# Is mental illness a disease?



## Cat Dancer (Jun 21, 2009)

A disorder? Does it really matter what we call it? 

I think I've posted about this before, but I'm trying so hard to understand what mental illness is and where it comes from. Does it always have a physical root? If it's caused by trauma, then does the trauma cause a physical/chemical change in the brain that leads to the mental illness? 

Are people who have mental illnesses partly responsible for the stigma that mental illnesses have on them? Based on how we behave sometimes? 

I've been reading this debate on another site and it's got me thinking and wondering and feeling kind of confused.

I think some people still have some strange ideas about the whole issue and I'm wondering what can be done about it, if anything.


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## Daniel (Jun 21, 2009)

> If it's caused by trauma, then does the trauma cause a physical/chemical change in the brain that leads to the mental illness?



In that regard:

Child Abuse Alters Brain Gene | Psych Central News

http://forum.psychlinks.ca/depressi...-dna-changes-in-major-depression-suicide.html


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## Jazzey (Jun 21, 2009)

> This finding helps shed light on the gene/environmental interactions and could lead to a future procedure for identifying the gene change. It also suggests that a gene change brought about by environmental influences may also be potentially reversible.



I liked this part of the first article.


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## Daniel (Jun 21, 2009)

Also:

Depression: Why the Disease Label Matters | Psychology Today

OTOH:



> Thus, I submit that depression is not a disease that should be treated in the same way as say, diabetes (which itself is known in many cases to be stress-related). It is a biopsychosocial syndrome requiring far more than pharmacological intervention. The unfortunate fact that most contemporary psychotherapy--including CBT--fails to penetrate to the heart of the Hydra in major unipolar and bipolar depression underscores the desperate need for more effective psychotherapy rather than proving a biological cause for these devastating disorders.
> 
> http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evil-deeds/200809/is-depression-disease





> My point here is that depression usually has psychological, existential and spiritual significance. It is not merely the result of bad genes or biochemistry.  Dismissing this possibility of meaning does a disservice to the person suffering from depression.
> 
> http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evil-deeds/200809/is-depression-disease-part-2-the-great-debate





> The best, most accurate answer to the basic question, “What causes depression?” is, “_Many_ things.”
> 
> http://forum.psychlinks.ca/depression/17826-you-re-more-than-your-biochemistry.html


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## Trust (Jun 21, 2009)

Hi Cat Dancer! 

The questions about mental illness and disorders are complex and it doesn’t surprise me that many continue to debate these things to seek more understanding. The very fact that you and I and others are questioning, is in my mind, a very good thing. Attention to and discussion of the subject has grown exponentially in the past forty years. I believe there is much we do know about mental illness yet much, much more to be discovered and understood for the benefit of society and those directly affected by illness of all types. I don’t think changing the particular labels matter, I think we have to change people’s perceptions about how we think about people whom are touched by mental illness which includes family members as well. Education leads to understanding and the dispelling of myths and prejudice.  Perhaps one day in the future, people will be able to freely divulge that they have bi-polar illness for instance, without having to worry that people will jump to wrong conclusions about just what that may mean for the person afflicted and those in relationship with them. Fear of the unknown is often the barrier between people. 

There is a stigma surrounding mental illness, IMO, and those whom suffer I am sure have many anecdotal experiences to share that could support my view. Of course, I can only comment on my own personal experience of having grown up in a family where several family members were directly affected but few if any were not affected by association.

My mom has a mental illness and has had it all my life (I’m almost 54). She has no insight whatsoever when she is ill or getting ill. That has been a huge frustration for me over the years, when trying to get help for her. The Mental Health Act in Ontario is not helpful when you have to prove that the person is a harm to themselves or others, or their behavior is highly bizarre. My mom’s behavior when ill was always bizarre – she would isolate herself in her apartment and scream and throw her phone out cutting off all contact and when I would finally convince the superintendant in her building to allow me access to enter her apartment (she never trusted me to have a key even when she was well) I would find her there – her physical appearance completely altered at the time – she did not even resemble the mother I knew, and her furniture was once piled all in one corner and she would exist on cigarettes alone. There have been countless times when I spent endless hours with her in hospital emergency rooms, only to have my mom assessed by incompetent interns with little experience in the field of mental health, and they would many times be suspicious of my account of my mom’s behavior for often she would be able to present as fairly normal in those moments if a little eccentric perhaps. My mom is very smart and manipulative which always astounded me how she could alter her demeanour when the “threat” of a hospitalization was present. I remember wishing that someone would just get it – know what was happening to her – know how I was feeling and that I was not ill-willed toward my mother, not trying to get her committed indefinitely, I just wanted the craziness to end and for her to get the help she needed to get well. Rarely did hospital staff just cut to the chase and give her a hospital bed so the recovery could begin. I had to be persistent, patient and insistent that my mom get the help she needed. Once she was seen by a psychiatrist, her illness would get "re-diagnosed" (she has a long documented history) it seemed at every admission, but at least they knew she needed a bed and cooperated with me to give her the help when she was not able to cooperate for her own best interest.

