Last time we thought about autism and other conditions – real illnesses, but ones which have become massively over-diagnosed. This leads to many people not actually having the illness associated with their diagnostic label. The key point in engaging pastorally with such people is to focus on their personal responsibility, because all of us, whether healthy or sick, are responsible for our behaviour.
Now we will consider the other broad domain of what I am calling ‘dubious diagnoses’: disease creation. But doing so means we find ourselves entering a highly complex area that involves questions such as, What constitutes a disease? What do we mean by illness? What is normal health? These in turn relate to wider issues about whether society considers certain conditions ‘real illnesses’ that merit sympathy and treatment, or not.
Simon Wessely, Professor of Psychiatry, commented, ‘The passions that these arguments create are because what is at stake is the issue of legitimacy – what constitutes an acceptable disease, and what is legitimate suffering worthy of support and sympathy?’
