Oct 3, 2023·edited Oct 3, 2023Liked by Dr. Samantha Boardman
This is an interesting take and I understand the cause for concern about overpathologizing and over-diagnosis of patients. At the same time, as a now medical student who, for years, thought that the anxiety I experienced with dating, test-taking, the voice shaking when I was called on in class, and other areas of my life was completely normal. Some of it was normal nerves, but some of it was disproportionate to the situation and I definitely compensated in ways where it may have not been obvious that I was dealing with anxiety that needed treatment. But it was only until I began going to therapy for unrelated reasons, having a practitioner recognize that I had GAD, and then starting an SSRI that my brain finally quieted down and I realized that the mental Olympics my brain had been going through was NOT neurotypical. I wish I had been given the space to explore a GAD diagnosis and see if it fit my experience earlier in my life.
I want to ask: how do we navigate the fine line between overdiagnosis and underdiagnosis especially in high functioning individuals who may be good at masking their symptoms?
Love this. Thank you. I have a lot of 'normal' anxiety and it appears with every new day there are new challenges that challenge me and my ability to 'handle' what has come my way. It sometimes feels like out of a movie life is so unpredictable. I guess that's my dilemma is looking for some predictability in life and the fact is we can't 'predict' people and their actions. Sometimes I feel like I need more of a 'shield' then a 'feather'.
Clinically how would you categorise anxiety that is appropriate, say in the context of Ukraine like you mention, but interfering in someone’s ability to function, you could imaging someone struggling to sleep or engage socially in this context. That seems like neither a disease or a normal part of life.
This is an interesting take and I understand the cause for concern about overpathologizing and over-diagnosis of patients. At the same time, as a now medical student who, for years, thought that the anxiety I experienced with dating, test-taking, the voice shaking when I was called on in class, and other areas of my life was completely normal. Some of it was normal nerves, but some of it was disproportionate to the situation and I definitely compensated in ways where it may have not been obvious that I was dealing with anxiety that needed treatment. But it was only until I began going to therapy for unrelated reasons, having a practitioner recognize that I had GAD, and then starting an SSRI that my brain finally quieted down and I realized that the mental Olympics my brain had been going through was NOT neurotypical. I wish I had been given the space to explore a GAD diagnosis and see if it fit my experience earlier in my life.
I want to ask: how do we navigate the fine line between overdiagnosis and underdiagnosis especially in high functioning individuals who may be good at masking their symptoms?
Thanks for this, starting a new project today and trying to manage my anxious energy in a productive fashion!
Love this. Thank you. I have a lot of 'normal' anxiety and it appears with every new day there are new challenges that challenge me and my ability to 'handle' what has come my way. It sometimes feels like out of a movie life is so unpredictable. I guess that's my dilemma is looking for some predictability in life and the fact is we can't 'predict' people and their actions. Sometimes I feel like I need more of a 'shield' then a 'feather'.
Being a retired mental health therapist, I have seen many instances where clients were misdiagnosed, only to over-identify with that diagnosis.
Clinically how would you categorise anxiety that is appropriate, say in the context of Ukraine like you mention, but interfering in someone’s ability to function, you could imaging someone struggling to sleep or engage socially in this context. That seems like neither a disease or a normal part of life.