Denial of problem, lack of insight, self-awareness
Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 12:46 pm
Links on Denial of problem, lack of insight, self-awareness
Freedom of Thought
Declaration of Human Rights
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
Article 18.
1. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought
Cognitive Liberty & Mental Health
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/issues/ ... _index.htm
Cognitive Liberty & Mental Health
1. What exactly is "mental health" and who gets to decide whether or not your mind is healthy? Certainly, if a person's conduct is a danger to others, the State ought to intervene. But, history shows that various mental health labels have been exploited by the State for political purposes, and that people have been (and continue to be) subjected to "mental health" treatment against their will, although they pose no danger to others. Such State actions raise deep concerns, and ought to be recognized as human rights violations that are unconstitutional violations of the fundamental right to cognitive liberty and autonomy.
Shrinking the Freedom of Thought
http://www.geocities.com/greenliberal/R ... n1997.html
Psychiatry has little trouble in establishing its potential benefit to the exercise of human rights when 'difficult' individuals acknowledge that they have a mental disease and seek treatment for it. A specific article of human rights law that psychiatry can enhance in this way is Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). Article 12 concerns "the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health."[3]
International law – Right to Mental Health
'International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/a_cescr.htm
Article 12.
1. The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
Lack of insight
http://www.psychlaws.org/StateActivity/ ... sheet4.htm
CALIFORNIA
TREATMENT ADVOCACY COALITION
Fact Sheet:
LACK OF INSIGHT—a Barrier to Voluntary Treatment
Service system lacks insight into lack of insight
http://www.naminycmetro.org/lackinsight.htm
Anosognosia ("anasugNOHZeeah") or lack of awareness of one's mental illness is another biologically based symptom...
Sadly, the mental health service system has not demonstrated an understanding of this symptom in most of its programs. Individuals suffering from anosognosia are frequently homeless, incarcerated, noncompliant, violent, refuse treatment,
Psychiatry's Lack of Insight: Four Double-Binds That Place Patients in a Living Nightmare
http://www.successfulschizophrenia.org/ ... binds.html
Anosognosia: Unaware of or denies the existence of their handicap.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anosognosia
ANOTHER SURPRISE FROM AMERICAN PSYCHIATRY
(Sorry, the short link wouldn’t work.)
http://www.austincc.edu/ddydek/dsmcritique.htm
Recently an important new mental disorder, Anosognosia (translation: lack of awareness of illness), has been announced by the American Psychiatric Association (see Professional News, 2001, 36, 17, p. 13.). While this phenomenon was long known by the psychological term denial, it is now said to be a result of a brain defect, according to a recent article in Psychiatric News. (September 7, 2001).
Organic Denial in alcoholism
http://www.open.org/~tahana/ADA/twforgde.htm
Alcoholism and chemical dependency are brain disorders. At some point, psychological denial may give way to organic unawareness or anosognosia. If a patient's denial seems so strong that it is almost palpable and seems organic, it may be
Psychiatric News
September 7, 2001
Volume 36 Number 17, p. 13, Professional News
Anosognosia Keeps Patients From Realizing They're Ill
http://www.psychlaws.org/GeneralResources/article55.htm
Court case with a bunch of citations (search on U.S. Gov. website for term “Anosognosia”
http://www.state.wv.us/wvsca/docs/fall02/30725c.pdf
Promoting Self-Determination for Individuals with Psychiatric Disabilities
One of the major controversies in the field of psychiatry today is a debate about the competency of individuals with serious mental illnesses.
On one side of the debate is the argument that significant numbers of people with mental illnesses lack the insight to make rational decisions (likened to the neurological disorder anosognosia, see Amador & Paul-Odouard, 2000). Some proponents of this argument support legal reforms that require persons deemed incompetent to receive outpatient services and unwanted medications against their will, thereby encroaching on their personal freedom. The argument for these legal reforms is based on assertions that persons with serious mental illnesses are or may become dangerous, and therefore need to be protected from causing harm to self or others.
On the other side of the argument is the assertion that freedom from coercion is a basic societal value in a democracy, as well as a human right, regardless of one’s level of competency. Advocates of this perspective believe that forced treatment will only worsen the fundamental problem of an already overly coercive mental health service delivery system. Proponents of this approach to dealing with problems of competency assert that a well-designed system of care based on principles of recovery and self-direction that is also integrated at the community level will largely negate the need for coercive treatment.
http://216.109.125.130/search/cache?p=% ... 1&.intl=us
Conference Probes Pathology of Self-Awareness
http://66.218.69.11/search/cache?p=Anos ... 1&.intl=us
That rethinking of the biological basis for a lack of self-awareness is affecting the way other illnesses are viewed, too. For instance, although dealing with denial is a critical component in alcohol rehabilitation, the self-awareness deficit is not even among the DSM-IV's diagnostic criteria for substance abuse, said Kenneth Sher, Ph.D., professor of psychology in the department of psychological services at the University of Missouri, Columbia. Telling attendees that there was almost no research on the self-awareness component of alcoholism, he urged further investigation.
