

Why Medicine Has Gone Too Far, The Problem With Getting A Diagnosis & Why Early Detection Is Not Always A Good Thing with Dr Suzanne O'Sullivan #553
212 snips May 6, 2025
Dr. Suzanne O'Sullivan, a consultant specializing in complex epilepsy and author of 'The Age of Diagnosis', discusses the troubling trends in modern medicine. She explains how diagnostic labels can alter a person's self-view and urges a reevaluation of our understanding of health struggles as potentially normal experiences rather than diseases. The conversation also touches on the surge of autism diagnoses, the pitfalls of early detection, and the complexities of genetic testing, advocating for a more personalized and holistic approach to healthcare.
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Overdiagnosis Challenge in Medicine
- Medicine is shifting from underdiagnosis to potential overdiagnosis, medicalizing normal struggles.
- Detecting more patients doesn't always mean better health outcomes or appropriate treatment.
Medicalizing Mental Health Struggles
- One in five people with mental health diagnoses raises the question: are we more unhappy or just medicalizing normal unhappiness?
- Medicalizing struggles might mask social or environmental solutions that are more effective.
Genetic Diagnosis Turned Healthy Patient
- A 15-year-old girl was diagnosed with a rare, progressive genetic condition that she was unaware of.
- The diagnosis changed her from feeling healthy to a patient anticipating decline, raising overdiagnosis concerns.