Psychiatrist Says Policemen and Air Traffic Controllers Are Psychologically Sick

Are our policemen, firemen, air traffic controllers, and ER doctors psychologically ill? One psychiatrist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is saying that yes, those who think they perform better under stress are mentally diseased.

In a Newsweek article entitled "Who Says Stress Is Bad For You?" published online on February 14^th, 2009, author Mary Carmichael writes about the difference between good stress and bad stress. Some stress, says the article, is good for humans. For our ancestors, a little stress could make the difference between life and death. If you have no food you are likely to be stressed out about it, and that helps motivate you to hunt or gather. If you are walking in an area where a saber tooth tiger has been spotted, that little extra stress factor will keep you more alert.

The author asked some researchers about "good stress" vs. excessive stress. So-called adrenaline junkies seek out excessive amounts of stress, for example. In an interview with Bruce Rabin, a psychoneuroimmunologist, pathologist and psychiatrist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Carmichael asks about people who think they thrive on stress, such as policemen, ER doctors, or air traffic controllers. Other people who have highly stressful jobs such as firemen, search and rescue teams, and paramedics would also fit into this category.

In the interview, Dr. Rabin said people who think they perform well under stress are unhealthy. He asserts that some of these types of people may have been abused as children or exposed to high amounts of adrenaline in the womb, permanently changing them mentally. If not, Rubin goes on to say, these people are trying to fulfill some sort of psychological need.

Asked if he was calling this a pathological condition, if these people had a disease, Dr. Rubin said that yes, absolutely they do.

This gets my ire up. Is Rubin saying that all people who think they perform well under pressure and who are in the risky business of protecting our communities - people who carry guns - are psychologically off? Is he saying that all such people who serve the community in life and death situations such as firemen and paramedics have mental problems? Apparently so, and that bothers me a great deal.

As a doctor with scientific training, first of all Rabin should know better than to make blanket, sweeping generalizations about any segment of the population. Any time you use words like "all" or "never", especially when referring to people, a red flag should go up in your brain. Sure as heck, the minute you use these words, someone or something will come along to prove you wrong.

To say that each and every such policeman or fireman has deep psychological problems flies in the face of scientific reasoning. Where is the research that proves this? What scientific method was used to determine this? In my opinion, it is highly irresponsible and even outrageous that Rabin would make such sweeping generalizations about people in sensitive positions in our communities.

Since 9-11 (I was there), I hold policemen, firemen, and paramedics in the highest regard. To this day I stop policemen and firemen on the street and thank them for doing what they do. Perhaps I should think about that twice if all of these people have psychological problems. They might do something crazy.

It's really outrageous, irking, and downright maddening that anyone should cast such aspersions on the finest servants of our communities. I get real defensive about that. My blood boils when I think about some of the policemen, firemen, and paramedics I have known or met. They are fine, upstanding people and that they are psychologically sick couldn't be further from the truth. These people, if anything, are more well-adjusted and "normal" than most people I meet. That Mr. Rabin is calling these people mentally ill makes me livid.

I think I need to go hit the punching bag now.

Sources:

Who Says Stress Is Bad For You?

By Mary Carmichael for Newsweek

http://www.newsweek.com/id/184154?GT1=43001

Personal experience