--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: maybe the American Psychiatric…" description: "\"“maybe the American Psychiatric Association had a crazy desire to label all life a mental disorder. I”\" — Jon Ronson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png" --- # maybe the American Psychiatric Association had a crazy… ![“maybe the American Psychiatric Association had a crazy desire to label all life a mental disorder. I” quote by Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png) > ““maybe the American Psychiatric Association had a crazy desire to label all life a mental disorder. I”” [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author critiques the psychiatric field for potentially over‑pathologizing normal behavior, suggesting a bias toward labeling. **In simple terms:** Psychiatry may over‑label normal life. Key Takeaway Question diagnostic boundaries. Themes mental health diagnosis overreach bias Mood critical analytical Type sociological ethical When to use this quote - clinical practice - self‑assessment - public policy - media discourse Key Concepts medicalization social control Questions to Reflect On - What defines a mental disorder? - How does labeling affect self‑identity? A Different Perspective Not all mental health concerns are pathological; caution needed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American Psychiatric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-psychiatric-2167159/) [Association Crazy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/association-crazy-2167158/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Mental disorder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-disorder/) [Psychiatric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychiatric/) [Psychiatric Association](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychiatric-association-1723157/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [“I was much crazier than I had imagined. Or maybe it was a bad idea to read the DSM-IV when you're not a trained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/i-was-much-crazier-than-i-had-imagined-or-maybe-it-was-a-bad-idea-to/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“The DSM-IV-TR is a 943-page textbook published by the American Psychiatric Association that sells for $99...There are currently 374 mental disorders. I bought the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-dsm-iv-tr-is-a-943-page-textbook-published-by-the-american/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“There is another real cost to linking gun violence with mental illness. Dr. Renee Binder, President of the American Psychiatric Association and herself a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-r-lott-jr/there-is-another-real-cost-to-linking-gun-violence-with-mental/) [John R. Lott Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-r-lott-jr/) > [And the reason I really appreciated this is because after the picture came out, I was invited by the American Psychiatric Association to give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-steiger/and-the-reason-i-really-appreciated-this-is-because-after-the-picture/) [Rod Steiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-steiger/) > [“We got through it. Haven made excuses for me to friends, and made an appointment with a terrific doctor, who put me on Effexor,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-hamilton/we-got-through-it-haven-made-excuses-for-me-to-friends-and-made-an/) [Tyler Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-hamilton/) > [“We must understand that those who experience abuse as children, and particularly those who experience incest, almost invariably suffer from a profound sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-west/we-must-understand-that-those-who-experience-abuse-as-children-and/) [Cameron West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-west/) > [“The distinction between diseases of "brain" and "mind," between "neurological" problems and "psychological" or "psychiatric" ones, is an unfortunate cultural inheritance that permeates society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ant-nio-r-dam-sio/the-distinction-between-diseases-of-brain-and-mind-between/) [António R. Damásio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ant-nio-r-dam-sio/) > [“Myers MF, Gabbard GO. The physician as patient: a clinical handbook for mental health professionals. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing Inc.; 2008b. p. 196.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-j-brower/myers-mf-gabbard-go-the-physician-as-patient-a-clinical-handbook-for/) [Kirk J. Brower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-j-brower/) > [“The killer's name was Michael Stone and he was a known psychopath. He had previous convictions. But the law stated that only patients whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-killer-s-name-was-michael-stone-and-he-was-a-known-psychopath-he/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“I wonder if I’ve got any of the 374 mental disorders,” I thought. I opened the manual again. And I instantly diagnosed myself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/i-wonder-if-i-ve-got-any-of-the-374-mental-disorders-i-thought-i/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“the American physician Samuel Cartwright identifying in 1851 a mental disorder, drapetomania, evident only in slaves. The sole symptom was “the desire to run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-american-physician-samuel-cartwright-identifying-in-1851-a-mental/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [When I asked Robert Spitzer about the possibility that he'd inadvertently created a world in which ordinary behaviours were being labelled mental disorders, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/when-i-asked-robert-spitzer-about-the-possibility-that-he-d/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“complicated human behavior was increasingly getting labeled a mental disorder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/complicated-human-behavior-was-increasingly-getting-labeled-a-mental/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“I hadn’t realized what a collage of mental disorders my whole life