Dr. Thomas Szasz

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Well, I have to agree with you that behaviour can be controlled by will power (at least to a certain extent.) It was an important realization for me when I discovered that thinking something doesn't make it real. Acting on the thoughts is not a step that you have to take.
And you're right, everyone's experience is different and it is a personal journey.

I suppose to me it's self-explanatory and having to explain my point in more detail implies to me that you just aren't getting the point I'm making full stop so I'm not on receptive ground so to speak, so further explanation doesn't seem worth it

I have got to the point where if I can talk to friends and have them understand exactly the point I'm making very easily, I've realised the problem of understanding/definition isn't at my end

This is probably why I understand and agree with Thomas Szasz's ideas whereas many don't ie I'm more of a Thomas Szasz type of person than a mainstream type one

and I prefer it like that

I think we all try to cultivate friends and acquaintances who are on the same wavelength as ourselves. Mine too don't have any problem understanding my points or definitions! One of the parts of friendships is having things in common with those people, including outlooks. It takes all sorts to make a world as they say.

But psychiatry looks very much at behaviour and even not that much at feelings and not even that much if there are any reasons for your behaviour. But I'm not depressed because I act in a certain way, no depression is a behavioural issue, it's a feeling.

Depends on the psychiatrist. Mine was very interested in my feelings and experiences.

I think we all try to cultivate friends and acquaintances who are on the same wavelength as ourselves. Mine too don't have any problem understanding my points or definitions! One of the parts of friendships is having things in common with those people, including outlooks. It takes all sorts to make a world as they say. I indicated in my first post on this thread, I do agree some of his points to a degree, but I never agree with people because of majority view, I may choose at times to stand alone in my opinion if necessary, if it's what I believe (or have reason to believe). So you aren't alone in not succumbing to viewpoints that are considered accepted or acceptable by the mainstream. Probably many if not most Aspies fit into that category.

The whole period when Freud and Jung were practising is interesting - that's when the whole concept of psychotherapy was invented

I'm not used to having to refine my point - I tend to tell someone about something like this subject here and not have it challenged as they often aren't sufficiently interested or knowledgeable on the subject to come back with a question even

So I expect to come in as the 'expert' and say 'it's like this'

Lol

There you go, (presuming those 'someone's' are NTs ) you can be sure another Aspie will want to get to the nitty-gritty ever time

There used to be this comedienne with a TV series in the UK, and she used to do this old lady character who was always saying "ooh, let's have a heated debate!"

He's saying that rather than keep creating new diagnoses for every permutation of human behaviour, it's far better to find out what it is specifically that is troubling that individual person and resolve that, instead of labelling them with a psychiatric diagnosis

A lot of these diagnoses are just pathologising the human condition

So you saying my OCD is just due to some underlying "trouble" and I can simply resolve that?

I think that's true for some psychological problems and out of my own experience I know those are hard or even impossible to dx if you are using the current diagnostic system.
But not for all so called "psychological problems" and that's also another experience I made.

So you saying my OCD is just due to some underlying "trouble" and I can simply resolve that?

OCD is a form of anxiety displacement

ie something specific is causing your anxiety but rather than face it you displace this anxiety/fear into the OCD activity,
which gives you a feeling of control

Usually the more checking/hand washing etc that goes on, the more anxious the person is about something

OCD has been linked to abnormalities with the neurotransmitter serotonin, although it could be either a cause or an effect of these abnormalities. Serotonin is thought to have a role in regulating anxiety. To send chemical messages from one neuron to another, serotonin must bind to the receptor sites located on the neighboring nerve cell. It is hypothesized that the serotonin receptors of OCD sufferers may be relatively understimulated. This suggestion is consistent with the observation that many OCD patients benefit from the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a class of antidepressant medications that allow for more serotonin to be readily available to other nerve cells.[32]

A possible genetic mutation may contribute to OCD. A mutation has been found in the human serotonin transporter gene, hSERT, in unrelated families with OCD.[33] Moreover, data from identical twins supports the existence of a "heritable factor for neurotic anxiety".[34] Further, individuals with OCD are more likely to have first-degree family members exhibiting the same disorders than do matched controls. In cases where OCD develops during childhood, there is a much stronger familial link in the disorder than cases in which OCD develops later in adulthood. In general, genetic factors account for 45-65% of OCD symptoms in children diagnosed with the disorder.[35] Environmental factors also play a role in how these anxiety symptoms are expressed; various studies on this topic are in progress and the presence of a genetic link is not yet definitely established.

People with OCD evince increased grey matter volumes in bilateral lenticular nuclei, extending to the caudate nuclei, while decreased grey matter volumes in bilateral dorsal medial frontal/anterior cingulate gyri.[36][37] These findings contrast with those in people with other anxiety disorders, who evince decreased (rather than increased) grey matter volumes in bilateral lenticular / caudate nuclei, while also decreased grey matter volumes in bilateral dorsal medial frontal/anterior cingulate gyri.[37] Orbitofrontal cortex overactivity is attenuated in patients who have successfully responded to SSRI medication, a result believed to be caused by increased stimulation of serotonin receptors 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C.[38] The striatum, linked to planning and the initiation of appropriate actions, has also been implicated; mice genetically engineered with a striatal abnormality exhibit OCD-like behavior, grooming themselves three times as frequently as ordinary mice.[39] Recent evidence supports the possibility of a heritable predisposition for neurological development favoring OCD.[40]

Rapid onset of OCD in children and adolescents may be caused by a syndrome connected to Group A streptococcal infections (PANDAS)[41][42] or caused by immunologic reactions to other pathogens (PANS).[43]

Hmm i'm not sure where you were going with that but ocd It is said to have a physical component. And then there is the dopamine hypothesis for schizophrenia...Again I am not sure if your against mental disorders having a physical component or not. You seem to be... which I find bewildering.



- Wikipedia

Let me explain OCD like this...This is how I explain it to everyone. OCD is like a fire that you keep batting the flames down, but the fire (anxiety) never fully goes out and it can rage up at anytime (triggers) where you have to beat back the flames. The underlying problem of anxiety and rumination is still there, you can get over some things with exposure and response therapy but then underlying ocd just spread to other topics over your life time. It's a never ending fight against the spreading flames. SSRI's are almost like a fireplace to contain the fire so it doesn't spread...it's still there and you would have to feed it with triggers to get it going as it will just be hot coals ready to ignite at any time. It is a physical disorder in function.