Sam Woolfe
Freelance Writer, Blogger & Author

The Backlash Against Overdiagnosis and Self-Diagnosis Has Fed Into Mental Health Stigma

The Backlash Against Overdiagnosis and Self-Diagnosis Has Fed Into Mental Health Stigma

It might be assumed that the problems of mental health overdiagnosis and self-diagnosis culture would only serve to promote more openness around mental health (despite the fact they sometimes pathologise normal and understandable distress). However, the backlash against these intertwined phenomena has resulted in increased cynicism and scepticism towards a general culture of emotional openness.…

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Psychiatry’s Moral Dilemma: The Pros and Cons of a Mental Health Diagnosis

Psychiatry’s Moral Dilemma: The Pros and Cons of a Mental Health Diagnosis

The decision to provide a mental health diagnosis to someone experiencing psychological distress – a range of troubling emotions, thoughts, and behaviours – often presents a moral dilemma. Of course, there may be an assumption among psychiatrists that diagnoses are, generally speaking, in a patient’s best interest, since they are intended to pinpoint what condition…

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A Critique of the Biopsychosocial Model in Psychiatry

A Critique of the Biopsychosocial Model in Psychiatry

The biopsychosocial model is one of the main approaches in psychiatry. The psychiatrist George Engel formulated this model in 1977, in a paper titled ‘The Need for a New Medical Model: A Challenge for Biomedicine’, published in the journal Science. He did not, however, propose this new model exclusively for psychiatry (which focuses on the…

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The Different Faces of the Anti-Psychiatry Movement

The Different Faces of the Anti-Psychiatry Movement

Anti-psychiatry is a loose social movement that first emerged in the 1960s in Europe and the US, and it began as an ideological response to the treatment of mental illness in asylums at the time. Those supporting the movement were concerned about the poor conditions of many of these asylums, as well as the abusive…

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Why Are People Often Reluctant to See a Psychiatrist?

Why Are People Often Reluctant to See a Psychiatrist?

People living with mental illness may be eager to seek relief for their condition yet decide to avoid visiting a psychiatrist. Of course, psychiatry is not the only field that deals with the treatment of mental health conditions but it is the institution that specifically exists to diagnose, prescribe treatment for, and treat conditions that…

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