Soap box, labelling, and opinionated defiance

by Emma

I am going to stand on my soap box and preach.

I feel the need to vent, and you, my blogging peers, get the honour of hearing my complaints :p

I hate the word ‘diagnosis’. It is simply a definition of ‘label’. Furthermore it excuses mannerism and basic human compassion. It breeds patronising behaviour, and honours rigid thinking.

I work with people who are diagnosed, and people who are presumed diagnosed. These people are simply people WITH an added condition. They are NOT a condition. Nor should they be known by it.

Autistic

Manic depressive

Schizophrenic

Seriously? These individuals have the diagnosis. They are not the illness.

I also hate the way that a diagnosis appears to infringe on basic etiquette and human decency. The label seems to encourage people to disregard rudeness and minimise their individual opinions.

I observe people talking over individuals, talking about them as if they were not in the vicinity, and demoralising them. The ignorance is amazing.

So I will quietly stand down from my soap box now, but I will remain aghast that our knowledgeable and developing society is so prehistoric that prejudice and discrimination continues to breed. Personally I think it says more about the people than the ones diagnosed.

Maybe they need a diagnosis of ignorance and uneducated stance, or a lesson in respect, dignity, and humanity.

Just saying 🙂

The mind of a deep thinker…or complete rubbish…it is all down to interpretation and perception…