> Some disorders could simply be the result of living in a modern society And to make the snake eat its own tail, I’d argue that some of the traits that define

> Some disorders could simply be the result of living in a modern society And to make the snake eat its own tail, I’d argue that some of the traits that define some disorders aren’t traits that are inherently bad, but more mismatches with the expectations of “modern society”. ADHD being a prime example: https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/diagnosis.html https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/diagnosis.html Compare that to, say, BPD: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3494330/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3494330/ The ADHD criteria mostly describe ways that the patient either doesn’t fit in to societal expectations (sit quietly for long periods of time, difficulty engaging in tasks that require prolonged mental effort) or the ways they annoy others (fidgeting, high energy that exhausts other people) vs. intrinsically self-harmful behaviour (unstable self-image, suicidal behaviour, feelings of emptiness). The thing that intrigued me the most about it is that these are all contextual. Someone with undiagnosed ADHD two hundred years ago world have probably gotten by just fine. They might be known as a bit “different” in their communities, but could have readily found their way. In 2022, that gets much more challenging, especially since we’ve dramatically systematized things. 200 years ago, maybe you would become an apprentice potter or blacksmith; today, if your ADHD is so bad that you can’t finish high school (not because you’re dumb, but because sitting in a quiet class room followed by going home to study makes your brain bleed), you’re going to have a really hard time finding anything but the crappiest minimum wage job for the rest of your life. Depression, BPD, bipolar, etc? Those all have the same unfortunate outcomes 200 years ago or now.