As conversations around mental health become more open, experts warn of the risks of overdiagnosis and diluting the complexity of human emotions, especially in parenting.
There is real progress in talking more openly about mental health. People now have more language to describe distress, seek support and name experiences that were once left unspoken. But, as psychologist Cindy Rybak argues, that language can start to lose its value when it turns into a shortcut for everything we feel.
Not every sadness is depression. Not every worry is an anxiety disorder. Not every person who hurts us is narcissistic. And not every painful experience is trauma. The point is not to dismiss suffering, but to avoid reducing complex human experiences to labels that may explain too little and flatten too much.
That tension is especially visible in parenting. Rybak says many mothers now ask whether a boundary might traumatising a child, whether separation could damage attachment, or whether frustration might leave a lasting scar. Underneath those worries is something positive: a generation that wants to take children’s emotional wellbeing seriously. But there is also a risk of turning care into a demand that children never feel disappointment, anger or discomfort.
The World Health Organisation draws a clear line between ordinary anxiety and anxiety disorders. Its guidance says everyone can feel anxious at times, but a disorder involves fear and worry that are intense, hard to control and disruptive to daily life. The WHO also says mental disorders can affect thinking, emotional regulation or behaviour and that anxiety and depressive disorders remain among the most common conditions worldwide.
That distinction matters because overdiagnosis can blur the difference between normal life and illness. Researchers and commentators have increasingly warned that self-diagnosis and the medicalisation of everyday emotions can lead people to see themselves, and others, through a pathological lens. At the same time, clinicians and public health experts stress that genuine distress should never be brushed aside. The challenge is to hold both truths at once: language and diagnosis can bring relief and direction, but used carelessly they can become a blunt instrument.
Rybak’s conclusion is a useful one for parents and caregivers. Supporting mental health does not mean attaching a label to every feeling. It means recognising when someone is experiencing an understandable human emotion, when they may need time, and when professional help is the right next step.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
