti-DSM experts, theorizes that the medical community is over diagnosing patients with mental illnesses at an unprecedented rate. Unfortunately, the experts provide an extensive amount of bias to the article, which is clear by examining the antithesis to their arguments. Three clear examples of bias are the statements of Dr. Carroll, Kelli Montgomery, and the articles overall focus on the DSM. The bias

The information published by popular sources on the subject of misdiagnosis is considerably less researched and much more experiential. For example, in his article about the danger of stigmatization within diagnoses, John Grohol refers to his experience as a psychologist. He suggests the idea that diagnosis can be harmful because it leads to toxic labeling, such as calling someone with depression “a depressive” (Grohol). Grohol believes that this contributes to the stigma produced by professionals within the mental health community. Another article, written by a man with Asperger’s syndrome, draws from his personal experiences to suggest that diagnosis itself can be either a positive or negative experience depending on the person who is receiving

It is very important for individuals to have a formal diagnosis as individuals can find relief in a formal diagnosis as it explains why they are different as well as why they may face the difficulties that they do, in addition to this, some people that may have a mental health problems can be better treated once their autism has been diagnosed. Furthermore, It is also important to realise that it can help an individual with autism if they can gain the understanding of others, including friends, family and colleagues as once people understand the reasons for the person's difficulties it makes it easier to empathise and offer the appropriate support.

The DSM itself states “diagnosis require clinical judgment (American Psychiatric Association, 2013, p. 19) indicating the fact that two therapist may see things differently. This concept would have to be considered a weakness as consensus is key validity and reliability of diagnosis and subsequent treatment. The article goes on to discuss the idea that the diagnosis of mental illness is more of an art form than a scientific process (Zur & Nordmarken, 2016). Finally, the most harsh factor against the DSM-5 is the outcry by leading professionals. The article points out that the chairman of its predecessor the DSM-4 Dr. Allen Frances was a critic of the DSM-5 from the very beginning. Change on any level is difficult so for Dr. Frances to urge caution is one; however, for him to say “this is the saddest moment in a 45 year career” to the American Psychiatric Association’s approval of the DSM-5 is troubling. Dr. Frances is not alone is his objection to this text. The director of the National Institute of Mental Health; Dr. Thomas Insel joined the opposition stating he will drive his organization’s research away from the DSM-5 (Zur & Nordmarken,

The clinician’s enthusiasm was fanatic at making the client feel welcome by greeting them with a big smile. She did a great job at making them feel involved and getting them engaged through the session. The clinician did an awesome job at giving positive reinforcement throughout the session especially when using the device spontaneously. The therapy was a group therapy but she had both her clients site on both sides of her. The instructions she gave were pretty simple and straightforward the client knew what to do after she gave them. While reading she gave them the choice if they wanted to read out loud or have the device read it. She helped the client by demonstrating on his device on which options to choose from. They spent about 15 minutes