Is Mental Illness a Myth?
If we insist that mental illness is just people living the wrong way, we argue for a reductionistic view of people.
Skepticism towards mental illness and therapy permeates Christian circles. But there are also secular skeptics of mental illness. And Thomas Szasz’s The Myth of Mental Illness is the classic, most longstanding secular critique of mental illness. While I disagree with his conclusions, it offers a noteworthy challenge to the mental health industry.
The Myth of Mental Illness
When the author Thomas Szasz started medical school in the 1950s, there were six or seven mental illnesses.
Today there are over four hundred and fifty in the Diagnostics and Statistics Manual V (DSM V). He critiques the psychological revolution from many different angles which makes the book fascinating.
But he also argues for too much.
Philosophically, he argues we shouldn’t reduce people to just the physical. Spiritually, he argues that Christianity has led to a weak, therapeutic, and paternalistic way of life.
Politically, he argues that the government has too much reach in peoples’ lives because “healthcare” has become too broad.
Ethically, he argues that people should be morally responsible for their actions, with no insanity pleas.
Scientifically, he argues that there is no biological evidence for such a thing as mental diseases.
A Simplistic Take on a Complex Subject
Because he argues on all these different lines, there is some truth and insight in what he is saying but I think his claims are hubristic.
Szasz simplifies humanity and psychological function by denying the complexity and mystery of our mental state.
Scientists fall into the same hubris today, but the art of good psychology/psychiatry is the recognition that people are incredibly complicated. We are a complex mix of the heart, soul, and strength (psychological, spiritual, and physical). Mental health is at the border of all of these, and it is a tricky border to be at and not fall into one ditch as happens in both scientific disciplines and in spiritual communities.
Just recently, Matt Walsh (a similar therapy/psychology skeptic) interviewed Jordan Peterson (a clinical psychologist) to ask whether mental illness is a myth. Peterson dives into all the scientific research and the history of the discipline and makes great arguments for the usefulness of psychology done well.
However, Peterson does say that the therapeutic field is probably currently doing more harm than good. There is nothing more dangerous than a “loose cannon” therapist. There are indeed a lot of bad counselors out there. (The Book of Job is all about that.)
Szasz’s book also is dated. He wrote the book in 1960. He also wrote a preface to the 50th-anniversary edition arguing why he is still right, but he does not deal with all the incredible research that is being done in neuroscience after so much technological development. It is just incredible how much you can learn about the brain and body today.
Now, there will always be mystery about how psychiatric drugs work for different people and about what causes mental illness.
But we know so much more today about mental illness than what Szasz acknowledges.
This discredits his case against mental illness.
What Therapy Should Be
Today through brain imaging scans, we can see what happens in the brain when someone with OCD touches something dirty. In other mental illnesses, you can see different connections with neurons or an overactive amygdala.
All of this knowledge does not have to lead to a completely secular, physicalist view of a person. We can still believe in the spiritual, but also believe that God reveals knowledge about creation through physical study to inform how we ought to live.
If we insist that mental illness is just people living the wrong way, we argue for a reductionistic view of people. Life is beautifully complex. The fall has affected us in not just our sinful nature but in our suffering in many ways.
While there are many legitimate critiques of therapy, it is one of the few places left in our day where people can talk to a person and be listened to well. It’s not that easy to “just listen.” It takes work to let a person unfold, to encourage them to open up, and for them to have a healing and integrating experience.
The purpose of therapy is the same as the purpose of thought: “Our stupid thoughts can die instead of us,” as Jordan Peterson says.
Genuine dialogue transforms, and many only find this in therapy and counseling.
But it would not be going too far to say that dialogue also heals. As Christ said, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick.”
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