| 1. | You catch a TV interview with a celebrity who describes his difficult childhood, living with a mother who suffered from major depression. “Sometimes my mother stayed in her bed for days, not even getting up to eat,” he says. “At the time, the family hushed it up. My parents were immigrants, and they came from a culture where it was considered shameful to have mental problems. You are supposed to have enough strength of will to overcome your problems, without help from anyone else. So my mother never got treatment.” How might the idea of a medical model of psychiatric disorders have helped the woman and her family in the decision whether to seek treatment? |
| 2. | A friend of yours has a family member who is experiencing severe mental problems, including delusions and loss of motivation. “We went to one psychiatrist,” she says, “and got a diagnosis of schizophrenia. We went for a second opinion, and the other doctor said it was probably bipolar disorder. They’re both good doctors, and they’re both using the same DSM—how can they come up with different diagnoses?” |
| 3. | After reading the chapter, one of your classmates turns to you with a sigh of relief. “I finally figured it out. I have a deadbeat brother, who always gets himself into trouble and then blames other people for his problems. Even when he gets a ticket for speeding, he never thinks it’s his fault— |
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