I always find that patients with a diagnosis of bipolar illness are flamboyant, vibrant, exciting and open to debate. Some of the most famous stars in film and television have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.There is such a desperation in UK psychiatrists to pigeon hole people into a neat and tidy diagnostic criterion as opposed to simply treating them as individuals. Tempest's comparison to the UK's economy does nothing to combat the stigma facing mentally ill people either. In my view, her supposedly clever comparison was done in bad taste. Having dealt with many patients with bipolar disorder, many of whom struggle with stigma, struggle with day to day life and who try and find a way forward - only for a consultant psychiatrist like Tempest to compare them to the spiralling and failing UK economy. Is this good for any patient's self esteem?
My personal view of mentally ill people is this - I could never cope with a mental illness, I think that those who do cope with a mental illness are phenomenally brave and do a sterling job. One of my greatest fears in the world is developing a mental health problem which is why I probably do everything to protect myself from it. I seem to be lucky in that I have never suffered from it. I though fall in the higher risk criteria - having been through whistleblowing, litigation and bereavement. I probably have the skewed perspective on life and I think that all problems are self limiting, people are largely irrelevant if they have not evolved and things always get better. My view on psychiatrists [ having hung around them at work] is that they should be more encouraging to the public. They should not adopt the holier than thou approach or the paternalistic approach to patient care. A more personable approach achieves so much in terms of medication compliance and management of certain illnesses. I don't think Michelle Tempest's example to patient kind is that good really. Quite frankly - no one is perfect - not even Dr Tempest [ although she would like to think she is].
Little Miss Perfect does look down on the rest of the menial world. Perhaps it is because we don't use the same hair straighteners has her. I don't think people like to be described as a ICD10 Code. Psychiatrists like Michelle probably see her patients has hamsters running around a wheel - which she feels compelled to stop.
I thought I would write this because I find Tempest's blog to be terminally boring. I resorted to reading Dr Tempest today because I was told that it had same effect as Zopiclone. Indeed, observational studies of all those who read Tempests blog shows the sudden onset of narcolepsy. I am positive comparative studies with Zopiclone will show the Tempest blog to be more effective in causing sleep.
My theory on Michelle is that her parents made her play with too many barbie dolls and insisted that she wasn't allowed to play with Meccano sets or Lego. She probably likes everything neat and tidy, was probably the little girl who had the neatest handwriting, had all the answers and considers herself the cleverest one of them all. She was probably the model pupil, the model student and the model doctor. Alas, Michelle though doesn't make the world go round, isn't inspiring and I find her card board cut out imagery of the world around us alarming.
I have no idea why this is but for years I have wondered why anyone reads her blog. She must have something going for her apart from being a blonde magnet for the blogging boys. I postulated that it must be her hair straighteners or her talent for putting people to sleep. I also want to know where Ms Conservative Blogger was when her fellow conservative colleague's psychiatrist brother was suspended from the GMC. Tempest has remained silent on these issues because it might unsettle her straightened hair.
The very entertaining and charming Mental Health Nurse had something entertaining to say about Michelle Tempest quite sometime ago. My sentiments can only be best described by Mental Health Nurse so here he is whinging because Tempest voted herself into the Top 10 blogs sometime ago.
"who else has Dr Michelle Tempest put on her list of the Top Ten medical blogs?2. The Psychiatrist Blog
Dr Michelle Tempest, a Tory activist, talks about the politics of medicineWHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT??????????????????????
Dr Tempest put HERSELF as the SECOND BEST MEDICAL BLOG ON THE ENTIRE FRICKIN’ INTERNET?????
That’s just shameless self-promotion even for a Tory!
This is even more galling because, quite frankly, Dr Tempest’s blog is truly, utterly execrable. Smug, vapid, revealing nothing about what it’s like to be a psychiatrist.Quite apart from the fact that it’s a blog that hasn’t been updated since July 27th, its attempts at mental health insights consist of some utterly godawful pop-psychology. Cuddle power, anyone? Failing that, try finding out about your perfect day.
As well as the bad pop-psychology, there’s the shameless whoring for the Tory Party. Go here to see her joining a series of talking heads in a video for the “Are You Thinking What I’m Thinking” campaign that so inspired me to vote against the Tories in 2005. A series of vacuous figures, Dr Tempest included, repeat a series of banal “I’m choosing the Conservative Party because I prefer Good Things to Bad Things” platitudes, delivered with maximum smugness and minimum actual policy.
All I can say is, if the pop-psychology is the sort of thing she uses in her clinical practice, then we should all start pitying the patients on Dr Tempest’s crisis team. That is, of course, until she gets parachuted in as an MP to some safe Tory seat. Then we can all start pitying her constituents instead.
If anyone wants to read a psychiatrist’s blog that’s actually worth the time of day, then I highly recommend the Lake Cocytus blog, which is far more insightful, thoughtful and humane than anything on Dr Tempest’s blog. Oh yes, and the author of Lake Cocytus isn’t a shill for a political party that spent the 80s and early 90s gutting and shredding the NHS.
Blimey, I think I really am starting to take after Dr Rant. I must go and have a lie down, and think of bunnies"
2 comments:
Thanks Rita, Nice to know someone is on the lookout for us poor misbegotten creatures ;-)
And you are nothing like the UK economy. Some people would say, I am though :).
Noone is ever "poor" or "misgotten" - probably went wrong in my narrative - only describing those who find it difficult when I should have acknowledge that the majority live perfectly good lives and are great people.
Errrm - thats why you got the Mind Award and Tempest didn't - cause you make people believe it can be done - and having a diagnosis is just like wearing shoes, clothes or wearing a hat. Just part of the person - not something to be dragged out and pointed at.
Me
PS I really shouldnt act like a shrink but habits die hard and besides I am no longer one. Yep, and I am probably as faulty as the next person and the first to admit it.
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