Mental Illness Is a Highly Term Paper

Edwards challenges the extreme on the other end as well, i.e. that total wellness sis the only possible state of being labeled healthy. The scholar sites the World Health Organization's definition of wellness as complete mental and physical wellness as far too broad and encompassing and illegitimates the reality of human existence. (16. Edwards, CC2010, pp. 0090) Edwards ultimately argues that the challenges faced by both those who believe that the "optimum" health of an individual is the only alternative associated with curative behaviors is fundamentally to charged as it means that an individual is not acceptable to society until he or she is completely well. The answer then according to Edwards is to set a more realistic goal of reaching rational autonomy, i.e. The most basic ability of an individual to function in society. (17. Edwards, CC2010, pp. 0091-0092)

Though Edwards makes strong points regarding the extremes of mental health and mental illness, especially regarding the challenge to society to reduce the stigma of mental illness labeling and Szasz confronts the idea that mental illness is a myth that has outlived its usefulness, neither provide a fundamentally convincing argument. Both end with limitations or a reduction in needed treatment. Any rational individual knows mental illness exists and challenges individuals and society in very extreme ways and must ultimately be dealt with for the betterment of society and the lives of individuals.In my opinion Sedgwick is the most convincing in his argument regarding mental illness, as he contends that mental illness is a construct, but one that necessarily grows out of the need to care for and develop real resolutions for real problems associated with it. Sedgwick's clear assessment that what is needed is an equalization of the mental and physical medicine, where individuals receive diagnosis and treatment in as non-biased a fashion as possible and clinicians are given equal deference for study and application of aide. (18. Sedgwick, CC2010, pp. 0245-0250) the debate associated with mental illness will likely never fully be satisfied, yet the unity of medical care proposed by Sedgwick is clearly a monumental goal, one that could be reached in our time and might answer some of the serious concerns raised by all the philosophers discussed in this work. Clearly there are serious problems regarding mental illness, and particularly the way that society perceives it, but this must not spill over into medicine, and in fact the neutrality lessons of medicine, as they are learned and incorporated need to spill over into society. Mental illness is….....