Dr Dillon, June 22nd, states we are "packaging" distress as mental illness. Some of our top psychiatrists propagate this. Professors Mcgorry and Hickie has each been quoted by the media as stating "one in five Australians has a mental illness". This is unacceptable propaganda unless we are also given a definition of "mental illness".

We must move from this practically universal conflation of serious, treatable, incurable 'mental illness' and serious, treatable,usually transient, curable 'mental illness'. Dr Carlat says,in "Unhinged",
"...the field of psychiatry has become unhinged, pried away from its original mission - to discover the causes of mental illness and treat those causes, not merely the symptoms." How has this happened? A major problem is that too many psychiatrists have become too accustomed to the "15 minute" prescription visit and its resulting higher income. How end psychiatrists who are psychopharmacologists, not psychotherapists? I can accept a G.P. investigating the emotional well-being of children three years and older,but want strict scrutiny of the case by an expert before referral to a psychiatrist.

In the book "Loss of Sadness", Drs. Horwitz and Wakefield express the belief that psychiatry has turned normal sorrow into"Depressive disorder". My daughter had schizophrenia and died by suicide. I felt I became 'mentally unbalanced'. My psychologist wanted to put me on antidepressants. I refused, somehow sensing that this had to be lived through and was 'mad' and'normal' at the same time. He accepted this, we continued psychotherapy and after two years I was forever changed, as one is after the horror of losing a child, but also 'normal'.He had cared for the context of my life, not just its symptoms.
Dr Spitzer, in the foreword to "The Loss of Sadness", states "...the book's central thesis [is] that contemporary psychiatry confuses normal sadness with depressive mental disorder because it ignores the relationship of symptoms to the context from which they emerge." Symptoms and their context. Psychiatrists now medicate the symptoms and, by dispensing with psychotherapy, ignore the context.

From my limited experience I have gained the impression that there is a severe shortage of qualified practicing psychiatrists, in NSW at least, leading to a great deficiency in public mental health services in this State, and in an inordinate burden on the private sector. This deficiency lends itself to an increasing reliance on psychologists, and potentially a tendency to treat symptoms rather than base cause of a debility, partly because of the pressure to 'help' as many as can be accommodated, and partly because the time and cost of long term attendance to cause and in relation to context is so often so very, very demanding - both on patient and practitioner.

I agree this is a very unsatisfactory situation.

Carol83, >I can accept a G.P. investigating the emotional well-being of children three years and older,but want strict scrutiny of the case by an expert before referral to a psychiatrist.<

I don't know where you might find such an 'expert', as even really well qualified and caring psychiatrists seem to be in very short supply, and my impression is that really 'good' psychologists are also in very short supply, and with the best of these probably worked well and truly to the bone.

Under the pressure of numbers requiring help it may be understandable for a practitioner to resort in the first instance to medication, but if some are applying this routinely as an expedient, and to maximise their income, this would have to be deplored.

The only solution I see is for there to be a great increase in the numbers of well qualified psychiatrists and psychologists available, and with detailed health commission oversight against unacceptable practices.

It is no wonder that there are increasingly strenuous calls for a substantial upgrading of public mental health services - and this call needs to be extended also to the services available in the private sector. The current situation is really very unsatisfactory.

It's an interesting debate. From my experience, I was medicated, I believe, to assuage my parents fear of judgement and guilt about the home environment.

IF your child has issues relating to the parenting, it's an easier pill to swallow that it's some random chemical imbalance. I think a lot of parents would jump at the chance for clemency in their responsibility in this way.

Having said that my experience of 'qualified psychiatrists' and mental health 'professionals' in general leaves me to think most of them would feel pretty impotent if they were to have to attempt to help someone without drugs.

It stands to reason. If people were so easily malleable as to be able to have solved deep-seated psychological problems by a stranger there is something seriously wrong. Which begs the question I suppose of who would/could anyone trust?

Thank you Antony Dillon for your insightful article.
There really isn’t any justification in the world that can explain away or rationalize away the drugging of children...nothing, not now or ever.
The concept of screening 3 years olds whilst so many health professionals are speaking out against it and ‘risk prevention theory’ needs thorough examination. Our government needs to devote an equal amount of time to both sides of this argument. I was taught the precision of science relies on rigorous testing to obtain facts and until so theories remain hypothetical theories.
It is frightening to see every year more and more children and adults labelled and drugged for some type of ‘disorder’, yet crime and suicide rates have escalating to epidemic proportions. The statistics do not show that society has become healthier or saner or happier with all the ‘labelling’ and ‘drugging’ - quite the opposite. There is more suicide and more crime – exactly the side effects of homicidal and suicidal ideation as listed among the many ‘Adverse Reactions’in MIMs. Has the government ever conducted a study to investigate the correlation between rising crime and youth suicide since the advent and increase of ADHD and related medication?
People do experience problems – it’s called the human condition and it's normal. When I think of the folk that lived through the depression or the 1st or 2nd World War and as horrific as it must have been –they got through - without drugs and labels!! They overcame incredible odds and became strong, amazing people. Not to say that mental problems don’t exist. But they do not exist to the extent that has been invented by the psychiatric industry.
It is one of the worst crimes ever to consider drugging innocent children – it is completely wrong and completely condemnable. It rips away their chance to ‘learn’ the real lessons and to develop useful life skills and instead, hooks them onto drugs before they even get a grasp of life. It is one of the worst crimes that mankind could possibly commit

Look,

Only if they enter political debate and are neither Liberal or Labor will they be diagnosed "mentally ill".

GROW UP!

Hmmfff.

Its not that big a deal.

Barry O'farrell,
Elected Premier of the citizens of nsw
&
Top Banana in the "SYDNEY" taxpayer funded - "PONZI scheme INC".

PS.

Loving it, you schmucks.

But don't worry, all the pain will go soon. Have you smelt the industrial emissions across Sydney and the state the last week? While my EPA sleeps, the weak will slowly die of respiratory distress while our understaffed emergency wards pretend to to be world class. With our sky high electricity,(uh I mean private company electricity) prices and no AirCon, it will be nothing short of the 'passover' of good Liberals in the land of PONZI (uh Sydney).

Zeich Heil!