Site Search: search tips sitemap verify here In the Spotlight Best Children's Books (and Teens) Psychiatric Labeling Labeling People Positive Steps and Interventions Arts Therapy Self Help Psychology 16 Keys Music Psychology Coaching and Mentoring Self Help Mental Health Green Therapy Biofeedback - Neurofeedback Professional Therapies Spirituality-Psychology Psychological Disorders ADHD Help Help for Depression About Bipolar Disorder Borderline Personality Disorder Treatment of Anxiety Overcoming Panic Attacks - Naturally Sleep problems Sleep Remedies Obsessive Compulsive DisorderOCD Eating Disorders Info Schizophrenia Help Oppositional Defiant Disorder Conduct Disorder Treatment of Epilepsy Children and Youth Autism in Children Child Abuse Information Positive Parenting - 24 Steps School Psychology, Education Sport Psychology Internet Safety Pornography Effects - Addiction, Help Abortion Suicide Prevention Other Links Off-site links: ADHD Book ADHD book Radio Broadcast - Wellness Dialogues - Alternative approaches to ADHD Treatment ("Follow" to play) Best ADHD books list 100% of advertising commissions from Amazon.com and parental internet control software banners (2011), along with other funding from the AYCNP were used for providing books to schools, public libraries, and other non-profit institutions, on mental health and related topics, and for helping at-risk children and teens. Children's Mental Health Book Best Books for Children and Teens - Over 100 selections   Please send any suggestions and comments. The Association for Youth, Children and Natural Psychology is a non-profit New Jersey corporation and operates as a federal 501(c)3.   SAFE EYES: An excellent program tested by the AYCNP, to protect families from intrusive pop-ups or undesirable sites. Exellent for screening inappropriate YouTube content, controlling Social Networking sites and monitoring web use. Easy to install, use and modify. Sponsor Beyond the Disease Model of Mental Disorders by Donald Kiesler Kiesler's Beyond the Disease Model of Mental Disorder goes beyond recent volumes which argue that psychotropic medications are being overused and abused in contemporary mental health settings. Elliott Valenstein, for example, an emeritus professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of Michigan, recently argues that people should be highly suspicious of the claim that all mental illness is primarily a biochemical disorder. In his 1998 book, Blaming the Brain: The Truth about Drugs and Mental Health, Valenstein does not argue that drugs never work or that patients should discontinue taking medication. Valenstein's central point, instead, is that drugs do not attack the real cause of a disorder, since biochemical theories are an unproven hypothesis and probably a false one. Inasmuch as Kiesler's volume is concerned exclusively with scientific explanations of mental disorders, it does not review at all the evidence for psychotropic medications or for other treatments of mental disorders. Kiesler does highlight a message similar to that of Valenstein, who rejects the hypothesis that mental illness is primarily a biochemical disorder. After a comprehensive review of the relevant scientific evidence, Kiesler concludes that henceforth the study of mental disorders must be guided by multicausal theories and research that systematically include an array of biological, psychological, and sociocultural causal factors. Kiesler adds that, in order for this to be accomplished, the mental health field and the public at large must first abandon the invalid monocausal biomedical (disease) model of mental disorder. Living with Depression: why Biology and Biography Matter Along the Path to Hope and Healing by Debora Serani This book "manages to explain depression in terms of human biology and experience without downplaying either aspect. Many times authors concentrate on one or the other, leaving the reader with the impression that only nature (or nurture) causes depression. These books then often purpose one type of solution (i.e. only medication or only talk therapy), leaving the reader only have-informed. Living with Depression give[s] a truly holistic view of depression and its treatment, it gives it in an easily understandable format." The book also provides a discussion concerning stigma of those with mental health disorders. Review - NAMI Advocate, Fall 2011 Overcoming ADHD Without Medication: A Parent and Educator's Guidebook By the AYCNP How parents and educators can help children to overcome ADHD and childhood depression, naturally. Lifestyle changes, educational efforts can be very effective. Many professional and other resources listed. Extensive bibliograhy and index. The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness by Elyn R. Saks Elyn Saks, who herself battles with schizophrenia, is a writer, professor, and spokesperson for schizophrenia. Saks, in her book, Refusing Care, helps the reader to appreciate that, even in serious situations, the patient still has the right to refuse certain