Mental health from both sides
My teeth have been bothering me quite a lot recently. This isn’t unusual, and I’m never sure whether it falls within the realms of the neurotic, the slightly disconnected from reality or (most likely) the sadly realistic. I can hardly believe I’m eating chocolate buttons as I write this – rather than creating dissonance, it…
Evidence-based practice matters, and rigorous research is not only a thing of beauty but also necessary to find and validate further and better treatments, especially in psychiatry. But real people exist in a less ordered world, where things are often unclear. Diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, outcome – these are all islands, navigated by many, in boats…
Does it help, having a label or a diagnosis? Maybe it depends what it is, or how it was acquired. As a psychiatrist, I like to make a diagnosis; indeed, it feels sloppy not to try, and there is always the genuine hope that this will lead to better management. But I don’t do terribly…
Why dwell on the past when you don't have to? Especially when the past was less than happy, and better put aside. Many years ago, as a junior trainee psychiatrist, I wrote an article about my experiences as a psychiatric patient, and showed it to some senior colleagues. I have never forgotten the words of…