Self-hurt is often cloaked as self-help

The self-help movement has been popular for quite a few years and extends from ways of helping individuals lose weight to curing cancer. Bookstores have whole sections devoted to self-help books, as do reference sections of magazines where page after page of advertisements offer home remedies, folk remedies, and, yes, dangerous remedies.

How is the consumer able to tell the difference between something that may help and other material, which is simply recycled information, or, even worse, incorrect health information?

First of all, it is important to note that the self-help movement with its multitude of remedies stems from the tremendous variations in treatment methods found in medical or paramedical fields. Recently, while browsing through the educational opportunities section of a large metropolitan newspaper, I found advanced degrees offered in fields in which I was completely unfamiliar, even after 20 years of practice in a healthcare field. These “training programs” are proliferating like wildflowers on a mountain slope and the public is, for the most part, at a loss to determine what is effective and legitimate or what is charlatan and harmful.

I certainly do not intend to address the issue of legitimacy of specialties at this point, but I would like to point out that all 50 states have licensing boards and departments of health that can help protect the public from those non-legitimately trained individuals trying to practice in the healthcare field. There are exceptions to almost any rule, however, and those of us in the mental-health field, for instance, know a license does not ensure quality care.

A local university, medical school or school or nursing can give information about a particular type of treatment and whether it is generally accepted as helpful or simply is a passing fad.

Most of us are familiar with the medicine man sideshows that traveled around this country in covered wagons and sideshows at the circus. The dollar-a-bottle cure-all frequently produced a temporary euphoric effect due to the high volume of alcohol but usually had no medicinal value. Many of the self-help techniques today also produce a short-term perceived benefit that does not persist over time and frequently leaves the user worse off than when he started.

Several years ago, there was a group “change” technique going around the country. It assured participants of changes in their personalities, leading them to fame and fortune, not to mention other benefits such as an increase in romantic capabilities. Participants were more or less quarantined in a room for a weekend, given a massive dose of indoctrination in things that were supposed to be good for them and charged a great deal of money. Harmful effects were fatigue, confusion and disorientation.

Many self-help efforts are legitimate and have results backed by scientific research. Efforts to curb heart disease, combat smoking and modify reactions to stress are positive examples that should not be discarded.

Finding out the legitimacy of any particular movement or technique can best be accomplished by contacting a professional resource, such as a hospital, medical society or mental-health associations.

Spending time and money on fruitless efforts can be not only wasteful but potentially harmful.

Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 1986