Boycott the DSM-5!
We, the undersigned, will not purchase nor will we use the new DSM-5 when it is published by the American Psychiatric Association. Further, those of us associated with professionals who use the DSM – as persons receiving services from them or as family members, friends or advocates – will urge service providers not to use the DSM-5:
DSM-5 is unsafe and scientifically unsound.
Its categories or diagnoses, including newly introduced diagnoses, are not supported by scientific evidence. These diagnoses will pathologize rather than bring relief to persons in distress.
DSM-5 will drastically expand psychiatric diagnosis, mislabel millions of people as mentally ill, and cause unnecessary treatment with medication.
All references to psychosocial, environmental and spiritual factors have been removed from DSM-5. This sends a clear message to clinicians that treatment for persons judged to have psychiatric disorders can be reduced to the prescription of psychoactive medications, despite growing concerns of their dangers and skepticism about their effectiveness.
The APA has been unresponsive to widespread opposition.
The APA has been unresponsive to criticism received from professional, advocacy and lay public stakeholders during the three public reviews of its proposals. The concerns expressed by over 14,000 signatories to the “Open Letter to the DSM-5” and the request for independent, scientific review of proposed changes to the DSM have been ignored.
The APA has undermined it own credibility, choosing to protect its intellectual property and publishing profits, not the public trust.
Accordingly, we agree to boycott the DSM-5 and to urge service providers and others not to use it. If we find ourselves obliged to employ diagnostic codes, we agree to disregard the new DSM and utilize the codes listed in the ICD-9 and the next edition of ICD, when the latter is implemented in October, 2014.
SPONSORED BY THE COMMITTEE TO BOYCOTT THE DSM-5
(Disclaimer- DSM and DSM-5 are trademarks of the American Psychiatric Association. The American Psychiatric Association is not affiliated with nor endorses this website.
Reference to ICD9 not meant as endorsement of diagnostic codes but as an aid to those who must use them. )
Updates
March 14, 2013
A thousand names on this list is honestly blowing my mind because I thought I was just shouting into the void when I started typing this out late at night. I keep thinking about how many people actually see the danger in these new categories and it makes me feel less like I am losing my mind over the APA choices (which are just so reckless). Hopefully this gets someone to actually listen finally.
Reached 1,000 supporters
March 14, 2013
March 11, 2013
The numbers are creeping up but I really need to see more momentum before we hit that thousand mark because frankly I am tired of waiting for the APA to actually listen to us. Can you take a second right now to send this to a few contacts or post it somewhere new since we honestly need this to pick up speed before the next phase.
February 7, 2013
A hundred people signed this and honestly my brain is just spinning because I honestly thought it would just be me and maybe five friends complaining into the void. It feels strange to see that many names pop up all at once on the screen while I am sitting here drinking coffee and realizing that other people are actually worried about this pathologizing mess too.
Reached 100 supporters
February 6, 2013
20 Comments
I have been harmed so much by the DSM 5. What I can't seem to understand is how a group of people can do this to other humans. Do our lives not matter to you? Do you enjoy seeing us suffer and die? Shame on you APA and DSM 5 committees. You have done so much evil and feel no remorse for your actions, but maybe that's because you never have to face the consequences of them, only the distant people you harm do.
I was a victim of the fraudulent practices perpetrated by this book and the people who use it until now. Thank you for being here. I really thought I was going to die alone knowing something was wrong and it was't with me. Now I know I'm not crazy in so many ways. Thank you for opening my eyes and my mind. I am most grateful. Peace be with you all.
This attempt at the globalization of psychotherapy and overhauling for the purpose of serving the pharmaceutical industry is unthinkable. Thank you to the organizers of this petition.
I am portuguese critical psychiatrist and existential psychotherapist (Existential Psychotherapy Portuguese Society) and psychopathology professor. I refuse completely DSM 5 diagnostic criteria and categories.
I am a psychiatrist who has been a faculty member at the Sapienza University of Roma (Italy). In Italy the services use the ICD, so there is no need to adopt DSM; we teach the ICD10 classification, albeit no psychiatric classification can be so good as an ethoanalysis (analysis of trans-diagnostic cognitive-behavioral dysfunctions).
Thank you for this very necessary humanizing work. So deeply and desperately needed.
For further information about dsm, have a look at https://www.zurinstitute.com/dsm-critique/
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Boycott the DSM-5!