Freedom of Thought
Declaration of Human Rights
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
Article 18.
1. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought
Cognitive Liberty & Mental Health
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/issues/ ... _index.htm
Cognitive Liberty & Mental Health
1. What exactly is "mental health" and who gets to decide whether or not your mind is healthy? Certainly, if a person's conduct is a danger to others, the State ought to intervene. But, history shows that various mental health labels have been exploited by the State for political purposes, and that people have been (and continue to be) subjected to "mental health" treatment against their will, although they pose no danger to others. Such State actions raise deep concerns, and ought to be recognized as human rights violations that are unconstitutional violations of the fundamental right to cognitive liberty and autonomy.
Shrinking the Freedom of Thought
http://www.geocities.com/greenliberal/R ... n1997.html
Psychiatry has little trouble in establishing its potential benefit to the exercise of human rights when 'difficult' individuals acknowledge that they have a mental disease and seek treatment for it. A specific article of human rights law that psychiatry can enhance in this way is Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). Article 12 concerns "the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health."[3]
International law – Right to Mental Health
'International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/a_cescr.htm
Article 12.
1. The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
Lack of insight
http://www.psychlaws.org/StateActivity/ ... sheet4.htm
CALIFORNIA
TREATMENT ADVOCACY COALITION
Fact Sheet:
LACK OF INSIGHT—a Barrier to Voluntary Treatment
Service system lacks insight into lack of insight
http://www.naminycmetro.org/lackinsight.htm
Anosognosia ("anasugNOHZeeah") or lack of awareness of one's mental illness is another biologically based symptom...
Sadly, the mental health service system has not demonstrated an understanding of this symptom in most of its programs. Individuals suffering from anosognosia are frequently homeless, incarcerated, noncompliant, violent, refuse treatment,
Psychiatry's Lack of Insight: Four Double-Binds That Place Patients in a Living Nightmare
http://www.successfulschizophrenia.org/ ... binds.html
Anosognosia: Unaware of or denies the existence of their handicap.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anosognosia
ANOTHER SURPRISE FROM AMERICAN PSYCHIATRY
(Sorry, the short link wouldn’t work.)
http://www.austincc.edu/ddydek/dsmcritique.htm
Recently an important new mental disorder, Anosognosia (translation: lack of awareness of illness), has been announced by the American Psychiatric Association (see Professional News, 2001, 36, 17, p. 13.). While this phenomenon was long known by the psychological term denial, it is now said to be a result of a brain defect, according to a recent article in Psychiatric News. (September 7, 2001).
Organic Denial in alcoholism
http://www.open.org/~tahana/ADA/twforgde.htm
Alcoholism and chemical dependency are brain disorders. At some point, psychological denial may give way to organic unawareness or anosognosia. If a patient's denial seems so strong that it is almost palpable and seems organic, it may be
Psychiatric News
September 7, 2001
Volume 36 Number 17, p. 13, Professional News
Anosognosia Keeps Patients From Realizing They're Ill
http://www.psychlaws.org/GeneralResources/article55.htm
Court case with a bunch of citations (search on U.S. Gov. website for term “Anosognosia”
http://www.state.wv.us/wvsca/docs/fall02/30725c.pdf
Promoting Self-Determination for Individuals with Psychiatric Disabilities
One of the major controversies in the field of psychiatry today is a debate about the competency of individuals with serious mental illnesses.
On one side of the debate is the argument that significant numbers of people with mental illnesses lack the insight to make rational decisions (likened to the neurological disorder anosognosia, see Amador & Paul-Odouard, 2000). Some proponents of this argument support legal reforms that require persons deemed incompetent to receive outpatient services and unwanted medications against their will, thereby encroaching on their personal freedom. The argument for these legal reforms is based on assertions that persons with serious mental illnesses are or may become dangerous, and therefore need to be protected from causing harm to self or others.
On the other side of the argument is the assertion that freedom from coercion is a basic societal value in a democracy, as well as a human right, regardless of one’s level of competency. Advocates of this perspective believe that forced treatment will only worsen the fundamental problem of an already overly coercive mental health service delivery system. Proponents of this approach to dealing with problems of competency assert that a well-designed system of care based on principles of recovery and self-direction that is also integrated at the community level will largely negate the need for coercive treatment.
http://216.109.125.130/search/cache?p=% ... 1&.intl=us
Conference Probes Pathology of Self-Awareness
http://66.218.69.11/search/cache?p=Anos ... 1&.intl=us
That rethinking of the biological basis for a lack of self-awareness is affecting the way other illnesses are viewed, too. For instance, although dealing with denial is a critical component in alcohol rehabilitation, the self-awareness deficit is not even among the DSM-IV's diagnostic criteria for substance abuse, said Kenneth Sher, Ph.D., professor of psychology in the department of psychological services at the University of Missouri, Columbia. Telling attendees that there was almost no research on the self-awareness component of alcoholism, he urged further investigation.