Medicalization Of Mental Illness

Over Medicalization Of Mental Illness

Out of the wide breadth of conditions within the world of health, mental illness falls into a unique category in which it faces the issue of being both under recognized and over medicalized . It seems that treatment of mental illness cannot be met in the middle. Some individuals are privileged enough to get recognition and have the ability to seek treatment and then there are marginalized folk who are either unable to access treatment or feel frightened because of blame and stigmatization. However something that both of these groups have in common is over medicalization of their symptom or illness. According to the article “The Paradox of Mental Health: Over-treatment and Under-Recognition” in The PLOS Medicine Journal, “the whole of the field of mental health research is relatively underdeveloped, and that a particular scarcity of clinical trials exists from outside high-income settings and for non drug interventions” . This statement highlights one of the most prevalent issues in the field of mental health. Only a small group within society is receiving attention and even at that the treatment approach is flawed. This flawed approach also extends to those from marginalized groups who receive treatment. The common issue between these groups is that many individuals are receiving impersonal treatment, inconsiderate of whatever life circumstances have brought them to where they are and either locked up in a hospital, institution or sent away with mediation to mask their symptoms.

Implications

Over medicalization is a persisting issue particularly when normal life experiences that may very well be causing anxiety, stress depression and other symptoms are deemed as illnesses and individuals are often given a magic drug that is supposed to fix everything when really, a less medical centred approach should be taken. New illnesses are constantly surfacing and being recognized which fosters an environment where the pharmaceutical industry thrives. The PLOS Medicine Journal article provides some fascinating statistics. “The US Centers for Disease Control recently estimated that 6.4 million children aged 4 to 17 had received an ADHD diagnosis at some point in their lives (amounting to 11% of all US children) a 41% increase in the last decade that has been met with alarm and concern by many doctors and parents” . The article then goes on to state that two thirds of these children are said to be on medication . This leads to a number of consequences that are especially harmful for children. Over medicalization costs a lot of money, excessive testing and treatment can be exhausting for the patient and while having a diagnosis can be helpful in some respects it can unnecessarily cause feeling of insecurity and stigma for individuals. “Generally, people struggling with mental illness are blamed by society for their current situations, with no attention paid to the socio-political context influencing their experiences” . In her article “Societal Abuse in the Lives of Individuals with Mental Illness, Sarah Benbow explains that people with mental illness are often blamed for their situation and nobody looks at any of the uncontrollable factors that may have contributed to their illness. If these marginalized groups are lucky, they might receive some medical care but in many cases drugs are necessary and only mask the problem. She goes on to state that as a nurse, part of her role is to advocate for and address the systematic issues that oppress individuals from marginalized groups such as those living in poverty, the elderly, people with mental illness, the homeless, visible minorities, children and people with disabilities . She goes on to point out that although the healthcare system has come a long way in regards to mental illness “they remain among the most marginalized and devalued populations in our society” .

The Alternative

In “Medicalizing Mental Health: A Phenomenological Alternative”, Kevin Aho argues that “hermeneutic phenomenology” can challenge the assumptions of medicalization by recognizing the ways in which our life experiences including encounters with mental illnesses are shaped by the socio-historical way that we grow . Here Aho’s beautiful words really capture the underlying issues of over medicalization and presents the approach that mental health professionals should be taking in treating individuals either experiencing mental illness for the first time or those with longterm mental illnesses. In his article “Psychiatry and the Myth of “Medicalization”, Ronald W. Pies, a Psychiatrist himself writes in defence of his field and attempts to demystify the medicalization narrative. In his introduction he spews a selection of common “myths” of psychiatry, one in particular stood out to me. “These self-appointed experts keep invading the territory of normal human experience like conquistadors” . While this statement is quite the exaggeration and appears to unfairly discredit psychiatry as a whole, it does have some ground and really speaks to the treatment many individuals are receiving. The approach to treatment of individuals with mental illness or symptoms needs to change. Benbow says “Being consistently perceived as inadequate, incompetent and even dangerous because of a disability destroys feelings of self-worth. Once negative perceptions are internalized, hope that struggles can be overcome is lost” . Treatment of individuals would be much more successful if it focused on the root causes of their concerns because medication cannot change their socio-political situations and the unjust social structures that may be trapping them in a cycle of oppression.