Just following orders

One thing that is truly staggering is the unquestioning belief in the intrinsic goodness of the psychiatric method.  When psychotherapists and psychiatrists carry out clearly re-traumatising acts in the name of therapy many do so unquestioningly – blindly – and if the treatments makes a patient upset or justifiably angry (for example putting a victim of child abuse in an anxiety management group sat nest to a convicted sex offended and she complains – or being given ECT against her will etc…) then she is labelled “hardwired nasty” or incompliant.  When a patient complains there appears to be no questioning of the appropriateness but “I’m just doing my job – doing what the psychiatrist has instructed”.

I have frequently tried to reason with well meaning people “just following orders” and it seems impossinle to get through.  Perhaps they do not want to be seen as trouble making / siding with a patients – after all promotion prospects would be reduced…..  But this is supposed to be a caring profession.

What makes this the most worrying is that damaging unquestioned acts are performed by ordinary – basically good people – who just follow orders.