The co-opting of diagnosis
T-Notes
by Robbi Cohn | October 10, 2011
http://goqnotes.com/12805/the-co-opting-of-diagnosis/Much has been written about the upcoming revisions to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the volume often called the "psychiatrist's bible." This is the main tool wielded by alleged gatekeepers who so often smugly deign to diagnose those of us who have self-defined gender and/or sexuality. Not all clinicians fit into this categorization, but enough do that the situation remains problematic.
The newest version, DSM V, contains little change. There has been a consistent emphasis on the pathology of what they believe is non-normative gender identity, along with convenient, but erroneous diagnoses such as "gender identity disorder" and "gender identity dysphoria." Some "diagnosticians" have even invented pathologies out of thin air, such as " ->-bleeped-<-," or the purported love of oneself as a woman.