Beyond The Body
  • Home
  • About
  • Contributors
  • Contact

The Power Of Words - Impact on Patients' Recovery and Treatments

3/10/2016

1 Comment

 
Picture
University of British Columbia psychiatrist, Dr. Diane McIntosh speaks out about the toll our words can take on an individual who lives with and is being treated for ‪mental illness‬. Specifically, Dr. McIntosh reminds us that whether it be a comment from a friend, family member, or physician, how we talk about mental health can have a huge impact on an individual's perception of themselves, their mental well-being, and their strength. As Dr. McIntosh has seen with her own patients, certain comments also have the power to negatively impact patients' treatment and recovery.

"Lillian finally told me that the in-patient doctor had quipped, "You're on too much medication." The doctor hadn't elaborated on what she meant by "too much," nor did she call me or Lillian's GP to ask for the treatment rationale or to express concern.

It was just a passing comment, but those words powerfully undermined Lillian's confidence and stirred up her long-held fear that her illness was a weakness or personal failure.

She thought that she should be able to get over it on her own and she shouldn't need to rely on medications. She feared that medications might be causing more harm than good, even though she felt better."

For the full article, click here: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/diane-mcintosh/mental-illness-stigma_b_9312252.html


1 Comment

The Evolving Vocabulary of Mental Health

11/26/2015

1 Comment

 
Picture
In this fascinating article, we learn the history behind some of vocabulary used to describe ‪mental health‬ or those affected by mental illnesses, including the terms "neurosis", "mental", and "madness", as well as how our use of these words has evolved over time ...

"According to the Wellcome Trust, the rise of the term mental health was largely due to the efforts of early 20th-century social reformers, who wanted to reduce the stigma attached to people who had been deemed mentally unwell. Whereas mental illness set up a verbal division between the healthy and the sick, the term mental health implied more of a continuum, a state that could improve or degrade in anyone over time.

If mental health is one of the newest tools that modern English has for describing the condition of the mind, then madness is one of the oldest."

For the full article, click here: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/10/mental-health-words/412630/

1 Comment

The Power of Words - Addiction Terms

5/13/2015

1 Comment

 
Picture
Though substance use is beginning to receive increased attention in politics and the media, in research, and in advocacy efforts, addiction still seems to be largely misunderstood. Similar to other aspects of mental health‬, the language we use to describe the use of alcohol and other drugs may be to blame for the persistent perpetuation of stigma and negative perspectives that promote shame among those affected by these disorders rather than help-seeking behaviours. In the article "To Address Addiction, Start With Words", the author (an addictions medicine physician) delves into this subject and encourages us to reconsider the use of terms like "clean" vs "dirty" and "addicts", as how we portray substance use and those affected can have a powerful impact.

"Elsewhere in medicine, people with chronic conditions also are not defined by their disease, especially when being seen for care. For example, patients admitted to a hospital for depression are not called "depressives" even if they are involuntarily committed after a suicide attempt. Yet individuals with substance use disorders are called "addicts" far more than "patients." "Addict" conjures up a bad person who belongs in a jail cell, not someone worthy of receiving high quality medical care. "


1 Comment

The Power of Words - Part 5

12/31/2014

1 Comment

 
Picture
"OCD", "schizo", "sociopath", "bipolar" are terms you likely have heard or used before.  However, while these terms are designed in theory to describe diagnosable and treatable psychiatric disorders, in reality they have become a disturbingly normal part of our everyday language as society is becoming more and more well-versed in medical jargon.  Unfortunately, as is the case with these psychiatric terms, the public most often does not use them appropriately.  Rather we are quick to use these words as a way to describe certain traits in ourselves, or more commonly in other people, that we don't like or have difficulty understanding.  


The problem with this, as the article below discusses, is that our misuse of these terms can be damaging, not only to those we are wrongfully applying the terms to, but to those with real mental illnesses, as such harmful use of these words can worsen stigma and prevent people from seeking the help they need.  The article also provides a powerful reminder of what disorders such as OCD, bipolar, and schizophrenia are truly like, and compares that with normal personality traits that we often link these names to instead.  

With the new year on the horizon, let's resolve for 2015 to be more mindful of the language we use, particularly when using these mental health terms, as they have the power to be hurtful and upsetting to many when used in the wrong context.

"We misuse (psychiatric terms) all the time and it could be harmful," said Emanuel Maidenberg, clinical professor of psychiatry and director of the cognitive behavioral therapy clinic at Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Improperly dropping those sorts of words into conversations only perpetuates an existing stigma surrounding mental illnesses and vilifies certain forms of conduct that many people dislike or just find disconcerting, he added."

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/2014-year-in-review/shes-ocd-hes-schizo-how-misused-health-lingo-can-harm-n275381?cid=sm_twitter_feed_health

1 Comment

    Description

    Supporting and enhancing students' and health professionals' knowledge and understanding of mental health and psychiatry

    Archives

    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014

    Categories

    All
    Aboriginal Mental Health
    Abuse
    Addiction
    ADHD
    Advocacy
    Agitation
    Alcohol
    Alcohol Withdrawal
    All
    Alzheimer's Disease
    Animals
    Antipsychotic
    Anxiety
    App
    Art
    Autism Spectrum
    Awareness
    Barriers To Care
    Bereavement
    BIID
    Bipolar
    Books
    Borderline
    BPSD
    Caregivers
    Catatonia
    CBT
    Child Psychiatry
    Complicated Grief
    Concussion
    CPA
    Cultural Psychiatry
    Delirium
    Dementia
    Depression
    Dermatillomania
    Diagnosis
    Documentary
    DSM 5
    Dual Diagnosis
    Eating Disorders
    ECT
    Education
    Educational Resource
    Epilepsy
    Ethics
    Exercise
    Factitious Disorder
    Film
    Food
    Forensic Psychiatry
    Gambling
    Gaming Addiction
    Gender Dysphoria
    Geriatric Psychiatry
    Global Mental Health
    Harm Reduction
    Heart Attack
    Hoarding Disorder
    Humanities
    Infographic
    Initiatives
    IPad
    Language
    Law
    LGBTQ
    Loneliness
    Malingering
    Mania
    Medication
    Meditation
    Mens Mental Health
    Mental Health
    Mental Health Law
    Mental Status Exam
    Military
    Mind-body Wellness
    Mindfulness
    Mood Disorder
    Music
    Neurodevelopmental
    Neuropsychiatry
    News
    Ocd
    Panic Disorder
    Parksinson's Disease
    Patient Perspective
    PDD
    Personality Disorders
    Phobia
    Physical Health
    Physician Suicide
    Physician Wellness
    Poems
    Pop Culture
    Postpartum
    PPD
    Prevention
    Psych Assessment
    Psychiatry
    Psychoanalysis
    Psychosis
    Psychotherapy
    Ptsd
    Recovery
    Refugee Mental Health
    Relationships
    Reproductive Mental Health
    Research
    Resiliency
    Safety
    Schizoaffective Disorder
    Schizophrenia
    Screening
    Seasonal-affective-disorder
    Selective Mutism
    Self Harm
    Self-harm
    Ses
    Sexual Disorders
    Sleep Disorder
    Social Anxiety
    Social Isolation
    Social Media
    Somatic Symptoms And Disorders
    Sports
    Stigma
    Stress
    Stress Injury
    Student Mental Health
    Substance Use
    Suicide
    Surgery
    Technology
    TED
    Therapy
    Tools
    Transgender Mental Health
    Treatment
    Trichotillomania
    Womens Mental Health
    Youth

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.