BLOG-DSM: Is it scientific, political, social control, or simply for profit? en-us Nucleus CMS v3.41 Weblog http://backend.userland.com/rss /nucleus/nucleus2.gif http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#171 DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#171 Sun, 4 Jul 2010 23:00:23 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#112 DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#112 Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:37:00 -0600 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#111
Would the patient be asked to diagnose himself or herself with a question such as "Is your leg broken?" (Compare with the lone question SOMETIMES included in psych evals: "Have you ever been abused?", vs. including appropriate questions/items to detect probable trauma).

I work with complex trauma and dissociation, where I find many clients whose psychic pain reaction to psychological (and other) wounding is commonly pathologized, and often medicated down with strong pharma-cocktails that can mute their somatic and affective cries of pain (i.e., their trauma reactions). (To clarify: I am not speaking out against appropriate psychopharmacology, but against pathologizing a pain reaction.)

We KNOW that a high percentage (e.g., over 70% of multiple-admission female mental unit patients) report childhood abuse, yet we do not appropriately screen or treat. How can we call this ethical?]]> DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#111 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:38:09 -0600 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#110 DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#110 Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:27:13 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#109
Most of my fellow sociologists have accepted this idea, but most psychiatrists don't get it.]]> DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#109 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:17:33 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#105 DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#105 Tue, 20 Oct 2009 23:09:46 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#106 The problem here, of course, is that that limited legitimate medication use becomes the camel's nose under the tent. Big pharma will barge on in.
I have always hated the term "emotional incontinence" for this condition. It's demeaning. I have preferred "reflex laughing" and "reflex crying." They emphasize the neurologic nature of the disorder and the disconnect of emotional expression from emotional state.
That being said, I find the idea of medicating someone for laughing too much in the absence of a clear neurological cause to be repulsive.]]> DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#106 Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:57:57 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#104
If there are people who really are laughing when it's not socially appropriate, how about talking to them and helping them feel less guilty, or teaching them ways to explain to others that they are just more prone to giggling? The DSM needs to be revised by someone with greater insight and less avarice.]]> DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#104 Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:47:23 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#100 DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#100 Sat, 10 Oct 2009 08:00:02 -0500 http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#99 http://irnewsservice.com/ge...

Can I have the laughter disorder please? We should send big laughers to the children's cancer wards to cheer up patients, not medicate the laughter.

"Labile affect or pseudobulbar affect refers to the pathological expression of laughter, crying, or smiling." What do do? "Treatment for labile affect is usually pharmacological . . ."

These are just feelings, folks. We should spend more time helping TV, consumer, internet, food addicts come into their bodies and emotions than medicating the emotions out of expressive people.

Unless we're trying for 1984. . .]]> DSM http://www.zurinstitute.com/blogs/index.php?blogid=4#99 Fri, 9 Oct 2009 12:22:17 -0500