Episode details

Available for over a year
Most of us have experienced difficult feelings like grief or stress or sadness – but are we too quick to label these feelings as a mental health problem? Clinical psychologist and author of You Are Not a Diagnosis Tanya Byron thinks we are – and we should also stop saying things like, “I’m traumatised”, “totally triggered” or “I’m so OCD”. So why does the language we use matter - and why does Tanya feel she's seeing a rise in self-diagnosis? Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of Westminster, also joins us in the studio to give her take on the debate. Plus, we tackle a listener's question about why some sounds can make us feel spine-tinglingly good and why are we ticklish? Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Gerry Holt Content editor: Ilan Goodman Production coordinator: Jana Holesworth Studio engineer: Steve Greenwood Details of help and support with some of the issues raised are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Programme Website