Are we ‘medicalising the ups and downs of life’?
- Julia Harvey
- Feb 1
- 3 min read
(Tony Blair on Jimmy’s Jobs for the Future Podcast)
I’m a psychodynamic therapist and my professional focus is to support adults and young people navigate the pitfalls of life. My private practice is busy and everyone that has walked through my door has been in emotional distress. There are two important notes to consider: firstly, there is a significant difference between a mental illness diagnosed by a psychiatrist requiring specialist treatment and/or medication and a decline in good mental health or a rupture in life. Secondly, counsellors do not diagnose, nor support self-diagnosis in their clients without due care.
It seems there is a gap between seeking a diagnosis – the ‘medicalising’ aspect of Blair’s comment, and poor mental health. Do we lack resilience? Are people looking for ‘labels’ or a diagnosis of a mental health condition or are they simply trying to give their emotional distress some meaning? Do we need to look at social and economic factors and take a holistic approach to mental health? I think it is a search for understanding that brings people to therapy rather than a hunt for a diagnosis and this is where counsellors have an important role to play.
Professor Dame Clare Gerada, former president of the Royal College of General Practitioners said that, in her opinion, the search for diagnoses over-rides the consideration of:
‘WHY their life might be challenging, or where it could have gone wrong.'
And perhaps, that is what I see – I see people trying to find a path to feel better. Whether you know the distinction between a diagnosable mental illness and a dip in your mental health condition or not, I see clients that DO understand that their mental health may be attributable to a current situation – e.g. workplace stress, relationship breakdown, bereavement etc., or an ongoing destructive repeating behaviour pattern often set in childhood – e.g adverse childhood experiences, parental divorce and poverty – to name only a few reasons. They are looking to understand themselves better, to find relief from what debilitates their everyday lives, and most importantly - to enable change.
Is there a surge in people needing help with mental health conditions and is the NHS coping? Dr Sarah Hughes speaking in October 2024 puts the figure at 2 million people awaiting triage for mental health conditions.
To return to Tony Blair – he was also referring to the huge costs to the NHS to support mental health. The National Audit Office quoted that it cost the NHS £12billion in 2021/22. Referrals and need seem to be rising exponentially. This is starkly evident in the numbers of children and teenagers seeking support. Recent figures from NHS England in 2024, found there were 204,526 new referrals for patients aged 17 or under where the primary cause was anxiety in 2023/24. By comparison, in 2019-20 — the year before Covid struck — this stood at 98,953. In 2016-17 it was 3,879. That rise is breath-taking and lockdown and the ferociously intense pressure from social media, all play a significant part. (see links below).
Counsellors offer an important role supporting people who look to understand themselves. I am registered with the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists and abide by their ethical standards. I support anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, work-related stress, bereavement and grief and adverse childhood experiences that create emotional instability in adults. I also work with young people from Year 12 onwards with lack of motivation, depression, low mood, self-injurious behaviours and school/university-based exam stress and avoidance.
Please do contact me on sarahmcmurraycounselling@gmail.com or via my website www.sarahmcmurraycounselling.com.
The following three reports from The Kings Fund, The National Audit Office and a summary report from Mind Charity make stark reading. Links below.
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