‘Medical Imperialism’ is the combination of medicalisation, which can further be defined as “a process by which nonmedical problems become defined and treated as medical problems, usually in terms of illness and disorders” (Conrad, 2007), and Imperialism which is defined by Tomlinson (2012) as “the policy, practice and dominion of a nation especially by the direct…
Puberty
Puberty is defined as “the condition of being or the period of becoming first capable of reproducing sexually that is brought on by the production of sex hormones and the maturing of the reproductive organs” (Merriam-Webster.com, 2017). In girls, sexual maturity is defined by regular menstruation and the development of breast tissue and averagely occurs after…
Pregnancy
Pregnancy lasts around 40 weeks and it is split into three trimesters (you are considered full term at 37 weeks gestation). The First trimester being from week one to week twelve, during which time the embryo develops progressively. Around the four-week mark the baby’s brain, spinal cord, heart and limb buds begin to develop. Second…
Post-Natal
Postnatal depression is a common ailment that, according to the NHS (2016), affects around 1 in 10 women. There are several ways to define post-partum depression. From the NHS, it is considered distinctive from the “baby blues”, which are said to be “normal” and occur in the immediate weeks following child birth. If a new…
Conclusion
Illich’s claim that the intervention of the medical establishment caused more harm than good and that most things are medicalised for the most part is accurate, as shown within the evaluation it is mentioned how aspects of peoples lives such as puberty and with females, pregnancy, are mostly medicalised fully. The process of medical imperialism…
References
Action Aid (2012). Sex, choice and control: the reality of family planning for women and girls today. Action Aid: London. Bell, K et al (2009) ‘Medicine, morality and mothering: public health discourses on foetal alcohol exposure, smoking around children and childhood overnutrition’. Critical Public Health. Vol 19, pp. 155-170. Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS (2012). Your Pregnancy…
Female Medicalisation 