In radical changes to the way mental health conditions are diagnosed, what was once considered a child’s temper tantrum could be labelled ”disruptive mood dysregulation disorder”.

If a widow grieves for more than a fortnight she might be diagnosed with ”major depressive disorder”.

If a mother in a custody battle tries to turn a child against the father, it might create ”parental alienation disorder”.

These are among new conditions proposed for the fifth edition of the psychiatrist’s bible, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), due to be finalised next year.

Some doctors in Australia are arguing the revised manual – used globally to diagnose mental disorders – is pathologising unhappiness.

The changes have also caused an international outcry, with the American Counselling Association, American Psychological Association, the British Psychological Society and others calling for the draft of the new edition to be independently reviewed.

A little soma will take care of your bad day. Orgy porgy time!



  1. #1- bobbo, OCCUPY DVORAK: what if "we-all" number our own posts and post seriatim ourselves? says:

    It is all definitional though. Years ago, homosexuality was listed as a disorder, now its not listed. Nothing else has changed. Had a very short conversation with the company shrink who was a good Catholic, I asked him if that wasn’t some kind of mental health/reality oriented dysplasia. He only frowned. Later we had a slightly longer conversation on the same topic and I mentioned how there was a real difference between being crazy yet still being functional in life, society, one’s daily activities. You know: batshit crazy and still able to post?

    If you’re happy and you know it
    Clap your hands.

    • Skeptic > post # 27,675 says:

      I have postdvorak disorder.

      [clap, clap]

      • #23- bobbo, OCCUPY DVORAK: what if "we-all" number our own posts and post seriatim ourselves? says:

        skeptic–I don’t believe you have posted that many times. At least not here at DU, not as skeptic anyway. Are you combining all your posts from everywhere plus your clap count?

        Ha, ha. Clap Count. I recall the Clap Count board on Mission. It was officers zero, enlisted in double digits and going for three until the very last day when the O’s got one. Never found out who that doofus was. Funny how both sides took pride in those numbers.

        ::clap, clap::

  2. sargasso_c says:

    #normal is the new #sick

  3. Dallas says:

    The medical industry will have a pill for that (already does).

    Step 1 : Get cool medical name for it. Three letter acronym is best.
    Step 2: Ads on FOX about the “findings” and horrific dangers
    Step 3: Church creates ‘therapies’ to get in on it.
    Step 4: ….10 yrs later.. all you had to do was exercise and eat right

  4. Cursor_ says:

    And if you keep voting for the same people over and over again and they still promise you everything and then when in office screw you it is called psychotic delusional belief.

    Cursor_

    • ± says:

      Good point. More support that most people in the USA are mentally ill. And obviously this includes all the R and D zealots on this blog.

      Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Albert Einstein.

      • Skeptic > post # 27,677 says:

        Inbreeding.

      • Cursor_ says:

        Actually Eistein did not say that. It was attributed to him, but also Franklin, Twain and Confucius. But the first time it even appears in anything is in 1981 within the text of Narcotics Anonymous.

        So we don’t know where it really comes from.

        Cursor_

  5. AdmFubar says:

    yeah we’re all gonna be just like this guy

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=Z6FYVRn2_cY

  6. Mac Guy says:

    DSM-IV used globally? Odd, because it was never meant to be used OUTSIDE of the US, as it’s a reflection of the cultural norms among Americans.

  7. What? The Ends Justify the Means? says:

    The trouble with people that want to charge you for their help, they are in the business of making you need them.

    Friends are a better source of inspiration and support, as long as you can reciprocate.

    Don’t have any friends, go out into the world and be someone else’s friend.

    Money corrupts, lots of money corrupts a lot.

  8. Jabez Wolffe says:

    Sounds to me like America needs a massive outbreak of CorpGov Bullshit Aversion Disorder.

    I thank God every day that I’m already in the terminal stages.

  9. Skeptic > post # 27,678 says:

    The trouble with medication is that using it to cure/treat one thing usually creates problems where other medications are necessary to balance things out. We are consuming so many added chemicals in our food on a daily basis, it’s no wonder that we have functional chemical “problems” and damage to our bodies.

  10. Lynn says:

    I’ve been telling people for years, the DSM is NOT for diagnosing illness. It’s for GETTING PAID BY INSURANCE COMPANIES. When people started showing up looking for treatment, and they didn’t fit a diagnosis code, they invented new ones (Borderline Personality Disorder, anyone? Bobbo?) SO THEY COULD BILL.

    The real deal is, are you suffering, and can you function. Some people experience real suffering with what might not be a major diagnosis, others are fully functional even with seven markers of some major condition.

    I’m not criticizing thereapists and shrinks. Someone comes in wanting to feel better. But the insurance won’t pay unless there’s a code. And the insurances do it to control costs and make sure no one is cheating. But it’s all a ruse. There’s no reality behind it.

    No one uses the DSM to diagnose a patient!

    • #24- bobbo, OCCUPY DVORAK: what if "we-all" number our own posts and post seriatim ourselves? says:

      Lynn–I’ll take two, and call it Greatness!

      One: should be I’m the Best Lover in the World, and
      Two: should be…….ah shit. Someone else needs a disorder too! Whats the DSM-5 for nympho? or would I be better off with a lady with bad eyesight? low IQ???

      Boy, once you start making a parallel universe, the number of decisions exceeds a six pack.

  11. deowll says:

    Most psychiatrists got into the profession in order to study their own mental illnesses. Now we have nut cases running the nut house.

  12. t0llyb0ng says:

    Dysregulation is my new favorite word du jour.

    The perfect happy-stuff would of course be MJ, but instead MJ is perceived as public enemy number 1—a Schedule I “narcotic”—& it must be purged from society at all costs.

    “Pathologizing unhappiness” is the order of the day. Be that as it may. But the cosmos doesn’t much care whether you’re happy or not, does it.

  13. orchidcup says:

    This proposed revision of the DSM-V is descriptive of almost every child I have encountered in public lately. These kids need a good ass-whupping to set them straight, not drugs.

    Oppositional Defiant Disorder

    A. A persistent pattern of angry and irritable mood along with defiant and vindictive behavior as evidenced by four (or more) of the following symptoms being displayed with one or more persons other than siblings.
    Angry/Irritable Mood
    1. Loses temper
    2. Is touchy or easily annoyed by others.
    3. Is angry and resentful
    Defiant/Headstrong Behavior
    4. Argues with adults
    5. Actively defies or refuses to comply with adults’ request or rules
    6. Deliberately annoys people
    7. Blames others for his or her mistakes or misbehavior
    Vindictiveness
    8. Has been spiteful or vindictive at least twice within the past six months
    B. (NOTE: UNDER CONSIDERATION) The persistence and frequency of these behaviors should be used to distinguish a behavior that is within normal limits from a behavior that is symptomatic to determine if they should be considered a symptom of the disorder. For children under 5 years of age, the behavior must occur on most days for a period of at least six months unless otherwise noted (see symptom #8). For individuals 5 years or older, the behavior must occur at least once per week for at least six months, unless otherwise noted (see symptom #8). While these frequency criteria provide a minimal level of frequency to define symptoms, other factors should also be considered such as whether the frequency and intensity of the behaviors are non-normative given the person’s developmental level, gender, and culture.
    C. The disturbance in behavior causes clinically significant impairment in social, educational, or vocational activities.
    D. The behaviors may be confined to only one setting or in more severe cases present in multiple settings.


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