Psy vs. Psy

We did it again, with our post "Job enrichment". We pre-empted the Guardian's Psy vs. Psy article of today: Psychologists attacking psychiatrists.

Or did we?

No, we did not. All we did was write something about a debate that has been going on for a while and, just like our obvious reference to Mad Magazine indicates, will be fought for some time to come.

We completely, absolutely, vehemently side with the psychologists with regard to the incredible scope creep, creepy, of DSM-5, the manual that will classify "temper tantrums" as a major psychiatric disorder.

Children aside, this classification would slap a clinical diagnosis on an estimated 80% to 90% of upper management in the corporate world (our estimate).

The one bright side, as we pointed out in the previous post, is lots of great meds for everyone. Why grow pot or use other illegal and dangerous drugs, when you can get all the legal and dangerous stuff from a friendly man in a white coat?

The new world heralded by DSM-5 is not very brave, but it would make a good fit for the conspiracy theorists upcoming total surveillance state.  Feeling a little paranoid today, we have a pill for that.

Grief as an illness, that's just dumb. But here is the kicker, we believe that any and all "mental illness" is a function of something "physical" in the sense that there are physical triggers and physical manifestations. Pinning down that quantum particle that gets you down will take a while, though.

Talk therapy to us is a physical exercise. There is nothing other than a physical world, but it's complicated - as one of our favorite TV characters says.

Not long ago in the Northern European mind, things burned not because of a presence of oxygen, and light was not a thing.

Simple answer to a complex question (hence wrong answer by accepted standards): psychiatry as the strange narrow physical field won't cut it, and psychology as a "soul" field won't either. But TheEditor likes psychology better because it is less deterministic, has empathy, is simply more rounded and less dictator friendly than the guys with the meds and their DSM seem to be.

TheEditor is experiencing grief about the shortcomings of the human mind and about our infighting. How long until I can get the happy pills in accordance with DSM-5?