has been,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/i-hadn-t-realized-what-a-collage-of-mental-disorders-my-whole-life/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“Social anxiety disorder”—which essentially means pathological shyness—is now thought to afflict nearly one in five of us. The most recent version of the Diagnostic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/social-anxiety-disorder-which-essentially-means-pathological-shyness/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) ## More by Jon Ronson > [Sometimes labeling is only useful, like with OCD. Once you're labeled you can be treated. On other occasions labeling leads to tyranny, like with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/sometimes-labeling-is-only-useful-like-with-ocd-once-you-re-labeled/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“I wonder if I’ve got any of the 374 mental disorders,” I thought. I opened the manual again. And I instantly diagnosed myself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/i-wonder-if-i-ve-got-any-of-the-374-mental-disorders-i-thought-i/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Trying to prove you’re not a psychopath is even harder than trying to prove you’re not mentally ill,’ said Tony.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/trying-to-prove-you-re-not-a-psychopath-is-even-harder-than-trying-to/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“It may very well be that the frotteurist is a helpless victim in the clutches of his obsession, but it’s equally possible that he’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-may-very-well-be-that-the-frotteurist-is-a-helpless-victim-in-the/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“We are defining the boundaries of normality by tearing apart the people outside of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/we-are-defining-the-boundaries-of-normality-by-tearing-apart-the/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [My worryingly paradoxical thought process could be summarized thus: Thank God I don't believe in the secret rulers of the world. Imagine what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/my-worryingly-paradoxical-thought-process-could-be-summarized-thus/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Friends are the fruitcake of life - some nutty, some soaked in alcohol, some sweet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/friends-are-the-fruitcake-of-life-some-nutty-some-soaked-in-alcohol/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“The consensus from the beginning was that only 1 percent of humans had it, but the chaos they caused was so far-reaching it could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-consensus-from-the-beginning-was-that-only-1-percent-of-humans/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“That's an incredibly depressing thought," I said "that if you're in a room and at one end lies madness and at the other end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/that-s-an-incredibly-depressing-thought-i-said-that-if-you-re-in-a/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [The world outside Twitter was great. I read books. I reconnected with people I knew from real life and met them for drinks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-world-outside-twitter-was-great-i-read-books-i-reconnected-with/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“What a brilliant cover story. In a success-obsessed society like this one, what's the best rock to hide something under? It's the rock called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/what-a-brilliant-cover-story-in-a-success-obsessed-society-like-this/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Guy Savelli's role in the War on Terror began when half-a-dozen strangers, within days of one another, contacted him via e-mail and telephone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/guy-savelli-s-role-in-the-war-on-terror-began-when-half-a-dozen/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [My paranoia never ends, but I haven't been paranoid about being spied on my shadowy forces for some time now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/my-paranoia-never-ends-but-i-haven-t-been-paranoid-about-being-spied/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“It is an awful lot harder, Tony told me, to convince people you’re sane than it is to convince them you’re crazy. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-is-an-awful-lot-harder-tony-told-me-to-convince-people-you-re-sane/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [It is slightly chilling to realize there are rational, functional people up there employed to spot, nurture, and exploit those down here among us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-is-slightly-chilling-to-realize-there-are-rational-functional/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) [Explore all 209 Jon Ronson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) [Deanna L. Lawlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deanna-l-lawlis/) > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“maybe the American Psychiatric Association had a crazy desire to label all life a mental disorder. I”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jon Ronson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/maybe-the-american-psychiatric-association-had-a-crazy-desire-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/maybe-the-american-psychiatric-association-had-a-crazy-desire-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c57/jon-ronson-1772_life_maybe-the-american-psychiatric-associati_711608.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“maybe the American Psychiatric Association had a crazy desire to label all life a mental disorder. I” — Jon Ronson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jon Ronson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“maybe the American Psychiatric Association had...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/maybe-the-american-psychiatric-association-had-a-crazy-desire-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/maybe-the-american-psychiatric-association-had-a-crazy-desire-to/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```