Let’s Stamp out Stigma

High profile, gruesome incidents- like the crash into the French Alps of the Germanwings jet on March 24, 2015 that killed 149 helpless people-naturally invite questions about the mental state of the perpetrator, Andreas Lubitz. In addition, the event may increase fear of people who suffer from mental disorders. My concern is that these incidents offer the opportunity to stigmatize and/or scapegoat those who acknowledge and seek help for psychological conflicts.

Dr. James L. Knoll, the director of Forensic Psychiatry at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University, echoes my concern. “People want an easily graspable handle to help understand this, to blame something or scapegoat,” Dr. Knoll said Erica Goode, The New York Times, April 6, 2015).

In an earlier blog related to gun control (2013), I quoted the forensic psychiatrist Michael Stone who said, “Most mass murders are done by working class men we’ve been jilted, fired, or otherwise humiliated, and who undergo a crisis of rage.”(The New York Times on January 16, 2013).

We aren’t privy to the content of co-pilot Andreas Lubitz’s sessions with his psychiatrist beyond the fact that he revealed suicidal tendencies. Had Lubitz openly spoken about his intentions, it is possible that the catastrophe could have been averted.

I had one instance in more than 30-plus years as a psychiatrist, in which a patient revealed his intention to commit mass murder. The patient, who I refer to as Mr. C., held intense grievances toward his employer. He was grateful that I was willing to testify in court for him advising his retirement from the workforce. 

As a result of my testimony, he received workers’ compensation, and for the next twenty years of psychotherapy, he continued to rail against the company.

Although we don’t know for sure if Mr. C. would have acted on his threats, in these instances I certainly think erring on the side of caution is preferable to taking chances.

CONCLUSION: To scapegoat and stigmatize people with psychological problems may discourage them from seeking treatment and result in a backlash including the occurrence of an increased incidence of violent episodes.

As a nation, we benefit from increasing access to psychological/psychiatric care, as well as propagating the principles of good-enough parenting, which can help:

1.     develop a healthy sense of self-esteem

2.      gain respect for human life

3.     acquire ways to deal with disappointment, frustration, loss and other grievances that obviate the desire to act destructively.

Dear Reader, I welcome your opinions. Jsimon145@gmail.com
You can also follow me on twitter:@js145 or comment anonymously below. 

Evil: A Dimension Beyond Disorder

The co-pilot Andreas Lubitz deliberately crashed the Germanwing airliner into the French Alps on March 24, 2015 killing himself and 149 people.

We frequently assume that a person who performs an irrational, seemingly impulsive act suffers from mental illness. But we need to distinguish between emotional ‘disorder’ and evil, otherwise we’re in danger of stigmatizing individuals who acknowledge their conflicts and seek to resolve them.

It’s important to note that in the vast majority of mentally ill people, emotional problems mainly affect the sufferer. In extremely rare circumstances do they harm others, and then not scores of people. By contrast, Lubitz deliberately calculated mass murder. Voice recordings show that he was at the controls of the plane, having locked the pilot out of the cockpit and refusing to allow him re-entry. Lubitz then set the plane on a crash course, deactivating the speed alarm twice as he flew the jet into the mountains, killing all on board.

An examination of his computer revealed that Lubitz had researched the topics of suicide and the mechanics of locking the cockpit door. In summary, he knew exactly what he was doing.

Although not all of us do need to address our psychic conflicts, the human condition is a conflicted one. For example, although we are not necessarily conscious of it, we constantly balance or juggle our individual needs and wants with those of others to whom we are responsible.

People with psychological disorders don’t conspire to harm multiple others but rather to diminish their psychological distress. Rarely do they harm anyone, except in the rare circumstance when they feel endangered. Even then, they are more likely to harm themselves psychologically or physically.

To stigmatize people who seek support and exploration of psychic conflict places us in danger of loosing our caring bonds, our humanity. Therefore, to avoid stigmatization,  evil needs to be explored and differentiated from psychiatric disorder.

Scott Peck, a psychiatrist and author of the  1978 best seller, The Road Less Traveled, addressed the controversial issue of evil in  his book, People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil.  Citing examples of evil that he encountered in his psychiatric practice, Peck defines evil as a characteristic in those who deny their problems, blame others, and intentionally harm or destroy the lives of innocent people.

The current aviation system relies on pilots to report any medical or psychological problems they may have suffered. Tragically, human history reveals that often, we are the last to know ourselves. We can’t always rely on a person’s honesty to reveal problems when doing so jeopardizes his position of power over the lives of many others.  Psychological tests (like the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) help to diagnose psychopathic or homicidal tendencies.

Conclusion: Failure to make the distinction between psychological “disorders” and “evil” stigmatizes those who seek help for our human conflicts and results in dehumanizing our society.

The roots of the destructive tendencies and potential lie beyond labels such as “disorder” and “evil” It is the quality of our connectedness to others and the ways in which to nurture bonds of caring (with understanding and empathy, especially in early developmental years) that ultimately will diminish crime.

Dear Reader, I welcome your comments. Jsimon145@gmail.com