I don't know what things are like in America. I get the impression the privatised health system there is really screwed up from people who have visited. But it seems like basically everywhere the mental health systems are completely screwed up.
I watched a video by Sam Vaknin recently, one he made in the last few days. Which explains that the diagnostic criteria for mental health is very messed up due to insurance and pharmaceutical companies. He explains narcissism, borderline and some other mental health difficulties with a great deal of lucidity. I think he was one of those high IQ super people. Savants or something that start university at like, 11 years old. He also explains that since pharmaceutical and insurance companies prefer very rigid sections, robotic, with clearly defined characteristics, it messes up the diagnostic models because people are just not like that. He explains that the correct model is a more fluid model, like, being graded on personality traits and to rigidly separate a lot of the current psychological problems creates confusion. The example he uses is borderline and narcissism. Which I also notice have a lot of similarities. What is called 'splitting' in the borderline is called 'lovebombing and devaluation' in the narcissist. But it is not just these that overlap. People also include, autism, aspergers, ADHD, OCD, schizoid etc. and because of the models rigidity they then have to have multiple diagnosis.
Also, the inflexibility and confusion of the mental health models create a whole host of other problems. It places them into a place where there is no understanding so people in the regular health fields will spend an entire shift on one person with one of these problems, which will not be solved and will repeat the next day, where they could have helped perhaps five or more other patients in the day. Also, mental health services are severely stretched and a lot of people with these difficulties do not have money usually. And also, absolutely nothing can be done with suicide. Sometimes a person will say they are intending to kill themselves since they have not been helped (and no matter how serious they are usually repeatedly ignored, and subject to other problems that are counter productive), and then they are just left to do it basically. The medical system has no authority to declare someone without capacity and just lock them up for a while; and the actual places they end up are usually counter productive as well.
I have known so so many people with multiple mental health difficulties. I have also researched the area a lot myself. I also have a strong tendency towards schizophrenia and it's more moderate cousin 'schizoid' which basically means that, irl, people go to great lengths to make sure their inner emotional reality is not obvious to anyone else. I feel life would be easier if I could explain this to people. But pretty much people are left to their problems and these things are not diagnosed. Another one that needs to be given attention is borderline personality disorder. These people look normal but are quite mad, and it can put someone into shock to have to deal with the irrationality. They also have a very high rate of successful suicide.
I think there is a deeper confusion here in that, recently it has come out that SSRI's aren't based on any real science and anyone that has researched the area previously knows this. There is also philosophical and spiritual things to consider. There are those that consider these diagnosis to be a permanent unchangeable thing and there are those that have claimed to have seen a lot of people healed from them in some manner. I just feel that it is messed up and frustrating that because of these problems it makes "service to others" in a lot of cases not possible because there is just too much confusion!
I watched a video by Sam Vaknin recently, one he made in the last few days. Which explains that the diagnostic criteria for mental health is very messed up due to insurance and pharmaceutical companies. He explains narcissism, borderline and some other mental health difficulties with a great deal of lucidity. I think he was one of those high IQ super people. Savants or something that start university at like, 11 years old. He also explains that since pharmaceutical and insurance companies prefer very rigid sections, robotic, with clearly defined characteristics, it messes up the diagnostic models because people are just not like that. He explains that the correct model is a more fluid model, like, being graded on personality traits and to rigidly separate a lot of the current psychological problems creates confusion. The example he uses is borderline and narcissism. Which I also notice have a lot of similarities. What is called 'splitting' in the borderline is called 'lovebombing and devaluation' in the narcissist. But it is not just these that overlap. People also include, autism, aspergers, ADHD, OCD, schizoid etc. and because of the models rigidity they then have to have multiple diagnosis.
Also, the inflexibility and confusion of the mental health models create a whole host of other problems. It places them into a place where there is no understanding so people in the regular health fields will spend an entire shift on one person with one of these problems, which will not be solved and will repeat the next day, where they could have helped perhaps five or more other patients in the day. Also, mental health services are severely stretched and a lot of people with these difficulties do not have money usually. And also, absolutely nothing can be done with suicide. Sometimes a person will say they are intending to kill themselves since they have not been helped (and no matter how serious they are usually repeatedly ignored, and subject to other problems that are counter productive), and then they are just left to do it basically. The medical system has no authority to declare someone without capacity and just lock them up for a while; and the actual places they end up are usually counter productive as well.
I have known so so many people with multiple mental health difficulties. I have also researched the area a lot myself. I also have a strong tendency towards schizophrenia and it's more moderate cousin 'schizoid' which basically means that, irl, people go to great lengths to make sure their inner emotional reality is not obvious to anyone else. I feel life would be easier if I could explain this to people. But pretty much people are left to their problems and these things are not diagnosed. Another one that needs to be given attention is borderline personality disorder. These people look normal but are quite mad, and it can put someone into shock to have to deal with the irrationality. They also have a very high rate of successful suicide.
I think there is a deeper confusion here in that, recently it has come out that SSRI's aren't based on any real science and anyone that has researched the area previously knows this. There is also philosophical and spiritual things to consider. There are those that consider these diagnosis to be a permanent unchangeable thing and there are those that have claimed to have seen a lot of people healed from them in some manner. I just feel that it is messed up and frustrating that because of these problems it makes "service to others" in a lot of cases not possible because there is just too much confusion!