30+ ★ queer [&] neurodiverse
nonwhite ★ clinically disastrous ★ purveyor of too much media ★ govt assigned cagab is information you're not entitled to
account made 15/02/'24
His perspective in this is one that I can't really comprehend both from the lived reality of being plural and from being a cultural anthropologist, because of course there is no field of study which anthropology does not have its hands in. But basically if he was saying this stuff in like, an anthropology journal, there would be a thousand responses beating his ass into the ground within the following issue.
The problem with this perspective of his IMO, in what "Internet DID" could possibly ever be, is that there is functionally no difference between these two things ("Internet DID" and DSM-V outlines of DID). An individual is only ever as "mentally ill"/neurodivergent as they say they are and as a culture functionally finds them to be. That's not to say that there are no felt objective realities (I'm not about to become a subjective purist about this) but when you're working with someone who is trying to pull from the DSM as a strict guide, it doesn't feel like there are any analyses on the power structures that go into play here.
Who wrote the DSM and their motives, as you explain, has everything to do with what's considered symptomatic. That's why, like, schizophrenia ended up having a high diagnostic rate among Black people in the mid/late-20th century. These criteria are invested by institutions and the culture which enables them to have power and define norms.
tl;dr This is sooooo annoying of him and deeply unnecessary lol! (pissed)
Could you say more about how there's functionally no difference between the two or what you mean by that? Or do you just mean that like, what you said with:
An individual is only ever as "mentally ill"/neurodivergent as they say they are and as a culture functionally finds them to be.
It's honestly unnerving to see a guy who can recognise the power structures within his own specialised field of psychiatry but doesn't seem to be cognisant of the entire scope of it throughout all of psychiatry and how it's all connected with capitalism and the state. ESPECIALLY when he's in trans health? I'm so fucking confused by his existence and how he seems to think about things.
Thank you for the comment, it's affirming. 💜
That is basically what I mean. I think that it ultimately has everything to do with how one operates through the world, in terms of whether or not a label is applicable, and where that person is. For example, diagnostic criteria in India when discussing traits of DID is different than in the United States and is thus treated/perceived differently. DID in places that have a strong cultural acceptance on things like spirit possession or witchcraft may not pathologize multiplicity at all. (This last part was really important in the comparative cultural study of schizophrenia)
In any case, there is a differentiation in how these people move through the world. Having "Internet DID" versus "DSM-V typical" (for lack of a better phrasing) is essentially a meaningless distinction.
Anyway, I'm glad my previous comment was affirming! I recently read a lot of Foucault (big deal guy in the historical study of sexuality and pathologization) so I'm kind of raring to go on this kind of topic :P
I understand now, thank you for explaining! I think that's a good point too because he recognises that gender identity is different throughout the world in different cultures but didn't seem willing to think about the idea that DID or plurality could be expressed differently through, like, various smaller/micro cultures within the US. Agh my eyes are doing some weird shit. Comment may not be as long as first desired.
I'm also going to disclaimer just to you that I'm finding out (oopsie again) that lithium is apparently not as bad as I had heard/read before? Maybe? Further reading will need to be done. Allen Frances still sucks though and I'll die on that hill!