The Myth Index
Myth: A diagnosis explains the behavior.
A diagnosis names a pattern. It doesn't explain what produced it.
What's really going on
What people sayHe drinks because he has a drinking disorder. She overeats because she has an eating disorder.
What's realBehavior can be observed. A label can't do anything.
That is description dressed up as explanation. Naming the pattern stands in for understanding what generated it.
The origination point sits upstream, in how a person thinks about drinking or eating: what it promises, what it solves, what it costs and why it seems necessary.
Behavior is downstream. Substances are downstream. Diagnosis is downstream. Treat the label as the cause and you end up managing smoke while the fire keeps burning.
Behavior can only be observed. Diagnoses cannot.@therapy_bites, 2026