Mental Health and Sickness Benefits: Lessons From History
Mental health diagnoses account for 80% of young people's benefit claims, but evidence shows psychiatric treatments produce minimal symptom reduction without proven long-term employment outcomes.
Diagnosis can reduce shame and enable treatment but should not become an immutable identity that limits curiosity, growth, and personal responsibility.
Mental health diagnoses can clarify and validate experiences but risk becoming identities; they reflect sociocultural power and exist along a health spectrum.
I Just Received a Mental Health Diagnosis: Now What?
A mental health diagnosis often triggers mixed emotions; pausing, seeking support, and using the diagnosis as a practical tool can improve coping and treatment access.