In the past several years my mom has a fabulous doctor of whom I have an amazing rapport. He trusts me and my intentions. He has been a lifesaver for my mom and his understanding of her and my life while trying to cope with her illness is so appreciated by me I can barely describe how grateful I feel! During my lifetime my mom was hospitalized on average once a year for periods of anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 months depending. Back when I was very little the subject of what was happening to my mom during her times of illness was very hush hush – at the most I would be told that she was having a nervous breakdown. Sometimes I overheard family members talking about having her committed  and not knowing quite what that meant but knowing for certain it was a terrifying thing! When I was 14 I took on the sole responsibility of caring for my mom, protecting her privacy, shielding her from criticism, covering for her inadequacies, making excuses for her odd behaviours etc. It was at that tender age I had to take my mom to a provincial psychiatric hospital, by cab, along with my 16 year old brother and it only occurred after many attempts using anything we could think of from kind persuasion to firm threats and outright lies about where we were headed, until finally somehow it seemed by sheer luck she would agree and get in the cab. After that first time I went with my brother, all the next times I had to go by myself. For me it was a better alternative to involving my aunts and uncles whom I had witnessed as a young child forcing my mother to go to the hospital against her will. If she could not “see” for herself that she needed help, I was at least going to do what I could to protect her dignity and mine. 

Back in the late 70’s my mom was introduced to Lithium which allowed her illness to be much more manageable in the years after. By comparison to electro shock therapy and heavy and life zapping tranquilizers she had been subjected to prior, Lithium was a life-saver for her. Had she been able to take it regularly throughout her life without any interruptions, I believe she would not have had to endure any further hospitalizations, but my mom, as I have been told is a part of her particular illness, could not accept that she really had any illness and therefore once she had recovered her mental health for a time, her confidence restored, she would convince herself that medication was not needed, and so the cycle continued and continues to this day. I must say though, my mom is now in her 80’s, and for these past 10 years, she is able to somewhat realize the importance of taking her medications to maintain her health and so her hospitalizations have been reduced to about every 2 years. My mom does not really know what it means to feel responsible for herself, but she has made improvements in this area. I am proud of her for what she has gone through and how she has never given up!

My mom made me and my brothers the most wonderful Christmases, she decorated our house with good taste even when we had no money because she was so creative and resourceful, she could make anyone laugh and often made me laugh until I cried, she was a wonderful self-taught seamstress and made our clothes by hand until we balked at having to wear homemade clothes as teens, she taught me to believe in something bigger than myself as she was very religious and although I do not participate now in the religion of my youth, I do value my deep sense of spirituality. My mom has had a difficult life but she is able to make the best of it for the most part – another gift she passed along to me. People are complex and are so much more than the labels we place on them and my mom has shown me more often than not that this is true.

Sorry for writing so much on this topic – (I could write forever I’m sure!) – but I hope that my experiences help someone in some way to find self-acceptance and hope and know that we all struggle and celebrate – labels or not – with the challenges and the joys of simply being human. :2thumbs:


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## Retired (Jun 21, 2009)

> Are people who have mental illnesses partly responsible for the stigma that mental illnesses have on them?



Perhaps the question can be answered by other questions:

Are people who have _leprosy_ partly responsible for the stigma _leprosy_ have on them? 

Of course not.

Because mental illness often affects one's behaviour, uninformed individuals conclude that behaviour should be controllable, and if it cannot be controlled, the person with the illness is somehow weak and deficient.

