| ign="center"> | | | | first diagnoses which was made at this prestigious |
| Diagnoses, Misnomer or Stigmatizing the individuals | | | | institute. (I would not like to name the institute at |
| suffering from Mental Illnesses: Are we helping for | | | | any cost as being one of the very good institutes of |
| their cause or making life more difficult for them? (All | | | | Mental Health in India, that may create a bias |
| of you are invited to give your views) | | | | amongst the professionals and my debate is not |
| Since we all are here to reflect your thoughts with | | | | against any institution it is just against the "term", |
| our great creative and scientific bent of mind, I would | | | | which has been discovered recently, but I certainly |
| just like to ask all of us a question: | | | | could not see any logical explanation in its favor and |
| Have you ever heard of a term called "High | | | | nor any such research articles). Happening to be |
| Functioning Mental Retardation?". | | | | somebody related to me somehow he tried to clarify |
| ( To those who are not aware of Mental Retardation | | | | his doubts about the diagnoses. Also, it is sad that |
| I would like to explain them that Mental retardation is | | | | after that he changed the name of his son because |
| a developmental disability that is marked by | | | | after confirmations of several other highly qualified |
| lower-than-normal intelligence and limited daily living | | | | professionals he could not digest the "term Mentally |
| skills. Mental retardation is normally present at birth or | | | | Retarded". I raised this issue because when his |
| develops early in life. | | | | parents tried to get admission in some good school |
| And usually mental retardation is more or less genetic | | | | and being honest they went with all his medical |
| and by birth but sometimes it develops in early | | | | reports from that institute, he was denied admission |
| childhood. Certainly, it is different from mental illness. | | | | in that particular school and asked to take him to a |
| Mentally retarded could be suffering from mental | | | | school which is meant for mentally retarded. Later he |
| illness at the same time. But Mentally ill are never | | | | went to another school with a changed name and he |
| categorized as mentally retarded because before the | | | | is excelling in studies has a very good inquisitiveness |
| period of the illness they were considered to be | | | | for mobile and computer technology. You can't |
| ânormalâ individuals. Moreover, | | | | imagine he could do things himself which I and you |
| mental illness could be treated with Drugs | | | | can't even imagine at merely 8 years of age. He |
| (Psychotherapeutic medications), counseling and | | | | could play very high intellectual games like "Soduku" |
| psychotherapy and the person can reach to its | | | | and more over he is so inquisitive that he would even |
| premorbid or previous condition when the individual | | | | ask you the highly philosophical but logical and |
| functioned normally but mentally retarded individuals | | | | intelligent questions "like what are the parts used in |
| though could enhance its skills with the help of | | | | laptop", "how it has been developed" and "how the |
| several professionals but could never have a so called | | | | internet connectivity functionsâ-seeing my |
| ânormalâ condition or functioning. | | | | husband working on the laptop. These questions are |
| After understanding the meaning of the term in my | | | | very normal for today's kids , but this raised a kind |
| opinion we could not make both the statements | | | | of alarm in me about the particular diagnoses and so |
| together that the individual is both âmentally | | | | I raised that question. Now, my question to all the |
| retardedâ and âhighly | | | | professional is that Should anyone still call the |
| functioningâ at the same time. Retarded | | | | individual as Mentally Retarded?" |
| means âbelow averageâ and highly | | | | Though , few people and few institutes claim that it |
| functional means âabove averageâ. | | | | already have some kind of diluted diagnoses for |
| How can we keep both the terms together which | | | | them, but at the same time can we brainstorm and |
| mean exactly opposite. Are we discovering | | | | find out some other more mankind friendly term |
| Oxymoron in science and psychiatry or psychology. I | | | | especially for kids like the stated above. They also |
| do not know. | | | | claim to be friendly in personâs treatment |
| I still do not understand what is it and where it has | | | | and management, but did it really help the individual? |
| discovered, at least not been described neither in ICD | | | | Still I would just say that my aim is also to improve |
| 10 and nor in DSMIV, though I have come across | | | | the treatment and make it more effective to the |