We, the undersigned, will not purchase nor will we use the new DSM-5 when it is published by the American Psychiatric Association. Further, those of us associated with professionals who use the DSM – as persons receiving services from them or as family members, friends or advocates – will urge service providers not to use the DSM-5:
DSM-5 is unsafe and scientifically unsound.
Its categories or diagnoses, including newly introduced diagnoses, are not supported by scientific evidence. These diagnoses will pathologize rather than bring relief to persons in distress.
DSM-5 will drastically expand psychiatric diagnosis, mislabel millions of people as mentally ill, and cause unnecessary treatment with medication.
All references to psychosocial, environmental and spiritual factors have been removed from DSM-5. This sends a clear message to clinicians that treatment for persons judged to have psychiatric disorders can be reduced to the prescription of psychoactive medications, despite growing concerns of their dangers and skepticism about their effectiveness.
The APA has been unresponsive to widespread opposition.
The APA has been unresponsive to criticism received from professional, advocacy and lay public stakeholders during the three public reviews of its proposals. The concerns expressed by over 14,000 signatories to the “Open Letter to the DSM-5” and the request for independent, scientific review of proposed changes to the DSM have been ignored.
The APA has undermined it own credibility, choosing to protect its intellectual property and publishing profits, not the public trust.
Accordingly, we agree to boycott the DSM-5 and to urge service providers and others not to use it. If we find ourselves obliged to employ diagnostic codes, we agree to disregard the new DSM and utilize the codes listed in the ICD-9 and the next edition of ICD, when the latter is implemented in October, 2014.
SPONSORED BY THE COMMITTEE TO BOYCOTT THE DSM-5
(Disclaimer- DSM and DSM-5 are trademarks of the American Psychiatric Association. The American Psychiatric Association is not affiliated with nor endorses this website.
Reference to ICD9 not meant as endorsement of diagnostic codes but as an aid to those who must use them. )
Updates
March 14, 2013
A thousand names on this list is honestly blowing my mind because I thought I was just shouting into the void when I started typing this out late at night. I keep thinking about how many people actually see the danger in these new categories and it makes me feel less like I am losing my mind over the APA choices (which are just so reckless). Hopefully this gets someone to actually listen finally.
Reached 1,000 supporters
March 14, 2013
March 11, 2013
The numbers are creeping up but I really need to see more momentum before we hit that thousand mark because frankly I am tired of waiting for the APA to actually listen to us. Can you take a second right now to send this to a few contacts or post it somewhere new since we honestly need this to pick up speed before the next phase.
February 7, 2013
A hundred people signed this and honestly my brain is just spinning because I honestly thought it would just be me and maybe five friends complaining into the void. It feels strange to see that many names pop up all at once on the screen while I am sitting here drinking coffee and realizing that other people are actually worried about this pathologizing mess too.
Reached 100 supporters
February 6, 2013
20 Comments
Thank you for taking the initiative to create this petition. In my years of working with traumatized clients I found that there is no such thing as pathological grief, that everyone grieves differently.
I have been harmed so much by the DSM 5. What I can't seem to understand is how a group of people can do this to other humans. Do our lives not matter to you? Do you enjoy seeing us suffer and die? Shame on you APA and DSM 5 committees. You have done so much evil and feel no remorse for your actions, but maybe that's because you never have to face the consequences of them, only the distant people you harm do.
I was a victim of the fraudulent practices perpetrated by this book and the people who use it until now. Thank you for being here. I really thought I was going to die alone knowing something was wrong and it was't with me. Now I know I'm not crazy in so many ways. Thank you for opening my eyes and my mind. I am most grateful. Peace be with you all.
This attempt at the globalization of psychotherapy and overhauling for the purpose of serving the pharmaceutical industry is unthinkable. Thank you to the organizers of this petition.
I am portuguese critical psychiatrist and existential psychotherapist (Existential Psychotherapy Portuguese Society) and psychopathology professor. I refuse completely DSM 5 diagnostic criteria and categories.
I am a psychiatrist who has been a faculty member at the Sapienza University of Roma (Italy). In Italy the services use the ICD, so there is no need to adopt DSM; we teach the ICD10 classification, albeit no psychiatric classification can be so good as an ethoanalysis (analysis of trans-diagnostic cognitive-behavioral dysfunctions).
Thank you for this very necessary humanizing work. So deeply and desperately needed.
For further information about dsm, have a look at https://www.zurinstitute.com/dsm-critique/
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Thank you for taking the initiative to create this petition. In my years of working with traumatized clients I found that there is no such thing as pathological grief, that everyone grieves differently.