Dysthymia: Hope for chronic depression—and suicidality (2023.03.08; via Zoom)

2. VICTIMHOOD CULTURE.  Victimhood culture is on the rise, and its impacts are becoming very widespread. Although victimhood culture is a short topic in the Dysthymia module, it's undoutedly the spiciest one.  

Historically, we had an honor culture (e.g., “Offend my house, and we shall duel with pistols at noon”). When the smoke cleared, honor culture was largely replaced by the dignity culture in which most of us were raised (e.g., “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me”). Today victimhood culture is ascending. Victimhood culture is characterized by an external locus of control, a sensitivity to slight, and a heavy reliance on compensation mediated by third parties.

Where did victimhood culture originate, and why is it growing so fast? What is its impact on the prognosis of our dysthymic patients? Where might victimhood culture lead, and what solutions are at hand?

3. SUICIDALITY. Most physicians have a sense of despair regarding suicidality. There is a widespread lack of confidence in screening, a deep uncertainty about how to manage the risk, and often a feeling of shame (accompanied by nasty self-criticism) when Something Bad happens.

In this highly anxiolytic conclusion to the Dysthymia module, we begin with a review of the science and CPGs regarding suicide risk factors, suicide screening, and suicide-prevention interventions.

We then focus on what really matters: precisely what to say (and how to say it) in the here & now with the suicidal patient to reduce their motivation to act. Several dozen strategies are reviewed and practiced within the workshop.

Please do join us! After completing the Dysthymia module, many physicians report they wish they’d taken it at the start of their careers, asserting that they could have spared themselves a significant amount of stress & heartache.

See also Depression: CBT's Pathway Out