| many other high functioning terms like high | | | | suffering individual by making it more friendly in the |
| functioning autism, high functioning aspersers, high | | | | growth of that person and as less stigmatic as it |
| functioning schizophrenia and so on but this is the | | | | could be. |
| term first used by a trainee psychiatrist in a very | | | | May be now we could think of even redefining the |
| prestigious Mental Health Institute and I saw the | | | | term "Patients" as such because that again labels |
| history and this particular diagnosis on patient which | | | | them of belonging to some abnormal category, |
| was made five years back. I think one could use his | | | | rather we could call them as " Individuals currently |
| or her common sense before making such a | | | | suffering from this disease" |
| diagnoses. | | | | But at the same time I would say that I am against |
| So it is thought provoking. Just think before making | | | | calling any person as "Mentally Retarded", when we all |
| any such diagnoses as it may affect the patient's | | | | know that individual is highly functional. |
| treatment as well your own career. | | | | At the end my request to all Mental Health |
| With due regards to your sentiments, I would just | | | | Professionals is that "Can't we find more human |
| like to ask you a question then why do we then call | | | | friendly terms for such kind of individuals?â |
| it "Mental Retardation" , why cannot we discover of | | | | At the same time this would not change in a day or |
| some better term, when you already that the | | | | two but if we start brainstorming now it would still |
| individual is highly functional. | | | | take few years to reach a conclusion which becomes |
| I myself have met few people which are functioning | | | | a standard practice or accepted as a standard term |
| as "highly functional people" like Prof. Ellen Sachs | | | | at least when taught in the Mental Health Courses or |
| diagnosed as "high functioning Schizophrenia " and the | | | | published in Journals, reports etc. |
| author of her book "The Center Cannot Hold: My | | | | May be some day we could join hands together to |
| Journey Through Madness" and I have seen a girl | | | | find a solution for "terminology" problem and reduce |
| from Delhi, who was highly scholastic and scored | | | | stigma and biases of the society which goes against |
| almost 99% marks in her every class till then and | | | | their healthy coping and growth after recovering |
| very good in her knowledge in writing but rarely she | | | | from their illnesses. |
| used to speak her feelings to her mother even with | | | | You and me as mental health professionals could |
| whom she had the best comfort level as she had | | | | understand the meaning of diagnoses as being trained |
| been diagnosed as "High functioning Autism". | | | | in those professions but what about those people |
| My understanding is that these people are called as | | | | who are not at all informed about the diagnoses we |
| "High functioning" , because they are mentally ill but | | | | make or very little informed. |
| at the same time they could escape the disabilities in | | | | I know we need to educate the masses also but at |
| intellectual and cognitive functioning because many of | | | | the same time we need to be having more "social |
| the people with such kind of illnesses could become | | | | friendly" terms while making such kind of diagnoses. |
| somewhat dysfunctional but few remain as functional | | | | I am happy that some people are passionate enough |
| as they were earlier or even emerge out to be a | | | | and have urge to help such kind of individuals by |
| much more mentally healthy and highly intellectual and | | | | what they call as diluting the diagnoses but actually |
| cognitively functional than they were earlier because | | | | we did not help this individual and this is an example, |
| of they are no longer imbalance in their | | | | that before , many more people like the individual |
| neuro-chemicals released in the brain. | | | | stated above would be denied from mainstream |
| I know that this would help in prognosis of any plan if | | | | education for the simple reason as stated above, we |
| the person is highly functional. But I would like | | | | need to correct ourselves. |
| express my views in the following manner: | | | | I would invite many others to have their views with |
| The child I have seen the diagnoses as "High | | | | their logical and professional experience for or against |
| functioning MR", (after which I raised this issue) has | | | | my views. |
| been changed the diagnosis at other places as well | | | | Also, I would like to question many other diagnoses |
| and all other mental professionals negated the | | | | which are not in favor of the suffering individual. |
| diagnoses of "Mental Retardation" itself, except the | | | | |