**MeriBeri🍒** @MariBari · 30 nov. 2017, 16:41

**MeriBeri🍒** @MariBari · 30 nov. 2017, 16:41

MeriBeri🍒 @MariBari

30 nov. 2017, 16:41

psychiatry, self-diagnosis Afficher plus

I'm processing the best hot take I've ever had about why self-diagnosis is important for psychiatry to be effective in providing medical diagnoses but it's super long and I don't know if I can fit it into its own post :eo_thinking:

**MeriBeri🍒** @MariBari · 2017-11-30T16:47:35Z

MeriBeri🍒 @MariBari

psychiatry hot take, positive (1/2) Afficher plus

Okay I'm gonna try to paraphrase this as best as I can;

From my experience-- and the experience of many, many members of neurodivergent/marginalized communities-- psychiatry is largely based off of the medical model of disability, which necessitates clear, precise definitions of mental illness in order to provide a functional diagnosis.

Many, if not all, of these definitions are entirely based on the patient's own symptoms. The problem arises that patients need to provide a personal account of their own symptoms, and many people don't have the necessary knowledge base to define and describe their symptoms accurately.

30 nov. 2017, 16:47 · 4 · 10

**MeriBeri🍒** @MariBari · 30 nov. 2017, 16:54

**MeriBeri🍒** @MariBari · 30 nov. 2017, 16:54

30 nov. 2017, 16:54

MeriBeri🍒 @MariBari

psychiatry hot take, positive (2/2) Afficher plus

So, the clear solution is to give people the tools required to understand and describe their own symptoms so that they can receive accurate care from healthcare professionals.

Despite this, however, there's a huge stigma against self-diagnosis, especially in discourse. The belief is that a patient who self-diagnoses is effectively feeding into their own perception of their illness.

I'm going to argue that the opposite is true. Self-diagnosis is the *most effective* way for people to understand their symptoms and receive effective care. A patient who doesn't understand their symptoms cannot get an accurate diagnosis.