types of medical care, in this case drug treatment. She feels that it would be rare situations where forced drug treatment would be appropriate. She is an elequent and dignified, humorous speaker. Her ideas on the subject are worth taking note of. A Does of Sanity: Mind, Medicine, and Misdiagnosis by Sydney Walker Walker's hypotheses is an accurate summation of the inadequacies of the present psychiatric system. Review from Library Journal: Walker, director of Southern California's Neuropsychiatric Institute, here argues that clinicians should not rely exclusively on standard psychiatric labels. He contends that labels such as depression, hyperactivity, etc., often hide medically treatable disorders. He notes a trend in psychiatry to lump individuals under broad categorical labels, e.g., mental retardation, which often obscures the specific problems. Drawing upon 30 years of clinical experience, he cites cases illustrating the fallibility of psychiatric labeling. Walker writes that the current diagnostic system survives because of its support from the American Psychiatric Association, drug companies, and managed care providers. This thought-provoking book is an effective complement to Peter Kramer's Listening to Prozac. Recommended for public and academic libraries. --Dennis Glenn Twiggs, Winston-Salem, N.C. -Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. Talking Back To Prozac: What Doctors Aren't Telling You About Today's Most Controversial Drug by Peter Breggin "There is unquestionably a great deal of truth in what Breggin writes. Let the pill-swallower beware." --Los Angeles Times "Dr. Breggin is the conscience of American psychiatry." --Bertram P. Karon, Ph.D., author of Psychotherapy of Schizophrenia No Child Left Different, edited by Pennsylvania clinical psychologist and professor, Sharna Olfman A book on childhood mental health disorders, the media, and overprescribing of drugs, that is worth reading. Blaming the Brain: The Truth About Drugs and Mental Health by Elliot Valenstein Disproving the "chemical imbalance" medical model theory of mental health Page updated: February 1, 2012 The Medical Model of Mental Health and Psychiatric Labeling   Labeling and Drugging - An Inadequate Foundation for Mental Health Treatment Also, Mental Health Disorders, Labeling and Stigma Labeling, based on the medical model of psychiatry, is a method and a theory, although widespread and the standard approach in psychiatry, is not universally accepted in all professional communities. The medical model is convenient, it gives therapist a clear-cut approach to handling individual situations, but most of all, it has been used by the psychiatric world in a way that leads to labeling and subsequent prescribing of psychiatric drugs. The typical procedure for the medical model of mental health involves, identifying symptoms, assigning an appropriate label, and administering what is deemed appropriate drugs. Labeling and drugging is a convenient way of treating mental health disorders, and is profitable for insurance and pharmaceutical companies. This practice, along with the stigmatization of individuals who have mental health disorders, or who exhibit symptoms of such disorders, has come under the most scrutiny and criticism as lacking sound basis in professional circles in the field of mental health. Pharmaceuticals are vigorously marketed to physicians, many times, with incentives. John R. McHugh, M.D professor of psychiatry, Johns Hopkins University Dr. Paul McHugh who chairs (2003), the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johs Hopkins University School of Medicine feels that the DSM label of Borderline Personality Disorder, has lost its usefulness. He is quoted in Time Magazine as stating that the DSM ("bible" of psychiatry labeling), has "permitted groups of 'experts' with a bias to propose the existence of conditions without anything more than a definition and a checklist of symptoms. This is just how witches used to be identified," cites multiple-personality disorder as an example of an "imagined diagnosis"; while much of the evidence supporting its existence has been debunked, multiple-personality disorder is still listed in the DSM, though today it's called "dissociative identity disorder." Diagnostics: How We Get Labeled, John Cloud. (Jan. 20, 2003). Time Magazine. There are other mental health theories which provide a more practical, reasonable and accurate consideration of mental health issues such as the bioecological model of mental health, and positive psychology from Penn State University. How Labeling and Stigma in Psychiatric Practice are Related In a study by the American Sociological Association, of the theory of labeling in mental illness, the conclusion was reached that, "consistently support the prediction that the likelihood of social rejection increases after others gain knowledge of an individuals status as a mental patient."' "When mental [health disorders] are used as labels, these labels hurt". SAMHSA SAMHSA's, the US Government mental