> The authors hypothesize that for some children, framing their struggles as mental health disorders that require treatment can actually worsen their situation

> The authors hypothesize that for some children, framing their struggles as mental health disorders that require treatment can actually worsen their situation by causing them to ruminate on it. Not just to children, just in general, the narratives we use to interpret the things that happen to us can actually cause more harm than the event itself. Simplistic example, but take a culture where scars are a mark of pride, say from surviving battle, compared to one where they are seen as ugly and so shameful. The physical harm in each case is the same, but the mental impact is very different. We even see this in trauma, like with sexual assault. Being pitied and told something that happened to you was the worst thing that can possibly happen to someone, it makes a far worse mental impact than it otherwise might have made without that framing. There are a number of reasons for this, but I think in general, disempowering people by removing their sense of control and the notion that they're resilient becomes something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Sometimes, some people really are less resilient or lose their sense of control in some circumstances, and then they do need that help, but that should probably not be the default approach. We've had a bit too much of an over correction to the old, "suck it up and walk it off" mentality.