Yesterday evening I spent sometime reading a very interesting article by Allen Francis MD and published in Psychology Today.
It appears to be a part of their (Psychology Today’s) series DSM5 In Distress and made some excellent and very interesting points.
Now I need to be candid with you all here. I live in Ireland and the DSM5 is not something which I am very familiar with but because of the fact that many of our members are from the States and thus affected by it, I have been trying to keep up to date with it all on your behalf.
In response to the title statement, “Why Social Workers Should Oppose DSM5?” he gives the statement “Because they bring a missing and much-needed perspective.”
Fair point well made! Is this writer’s response to that! Something which appears to be validated by the opening paragraph which states..
Social workers make up by far the largest single constituency among all the potential users of DSM-5, a plurality of over 200,000 mental health clinicians. Until recently, they have been silent while psychologists, counselors, psychiatrists, the press, and the public have all strongly opposed DSM-5. Things are changing. Recently, two prominent social workers have stepped forward to explain why it is important for their profession to take a stand on DSM-5. 1
I really do think that members will be interested in reading this article (if they haven’t already) which is why I have referenced it here.
BUT what may be of even more interest to readers is a reference made within that article to an open petition that people can sign.
I tried accessing that petition from the link provided in the article but it appears to be broken. I did however notice that there was a possible rogue character at the end of the link and so tried it without that character and it worked. So here is a working link for you to that open petition. Open Letter to the DSM-5
This open letter of petition is a long read BUT given the weight of importance associated with this whole matter it pretty much needs to be and I would therefore encourage members to plough through it and if appropriate to add their nam to those signing it.
Kind Regards.
Kevin.
Mental Health Writers' Guild 
I have read the changes in DSM5 but they appear to be biased, in that certain elements of Madness are left out.
How do we make GREED a DSM5 Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, the obsession to hoard, masking insecurity and fear of poverty, of not having enough, of not sharing which is egotism and selfisness, denying others their rightful living and social equality; and the need to satisfy and not be able to, as well as the need to control and rule, a narcissistic and antisocial trait?
Or do we put it under Addictions? How do we make selfishness a diagnosis, so that the world will move to a true community from a tribalistic and fragmented society, where certain classes rule and the rest live in fear, and the rulers medicate the fearful?