health association, gives this guideline, Before You Label People, Look At Their Contents. SAMHSA states, "When mental illnesses are used as labels - schizophrenic, manic, or hyperactive - these labels hurt." The Brigadier General of the United States, and Director of the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, Loree Sutton, stated concerning many forms of mental illness, "Stigma is a toxic, deadly hazard, which must be eliminated," in a public service announcement. Psychiatric labels lead to stigma - Stigma leads to discrimination. Loree Sutton, Brigadier General of the United States "Labels lead to stigma -- a word that means branding and shame. And stigma leads to discrimination. Everyone knows why it is wrong to discriminate against people because of their race, religion, culture, or appearance. They are less aware of how people with mental illnesses are discriminated against. Although such discrimination may not always be obvious, it exists-and it hurts." Another thought to consider with persons who have or who have had mental illness is that labels stick. Even after a person may have recovered from bouts with serious mental illness, the label may have a long-lasting impact on other's perception of him or her. "My son is bipolar." Labels can be damaging and hurt the one being labeled, affecting their view of themselves. If a person recovers from cancer, do we refer to him or her as "being cancer," or he or her "is cancer". No, because we know that cancer is something that we can recover from and be cancer-free. With mental illness, labels are made, "he is OCD," "she is bipolar," as if to say, the word "bipolar" sums up one's whole existence, we don't need to take that person's actions good or bad too seriously, because it all comes down to the fact that he or she "is" this or that label. In a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry concerning the subject of stigma, the studies author Bernice A. Pescosolido notes that despite greater insights into mental health disorders in recent decades, one of the reasons for stigma surrounding mental illness lingers is that people tend to look at mental illness as something that never goes away. "When you attach a feeling of permanence to this, then it justifies, in some ways, a person's sense of 'otherness' or 'less-then-humanness'". Hitler took that idea of labeling and stigmatizing to the extreme, as we know, exterminating those with mental illness, but also labeling those who did not fit into his idealized schema as "untermenschen," meaning "sub-human" or "under-man". That same type of stigmatizing can occur when considering those with mental health disorders as well. It should be noted that there are medical doctors who, before becoming doctors, started medical school after receiving a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. There are lawyers and collge professors with schizophrenia, who are active, productive members of the respective groups, no less than any other professional. Full Recovery from Mental Illness is Possible An Internet search on the key words, self help, provides numerous references for depression self help and ADHD self help, but comparatively few for bipolar disorder self help. Why? Because many who are labeled bipolar disorder are often taught to resign themselves to the label with a lifetime of taking psychiatric drugs in view. It is often thought of as an incurable disorder which must be managed with medication. Many who are labeled bipolar, then, may not take practical measures to help themselves. The label, in this case, can be a hindrance for many to take steps to help themselves. Symptoms associated with bipolar disorder can be brought into remission and full recovery is possible. If you have the gout, as an example, you will no doubt be encouraged to change your diet. If you have diabetes, a diet free of excess sugar can be of much benefit. If you are diagnosed with bipolar disorder, then by all means, take positive self help steps to overcome the disorder. Labeling can have profound effects on the level of will with which you exert yourself to try to ovecome mental health disorders. If you believe you can overcome a disorder, you are more likely to work very hard to do so. If you feel that the mountain cannot be climbed, then for sure, you will never try to climb it. One encouraging account in relation to autism can be of help to persons with mental illness. In one well-known example of a boy, "Evan" who had suffered with autism, his mother utilized a tremendous amount of resources and therapy for her son's help, she didn't give up. Within a few years, the boy no longer qualified for the label, "autistic," he had sufficiently recovered from his symptoms. Psychiatric Labels - Child From Dr. Scott Shannon, child psychiatrist. The same has happened with many who have been labeled with ADHD, bipolar and other serious disorders. So, don't let yourself be put down by the label. Try to help yourself and fight your way out of the cocoon. If you do, you will gain a victory