Who is in charge?

You vs. your mind.

A very common theme with criminals is the argument for competency. “I’m really a good, normal person except for my mind making me crazy.” When a person commits a mass killing at a place of worship, the first question everyone asks is “why did they do this, were they crazy?” The most interesting part about psychology is the nonexistence of “crazy”. There is normal and abnormal behavior, which is mostly defined by cultural norms. The man who talks to unseen voices is abnormal on the subway, but what if you place him in a church? What happens if you put a phone in his hand or earplugs on his head, is he abnormal? As can be seen societal norms play a huge role in determining normal/abnormal behavior.

As you may have figured out by now the theme for today is the abnormal, yet only in a special context. Cultural norms aside, the question really becomes – how do you define abnormal vs. normal for the individual and what is their responsibility? In looking at criminal cases the legal term is “insanity” or “mental illness’ of such a severe nature that a person cannot distinguish fantasy from reality, cannot conduct her/his affairs due to psychosis, or is subject to uncontrollable impulsive behavior. Insanity is distinguished from low intelligence or mental deficiency due to age or injury. So, no it is not “doing the same thing expecting a different result” contrary to popular belief. With a true definition, we open a very big can of worms. How do we define conscious control?

Take for example a character like DC’s The Joker. Is he insane? Maybe, yet he is completely conscious of his actions and has full control of himself in performing them. He is not performing actions based on the adrenaline rage from immediately witnessing an emotional event. He is calculated and methodical even though his calculations are not “normal”. The main argument is that his attachment to reality is skewed. It has been shown that he is aware of the reality he exists in, although his mind perceives other realities, an act which is also mirrored by religious and esoteric leaders. The “uncontrollable impulsive behavior” could be applied, but there are various examples of this behavior visible in addicts, who are charged with being mentally competent even though the drugs they are on corrupt “normal” brain function.

To bring this more to reality, people who attack places of worship are no more insane than people who believe in a higher power actively participating in their lives. Mass shooters like the one in Las Vegas are not insane. Their reasoning was abnormal, but they acted with methodical intent. Sometimes some people’s minds just operate differently.  If it benefits society we consider them geniuses and savants, yet if those operations are a detriment to society we consider them insane, but is that an accurate accounting?

How does this understanding of insanity apply to your personal abnormal vs normal structure and responsibility? Let’s take a person with severe depression as defined by the DSM-5. Major Depression Episode (MDE) requires five or more symptoms to be present within a 2-week period . One of the symptoms should, at least, be either a depressed mood (DM) or anhedonia (loss of interest or pleasure- LI). The secondary symptoms of MDE are appetite or weight changes (AW), sleep difficulties (insomnia or hypersomnia), psychomotor agitation or retardation (PAR), fatigue or loss of energy (FE), diminished ability to think or concentrate (C), feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt (FW), and suicidality (SU). These symptoms are rated in an all or none (0 or 1) fashion. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6176119/).

Now under those definitive terms a person with “depression” could be deemed insane. They are generally not a danger to society, only to themselves in extreme cases. No one would call someone who has depression insane, however, this does not belittle their suffering. This only highlights that society has more definitive control over abnormal vs normal with personal responsibility being overtly skewed in that fashion. The judge who sentences death is not a murderer, but the gang banger is. This raises the question “What if everyone is operating under a form a psychosis?” What then, would be normal? Is the gang banger operating out of PTSD from years of survivalist living? Is the judge under PTSD from reviewing hundreds of cases of criminal behavior? It’s been stated that people who moderate social media sites develop PTSD due to hours upon hours of seeing disturbing content. How are judges or gang members different psychologically?

Ultimately it falls upon the person to determine abnormal vs normal behavior, augment that understanding, and apply it to society. The person who has insomnia gets a night job. The person who has obsessive compulsive disorder becomes a CPA. There is no happy ending where someone is “cured” from how their mind works. Lobotomies were considered barbaric for their time while currently we have medicated lobotomies that attempt to “correct” the mind, which may in time be deemed just as barbaric. What if it doesn’t need to be corrected? Much like a tree branch that grows in its own way and purpose, the mind and brain develops to its own end. It adjusts to its environment, gaining nourishment, or lack thereof, from a variety of sources. Who has the capability to determine what mental realities are correct?

The conclusion of this piece is the realization that the mind is in control of you, but you determine your actions as a result of your mind. A person with Turrets may say things uncontrollably but they will not say something that could endanger themselves or others. Insanity is not an excuse and those that attempt to rely on it are attempting to fool others into believing they do not share the same basic responsibilities you do. Everyone thinks about doing bad things, but not everyone blames their head when they do them.