The fact is, as we know, that many of these unusual behaviours are involuntary and caused by the illness.

_Mental illness changes who we are._


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## NicNak (Jun 21, 2009)

Thanks for asking that question Cat Dancer, I have wondered the same thing myself.

Sorry to hijack your thread Cat Dancer, but I have a question along the same lines I think.

My Psychiatrist has before said I had an Anxiety "condition" others call it a "disorder" now with the Major Depressive I have, my Psychiatrist calls it an "illness" some call it a "disorder"

Is there any difference, really in if it is called a condition, disorder, illness etc?  Does it indicate different levels or anything?

I often thought my Psychiarist seems to avoid the "disorder" term when he talks to me cause of how harsh "disorder" sounds.  

Any insight?


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## Retired (Jun 21, 2009)

Here's the difference in the terminology, which is perhaps more important for conversations among health professionals than among lay persons.  For the purposes of lay conversation, the terms are probably interchangeable.

One term can have a causal relationship to the other, however there are distinctions in the terms:

*Disease:*
1. An interruption, cessation, or disorder of a body, system, or organ structure or function.
2. A morbid entity ordinarily characterized by two or more of the following criteria: 
a) recognized etiologic agent(s), identifiable group of signs and symptoms, or b) consistent anatomic alterations

*Disorder:*
1. A disturbance of function, structure, or both, resulting from a genetic or embryonic failure in development or,
from exogenous factors such as poison, trauma, or disease.


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## Cat Dancer (Jun 21, 2009)

I'm curious about that too, NicNak. Does the wording really matter? What does it mean? 

This debate I've been following has been discussing that as well. One person wanted to know why people with mental illness want to be seen as sick, instead of just emotionally disturbed. Whatever that means. But it does make me wonder does how we word it change people's perception of the issues?


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## Trust (Jun 21, 2009)

I think most people resist labels for themselves of any kind because labels are often used to make people feel different from others, and usually that difference is not perceived as positive.

Especially with labels for mental illnesses, people feel vulnerable about being labelled because the label seems to define the person rather than the illness. I know I make that mistake myself - I will say my mom is mentally ill rather than say my mom has a mental illness. It may seem just like silly semantics, but there is a difference in perception. One explanation implies that my mom is mentally ill as if that defines her as a person whereas the other description allows the truth that she is a whole person who happens to have a mental illness.

My mom has always been sensitive about being labelled as "mentally ill" as if that is the whole story. Labels can limit people, but a little education can broaden other's understanding of how and why these labels affect the people they are placed upon. Sensitivity can be increased by those whom are not mentally ill, and those whom are can learn to be less sensitive to being defined by labels by taking the time to explain to others how the label may affect them.


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## NicNak (Jun 21, 2009)

I see what your saying Trust.  It is like calling someone a Diabetic when we should say they are a person who has  Diabetes.

The first way identifies the person as that ailment, as aposed to saying they are a person with this ailment.


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## Trust (Jun 21, 2009)

Yes, NicNak - EXACTLY!:2thumbs:


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## Always Changing (Jun 21, 2009)

what does biopsychosocial syndrome mean?


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## Daniel (Jun 21, 2009)

Biopsychosocial model - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## David Baxter PhD (Jun 21, 2009)

> what does biopsychosocial syndrome mean?



Basically, it refers to something that is the product of a combination of biological (genetic, hormonal, neurochemical, physiological) factors, psychological (emotional, cognitive, personality) factors, and social (family, societal, media, peer reactions) factors.


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## Daniel (Jun 22, 2009)

Cat Dancer said:
			
		

> Are people who have mental illnesses partly responsible for the stigma that mental illnesses have on them? Based on how we behave sometimes?


Like going to the moon? 



> *In your new memoir, “Magnificent Desolation,” which comes out this week, you recount a period of ruinous drinking and clinical depression following your time in space.
> *
> Buzz Aldrin:  I inherited depression from my mother’s side of the family. Her father committed suicide. She committed suicide the year before I went to the moon.
> 
> http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/21/magazine/21fob-q4-t.html


So, seriously, I agree that people with mental illness don't deserve to be stigmatized for depression-related behaviors, especially given the fact that the stigma makes it more difficult for people to get treatment and feel socially connected to others.


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