over stigma, and come out of it a more compassionate and understanding person, better able to take on the next set of challenges life presents. Words of Stigma Can Be Poison The stigma of mental illness is real, painful, and damaging to the lives of people with mental illness. Stigma prevents them from getting the treatment and support they need to lead healthy, normal lives. Many people don't want to be... labeled as "mentally ill" or "crazy." Stigma keeps people from getting good jobs and advancing in the workplace. Some employers are reluctant to hire people who have mental illness. Thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), such discrimination is illegal. But it still happens! Stigma leads to fear, mistrust, and violence. Even though the vast majority of people who have mental illness are no more violent than anyone else, the average television viewer sees three people with mental illness each week-and most of them are portrayed as violent. Even children's movies and cartoons can present a stereotypical version of mental illness, coloring children's view from an early age against those with mental health disorders. (Lawson, A., Calgary University). Such inaccurate portrayals lead people to fear those who have mental illnesses. Stigma results in prejudice and discrimination. Many individuals try to prevent people who have mental illness from living in their neighborhoods. Mayo Clinic similarly states, "Stigma is a very real problem for people who have a mental [health disorer]. Based on stereotypes, stigma is a negative judgment based on a personal trait - in this case, having a mental health condition. It was once a common perception that having a mental illness was due to some kind of personal weakness. We still have a long way to go to overcome the many misconceptions, fears and biases people have about mental health, and the stigma these attitudes create. Psychiatric stigma can be subtle, Mayo Clinic Stigma may be obvious and direct, such someone making a negative remark about your mental health condition or your treatment. Or it can be subtle, such a someone assuming you could be violent or dangerous because you have a mental health condition. These and other forms of stigma can lead to feelings of anger, frustration, shame and low self-esteem - as well as discrimination at work, school and in other areas of your life. For someone with a mental illness, the consequences of stigma can be devastating." Controversy and Resolution in Labeling Theory Labeling theory was first applied to the term "mentally ill" in 1966 when Thomas Scheff, Professor, Emeritus, Dept of Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara, and former Chair of the section on the Sociology of Emotions, American Sociological Association, and President of the Pacific Sociological Association, published the book, Being Mentally Ill. Scheff challenged common perceptions of mental illness by claiming that mental illness is manifested solely as a result of societal influence. See George Albee, Ph.D. webpage. He argued that society views certain actions as deviant and, in order to come to terms with and understand these actions, often places the label of mental illness on those who exhibit them. Certain expectations are then placed on these individuals and, over time, they unconsciously change their behavior to fulfill them. The term "mentally ill" is considered by some to be a part of labeling, Thomas Scheff, PhD. Criteria for different mental illnesses are not consistently filled by those who are diagnosed with them because all of these people suffer from the same disorder, they are simply fulfilled because the "mentally ill" believe they are supposed to act a certain way so, over time, come to do so. Scheff's theory had many critics, most notably Walter Gove. Gove consistently argued an almost opposite theory; he believed that society has no influence at all on "mental illness". Instead, any societal perceptions of the "mentally ill" come about as a direct result of these people's behaviors. In Gove's view, the mentally ill behave unnaturally a lot of the time because of their disorders, so we treat them differently. Most sociologists' views of labeling and mental illness have fallen somewhere between those of Gove and Scheff. On the other hand, it is almost impossible to deny, given both common sense and research findings, that society's negative perceptions of "crazy" people has had some effect on their perception of those with mental health disorders. Disney movies are one commonly known example, of labeling person's as "crazy," and "lunatic," many of their most popular movies have scenes of "crazy" people or humanized animals running amuck. Related Article to Psychiatric Labeling The Medical Model in Psychiatry: Pros and Cons. Dilemmas and Controversies of Traditional Psychiatry. by Stanislav Grof, M.D., Ph.D. Chapter 5 of the book, Beyond the Brain: Birth, Death and Transcendence in Psychotherapy. I Had Asperger Syndrome. Briefly, (January 31, 2012). by Benjamin Nugent, NY Times. Words Can Heal - Ending Stigma and Mental Health Disorders Here are six steps you can follow to help end the stigma which surrounds mental health disorders 1. Learn more. Many organizations sponsor nationwide programs about mental health and mental illness. Several are listed at the end of this article. 