Psychiatry And Human Nature

Kevin A. Sensenig
ksen@me.com
Created: 2009-10-25
Modified: 2010-07-27

Psychiatry does not take into account key aspects of human nature.

The following is an outline that would help solve this. This outline would play a formal role both
in the assessment of a need for commitment and to inform treatment. It would mean that
psychiatric treatment better addresses the realities of human existence, is rigorous, treats the
patient with respect, and allows the patientʼs view and description to be juxtaposed with the
psychiatristʼs view and description. It may allow for better follow up counseling, since this
outline provides detail that may be relevant and would be difficult to reconstruct later. This
outline and the approach described would ask psychiatrists to orient toward getting to root
causes of conflict or trouble. This task is prevented with only the means currently at their
disposal — diagnosing a deficiency based on the DSM and reflexively prescribing medications.
This outline and the approach described do not rule out the use of medications but puts their
use in a new context. It also would require the state psychiatric system to be more fair or to
ensure fairness and to obtain a better appraisal of what really is going on with individuals and in
society.

1. Intent
a. What does the person intend by his or her approach? Specific actions or speech?
b. How well does the person describe his or her intent?
c. How successful does the person think he or she has been at manifesting his or her
intent?
2. State Of Mind
a. How does the person describe his or her mental state at key junctures? Overall?
How does this compare to observation?
b. How do the personʼs behaviors appear to relate to his or her stated state of mind?
To what the psychiatrist infers?
3. Meaning
a. Is the person concerned with a sense of meaning in his or her life?
b. Does the personʼs sense of meaning have a religious aspect to it? Atheist aspect?
c. Provide a brief outline of the personʼs approach to meaning if he or she wishes to
share.
4. Interaction with others
a. Have the patient describe interactions with others, interactions that have to do with
the current circumstance, and some examples that the patient might feel are
relevant.

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 b.Are there elements of kindness or malice in the interactions that are important to the
patient? Are there elements of kindness or malice that are important to the
psychiatrist?
5. Mental trouble
a. Does the patient report that he or she is troubled by mental phenomena that he or
she experiences? If so, is the patient willing to provide detail?
b. Does the psychiatrist think that the patient is troubled by mental phenomena that he
or she experiences? Why?
c. What actions or speech result from any mental trouble as described by the patient?
As observed by third parties? Are these usual, unusual, kind, neutral, creative, clear,
harmful, threatening?

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