When psychiatrists designate new disorders, drug companies rejoice

Drug company executives will be easy to spot later this year. They’ll be the deliriously happy guys doing their best Gene Kelly impressions.

They’ll belt out “Singin’ in the Rain,” while the pills pour down.

Antidepressants. Sedatives. Antipsychotics. Stimulants. Mood stabilizers. Hypnotic sleep aids.

Glorious feeling! Happy again!

That happiness comes courtesy of the American Psychiatric Association. APA officials are working on final edits for the DSM. That’s the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.”

As I’ve mentioned before, the DSM provides guidelines for mental health practitioners worldwide. When editors bestow their official designation for a new disorder, drug companies rejoice. That means it’s time for doctors to get out their prescription pads and start writing!

In the upcoming edition, “bereavement” gets the nod. Apparently, the DSM will classify bereavement as a “major depressive disorder” when sadness, crying, poor concentration, etc., last longer than two weeks.

Two weeks! That’s it! That’s your limit of grief after losing a parent, a spouse, or a child. They won’t consider your deeply felt grief to be “normal” if it goes beyond 14 days. At that point, you’ll have a disorder. And you’ll be a candidate for medication.

I would ask… “What are they thinking?” But I believe it’s pretty clear.

According to The Washington Post, eight of the 11 members of the APA editorial committee have financial ties to drug companies.

I think we can predict that the new DSM is going to give some drug company executives “major euphoria disorder.”

Sources:
“Bereavement, Depression & Happy Drugmakers, Pt. 2” Ed Silverman, Pharmalot, 12/27/12, pharmalot.com