2. Insist on accountable media. Sometimes the media portray people who have mental illnesses inaccurately, and this makes stereotypes harder to change. 3. Obey the laws in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in all areas of public life, including housing, employment, and public transportation. Mental illnesses are considered a disability covered under the ADA. 4. Recognize and appreciate the contributions to society made by people who have mental illnesses. (See Elyn Saks, schizophrenia, on this site). People who have mental illnesses are major contributors to American life-from the arts to the sciences, from medicine to entertainment to professional sports. 5. Treat people with the dignity and respect we all deserve. People who have mental illnesses may include your friends, your neighbors, and your family. 6. Think about the person - the contents behind the label. Avoid labeling people by their diagnosis. Instead of saying, "She's a schizophrenic," say, "She has a mental illness." Actually, never use the term "mentally ill." SAHMSA Programs to End Psychiatric Stigma Many National and State groups have begun projects and campaigns to reverse stigma. These groups offer a range of programs and materials, from speakers bureaus to training programs for mental health professionals. To get involved, call. To learn more about mental health, call SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center at 800-789-CMHS (2647). SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center P.O. Box 42557 Washington, DC 20015 800-789-CMHS (2647) World Wide Web: http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov E-mail: info@mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/ The Anti-Stigma Project 1521 South Edgewood Street, Suite C Baltimore, MD 21227 Phone 410-646-0262, 800-704-0262, or Fax 410-646-0264 Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) 730 North Franklin Street, Suite 501 Chicago, IL 60610 800-826-3632 Erasing the Stigma of Mental Illness Serving Hands International 4607 Mission Gorge Place San Diego, CA 92120 800-219-4854 National Alliance for the Mentally Ill Colonial Place Three 2107 Wilson Boulevard Suite 300 Arlington, VA 22201-3042 The National Empowerment Center 20 Ballard Road Lawrence, MA 01843 800-769-3728 The National Mental Health Association Information Center 2001 N. Beauregard Street - 12th Floor Alexandria, VA 22311800-969-NMHA The National Mental Health Consumers' Self-Help Clearinghouse 1211 Chestnut Street, Suite 1000 Philadelphia, PA 19107 800-553-4539 References for Mental Illness Stigma and Labeling 1. Before You Label People, Look At Their Contents. (Retrieved June 30, 2009). http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/SMA96-3118/default.asp 2. Kroska, A. and Harkness, S. , 2004-08-14 "Exploring the Modified Labeling Theory of Mental Illness Using Affect Control Theory Measures and Predictions" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Hilton San Francisco & Renaissance Parc 55 Hotel, San Francisco, CA, Online <.PDF>. 2009-05-26 from http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p110021_index.html American Sociological Association. http://www.asanet.org 3. Labeling Theory (Retrieved June 29, 2009). Wikipedia.org. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labeling_theory 4. Mental health: Overcoming the stigma of mental illness. (May 29, 2009). http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mental-health/MH00076 Labeling Theory (Retrieved June 29, 2009). Wikipedia.org. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labeling_theory 5. Scheff, Thomas, PhD. Professor Emeritus of Sociology, UCSB. (Retrieved November 17, 2010). Related Pages - offsite Mental Illness and Work - Stigma. January 27, 2012. The Globe and Mail. Espanaol - 19 prominent psychiatrists, psychologists and mental health professionals - (not an exhaustive list) - who disagree with the current medical model of mental health - Blog in Spnaish Pages Related to Psychiatric Labeling and Stigma Child Psychiatric Labels, child psychiatrist Dr. Scott Shannon Psychology History - Moral Management: Successful non-pharmaceutical holistic treatment for mental heath in the 1800's. Positive Psychology Movement - Penn State University Mental Health Treatment - A Closer Look at Psychopharmacology - Let the Buyer Beware! by Louis Kirby, MA Appeal to Mental Health Professionals for professional non-pharmaceutical treatment options and clinical studies Bioecological Model of mental health NAMI - Mental Health Disorder Recovery sponsor Highly rated internet filter software

Copyright (c) 2010, 2011 Association for Natural Psychology Home | Psychology News | Book Store | Links | About AYCNP | Contact