Stephen McCarthyPhysician assistant and writer

Writing

Where labels end and explanations begin.

Essays on psychiatric classification, evidence, diagnostic reification, and the practical consequences of confusing a name with a mechanism.

Diagram connecting observed facts, source records, classification, and independent evidence to a clinical question
Psychiatric ontology14 minute read

AuDHD, psychiatric ontology, and the difference between naming and explaining

AuDHD can be useful shorthand for the co occurrence of autism and ADHD. It does not, by itself, establish a third disease entity or a causal mechanism. The article develops a broader argument: a diagnosis may classify a symptom pattern, but the label alone cannot explain the symptoms used to create it.

AuDHDDiagnosisReificationClinical reasoning
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Useful beats frequent

New work is published when it makes a distinct argument, identifies its sources, separates fact from inference, and avoids patient specific advice. Thin SEO filler has been politely escorted from the building.