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Medicalization, and "Disease of the Month" social/bureaucratic trends re: Autism Finally found something that inspired me to comment. Thanks to Meri's blog post on autism. I then decided I wanted to post that comment here as my own blog entry. Okay, I'm gonna be the spoiler here, but this is what I think. I'm NOT saying autism doesn't exist. However, like so many maladies of the past, (Remember ADD for example?) they become "social concerns" (Remember "Disfunctional families"?) They become trendy. Like the "disease/malady of the month." Then the media picks up on it and word spreads. In a trend LONG observed by sociologists. They call it "medicalization." It's really a variant on the way bureaucracies grow unnecessarily large. At some point too many "professionals" start "seeing" it everywhere. Then millions start getting treatment and therapy. The truth is, yes it's there. But it always has been. Because to a greater or lesser degree, there's some tendency for it in everyone. It's only in the very EXTREME cases that it is a problem causing true autism. Aspberger's syndrome is much more common, and it's just a variant by degree. True autism is very rare. But today, any who seems a bit nerdy gets diagnosed as autistic. IMHO, I'm not saying there aren't who could benefit from treatment. I'm saying I believe it is just over-diagnosed today. This sort of thing happens a lot, as people seeking to either be compassionate in the best case, or make a profit in the worst case, by pushing the issues to the forefront. GBU all, Gavin |
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I totally agree with you on this and have thought the same thing for many years. There are people out there who are looking for these kind of symptoms, purely with the idea of making them a claimable disability. Alfie...
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12/11/2013 10:32 am |
I agree with most of this. The conditions have always been around, it's society that changed. While there are significant degrees of every disorder most of us have or have had something wrong with us. The key is finding a way to fit it into what the current culture will allow without out putting us in jail or an institution. Behavior modification (formerly known as smacking the kid's butt) should be tried first, followed by escalating through treatments, the least invasive first, until things are manageable. Sadly today most parents want the magic pill / and or an excuse so they don't have to spend time actually raising their kids. Somehow we have gotten the idea that kids are suppose to come perfect. Unfortunately this takes time and needed resources away from those who truly suffer from the disorders. Spiritwoman ^i^
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Hi folks, Sorry I didn't get back to this sooner. I will agree with folks who say I've simplified this. But that was by design because I didn't care to go into so much detail. Two reasons I didn't want to go into too much detail. One is that tho I've got a modest (BS Magna Cum Laude, and many years of independent reading and study.) background in psychology, I'm not a professional. (And I'd have had to do a lot more research to check current trends and statistics.) Reason number two is much more important. If I got too in depth and technical, it opens up the opportunities for more people who may not be qualified, but nonetheless who "think" they understand how to apply a lot of terms, and thereby further compound the same problems I listed here. So I intentionally tried to keep this short and simple. Obviously that involves some generalizations. I guess my message to people, is NOT to apply specific technical approaches to another person's condition, unless you can be ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that the person in question really fits into those specific symptoms. (Provided that those "specific" symptoms have not become so over-generalized and applied on a massive scale.) With an additional caveate that even when you hear the diagnosis of a "professional", get at least one second opinion. Thanks for all your input, and especially Lulu, to whom I hope I've clarified my objectives better. GBU all, Gavin
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PS: Dustin Hoffman in the movie Rain Man, would be a good example of what I mean by "true autism", altho I might include some slightly less severe cases. GBU all, Gavin
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