Week 6 - Christopher Hiura

Christopher Hiura
ASA002 A01
Week 6

In “Pathologizing Everyday Life” by T. and L.D. Wasserman, they claim that mental illness today is over diagnosed. Frankly, I agree with that sentiment. The amount of people diagnosed with some kind of mental illness today far exceeds the amount of, say, ten years ago. In my opinion, I believe this has a lot to do with America's Big Pharma and lobbyist organizations. To them, mental illness is simply another way to squeeze money out of people, where they think something similar to "Oh you have anxiety? Here use this super expensive drug that will 1) 'cure' you of your disease and 2) make you addicted to this new and awesome wonder drug so that you keep coming back for more." In a way, pathologizing mental illness is another tool that social engineers use to control the populace and make tons of money. Of course, I do believe that there are people who genuinely need additional help to recover from some kind of mental illness; however, it is a fact that many people are being tricked into thinking they have a mental illness. People are told these "lies" so much that they start believing the lies themselves, where the lies create a vicious cycle of a pseudo-problem and a pseudo-solution. I remember watching an adult swim infomercial (which is a type of show that satirizes modern problems) and they did a bit about antidepressants, it's called "Live-footage of a Bear." The show touches upon the harrowing effects of drug addiction and the improper way ads portray benefits of taking said drug. I highly recommend to watch it, where it visualizes the key aspects of how in America mental illness is truly over diagnosed. 

Would America's economy plummet if companies stopped pathologizing mental illness? What else is America "pathologizing" just to make more money? The food industry? The tech industry?

References: 

1. T. Wasserman, L.D. Wasserman. (2016). Pathologizing Everyday Life.Depathologizing Psychopathology. Retrieved October 29, 2017.

2.  Frank, Allegra. “This 10-Minute infomercial is why I don't stay up late anymore.” Polygon, Polygon, 21 Oct. 2016, www.polygon.com/2016/10/21/13335670/unedited-footage-of-a-bear.