Difference between a diagnosis and label

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The Difference between a Diagnosis and a Label

A label places limits on a person; a diagnosis places limits on the problem.

When the extent of the problem is unknown, the suffering individual may, for all he or she knows, be facing an adversary too big to be overcome. An undiagnosed problem is like a fog which hides the horizon, and thus makes the journey of indeterminate length.

A label is full of guilt; a diagnosis releases a person from guilt to concentrate on their problem. "Why can't I behave correctly? I must be a terrible person." Self-condemnation saps a person's energy until they cannot even try anymore. A diagnosis can be a tremendous relief.

A label has as its purpose the intent of pigeonholing an individual to avoid intimacy. A diagnosis has as its purpose illumination of a problem so families and friends can begin to work together.

Voltaire said, "To understand all, is to forgive all." A correct diagnosis paves the way for family members to forgive one another, in every direction. Since it is absurd to blame a person for a handicap, the group can begin to address the handicap.

A diagnosis comes from testing, and has medical validity; a label comes from impatience and is assigned through ignorance.

A diagnosis is given in a spirit of explanation; a label in a spirit of dismissal.

A solid diagnosis tells the sufferer, "We care about you, and we'll stay with you and see this thing through until you're doing OK."

A diagnosis gives hope of treatment; a label steals hope of understanding.

A diagnosis is subject to refinement, and constant adjustment and improvement of method.

A person wearing a label is a problem; a person with a diagnosis only has a problem.

A diagnosis and a label might be phrased in exactly the same terminology; the difference lies in the understanding among everyone involved. A diagnosis allows the sufferer and her community to separate the attributes of her problem from her own positive attributes. It allows the sufferer's community to appreciate the sufferer's good intentions. There is a grief process when a diagnosis is assigned - the sufferer faces the loss of her known self. But grief can be managed; self-contempt destroys. The final stage of grief is acceptance; and at this stage, begins healing.

- George A. Wiman