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There IS no such thing as psychiatric anything, IMPO. This is a made up branch of "science" and always has been. If you can find one truthful thing about that "profession" I'd like to hear about it. It's a bunch of hogwash, as you will discover below.
This was taken from the latest newsletter from Dr. Tim O'Shea. Good stuff here.
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A.D.D.: A DESIGNER DISEASE
Have any “problem children”? Before taking them to the “professionals” you might be interested to know what their own authorities say.
Early next year a major publishing house will present a new book that examines the enormous number of Americans currently under drug treatment for some mental disorder or other. Taking Sides by Edwin Gantt will present research on both sides of the discussion: are all these people really in need of extended courses of psychoactive drugs? The author and publisher have asked that material from our chapter [color=#0000ee]ADD: A Designer Disease[/color] be included in the new publication. This chapter is a review of the literature on the recent phenomenon Attention Deficit Disorder, which has given rise to the $100 billion Ritalin industry in just a few short years. The primary sources cited are psychiatrists who are often embarrassed, even horrified at the actions of their own profession since the late 80s:
- Manufacturing dozens of imaginary diagnoses with no supporting science
- Formally listing them in psychiatry’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
- Forcing drugs on a large segment of an entire generation
- Enlisting completely untrained school personnel to assist in diagnosing new patients
A few excerpts from the chapter:
“Designer jeans, designer shirts, designer handbags, designer watches, jewelry,
perfumes, neckties, shoes - what are they? Take an ordinary item, put a name on it, a
few million in marketing and promo, and voilà, its price is raised tenfold. How? By
creating an illusion of worth in the malleable, fickle, public “consciousness.”
“Same with ADD. Everyone gets mildly depressed from time to time. Kids get rowdy
sometimes. Teenagers are confused. Alert the media. Our attention wanders, we get
distracted, we have difficulty finishing a task. So what? Welcome to life. But to turn
these everyday experiences into diseases to be compared with cancer or diabetes -
actual clinical entities, researched and defined – well, that takes real marketing and
dog-wagging mastery."
“So what do we need? A new disease, but we don’t have time to discover one? No
problema. We do have the most advanced information machine in human history
already in place. We can create a disease out of nothing. But it won’t be a real disease.
It will be A Designer Disease.
“What exactly is ADD?
“Attention Deficit Disorder, was invented in a 1980 meeting of the American
Psychiatry Association, adding it to their manual. [3] p. 8 Originally, it supposedly
afflicted 5% of Americans children, mostly young boys. In the past 20 years other
opinions have guessed as high at 40% [7] p.285. But as we will see, these numbers
don’t really matter since political organizations are just taking wild guesses about
something that is scientifically undefined.
“No consistent genetic basis or organic neurological lesions, or any verifiable physical
changes have ever been clearly identified as causative of ADD, even in the arbitrary
world of biotechnology. There are no lab tests for it. In short, there is no objective
scientific proof that the disease exists.
“ADD was invented by the APA in order to bolster the position of a failing profession.
Politics and economics took over almost immediately, seeing a way to allocate billions
of dollars in drugs and professional fees to “combat” the new “epidemic.” It was a
brilliant move, successful beyond their wildest dreams.
“When reading anything about ADD, it seems essential to keep one central notion
clearly in mind: ADD is not a medical entity; it is economic and political.
I soon discovered I was not alone in this sentiment:
“ADD does not exist. These children are not disordered.” Thomas Armstrong, PhD
The Myth of the ADD Chi ld [3]
“Both the FDA and the DEA have acknowledged that ADD is not a disease, or anything
organic or biologic.” - Fred Baughman, MD The Future of Mental Health [6]
“We have invented a new disease, given it medical sanction, and now we must disown it.”
- Diane McGuiness The Limits of Biologic Treatment for Psychiatric Distress [9]
“Research does not confirm the existence of an ADD syndrome There is no medical,
neurological, or psychiatric justification for the ADD diagnosis.”
– Peter Breggin, M,D. Toxic Psychiatry p 281 [2]
“Be forewarned that ADD is not a real disease, but rather a contrived illusion of a disease, a marketplace tool.” – Fred Baughman, MD [6]
“The DSM is the only way that ADD is diagnosed. Here’s how it’s done. In the DSM-IV, ADD has nine symptoms listed under it. If a child has any six of them, in the opinion of the doctor (or the teacher!) that child may be diagnosed as having ADD. That’s it!
Funny thing is, it seems like most of these entries on the list are not symptoms of a mental disorder, but just symptoms of being a kid:
1. Often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat
2. Often leaves seat in classroom or in other situations in which remaining seated is
expected
3. Often runs about or climbs excessively in situations in which it its inappropriate
4. Often has difficulty playing or engaging in leisure activities quietly
5. Is often on the go or often acts as if driven by a motor
6. Often talks excessively
7. Often blurts out answers before questions have been completed
8. Often has difficulty awaiting turn
9. Often interrupts or intrudes on others
Sound like anyone you’ve ever known? Some may ask if there are any kids who would
not fit six of these criteria. Again, this is the only “diagnostic” “testing” that exists for
determining ADD. Six out of nine. No lab tests, no X-rays, no blood tests, no physical
examination whatsoever, no standardized batteries of written or verbal psychological
testing. Just these nine subjective symptoms.”
We all know people diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. Are those actual clinical conditions, or just marketing hooks?
There’s a very dark subtext here that may shock and awe even the most jaded among us.