Medical gaslighting

From MEpedia, a crowd-sourced encyclopedia of ME and CFS science and history

Medical gaslighting is term used to describe doctors or medical practitioners who blame a patient's illness or symptoms on psychological factors, or deny a patient's illness entirely.[1][2]

Gaslighting by medics is more commonly experienced by certain patient groups, particularly women, and in illnesses which do not yet have a clear diagnostic tests, for example ME/CFS, chronic pain, and endometriosis.

ME/CFS[edit | edit source]

Notable studies and publications[edit | edit source]

  • 2003, THE MENTAL HEALTH MOVEMENT: PERSECUTION OF PATIENTS? A consideration of the role of Professor Simon Wessely and other members of the "Wessely School" in the perception of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) in the UK[3]
  • 2008, Obstructions for quality care experienced by patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)—A case study[4] (Abstract)
  • 2017, Epistemic injustice in healthcare encounters: evidence from chronic fatigue syndrome[8] (Full text)
  • 2019, Legitimizing myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: indications of change over a decade[9] - (Abstract)
  • 2019, Dismissing chronic illness: A qualitative analysis of negative health care experiences[10] - (Abstract)

News and articles[edit | edit source]

  • 2018, Memoirs of Disease and Disbelief Porochista Khakpour’s deliberately unheroic “Sick” raises questions about what we expect of female patients with chronic illness - The New Yorker

Articles and blogs[edit | edit source]

Learn more[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. Mitchell, Natasha (October 22, 2020). "Doctors warn of lasting effects of COVID-19 after struggling to recover from virus". www.abc.net.au. Retrieved October 24, 2020. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  2. Nelson, Hilde Lindemann (2001). "Narrative Repair: Reclaiming Moral Agency". Damaged Identities, Narrative Repair. Cornell University Press. pp. 29–30. ISBN 978-0-8014-8740-8.
  3. Hooper, Malcolm (2003). "THE MENTAL HEALTH MOVEMENT: PERSECUTION OF PATIENTS? A consideration of the role of Professor Simon Wessely and other members of the "Wessely School" in the perception of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) in the UK.
    Background Briefing for the House of Commons Select Health Committee"
    (PDF). Retrieved October 15, 2018.
    Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  4. Gilje, Ann Marit; Söderlund, Atle; Malterud, Kirsti (October 2008). "Obstructions for quality care experienced by patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)—A case study". Patient Education and Counseling. 73 (1): 36–41. doi:10.1016/j.pec.2008.04.001.
  5. Dimmock, Mary; Lazell-Fairman, Matthew (December 2015). "THIRTY YEARS OF DISDAIN: How HHS and a group of psychiatrists Buried Myalgic Encephalomyelitis" (PDF). Retrieved November 5, 2018. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  6. Blease, Charlotte; Geraghty, Keith (September 15, 2016). "Cognitive behavioural therapy in the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome: A narrative review on efficacy and informed consent" (Journal of Health Psychology). doi:10.1177/1359105316667798. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. Geraghty, Keith; Esmail, Aneez (August 1, 2016). "Chronic fatigue syndrome: is the biopsychosocial model responsible for patient dissatisfaction and harm?". British Journal of General Practice. 66 (649): 437-438. doi:10.3399/bjgp16X686473.
  8. Blease, Charlotte; Carel, Havi; Geraghty, Keith (August 1, 2017). "Epistemic injustice in healthcare encounters: evidence from chronic fatigue syndrome". Journal of Medical Ethics. 43 (8): 549–557. doi:10.1136/medethics-2016-103691. ISSN 0306-6800. PMID 27920164.
  9. Friedberg, Fred (January 2, 2020). "Legitimizing myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: indications of change over a decade". Fatigue: Biomedicine, Health & Behavior. 8 (1): 24–31. doi:10.1080/21641846.2020.1718292. ISSN 2164-1846.
  10. McManimen, Stephanie; McClellan, Damani; Stoothoff, Jamie; Gleason, Kristen; Jason, Leonard A. (March 4, 2019). "Dismissing chronic illness: A qualitative analysis of negative health care experiences". Health Care for Women International: 1–18. doi:10.1080/07399332.2018.1521811. ISSN 0739-9332.