[longtimelurker8]

I genuinely find it hard to see the legitimate scientific foundation of psychiatry, and would love to be persuaded that there is one. At the moment, I see the profession as overall more harmful than beneficial to health, and it's sad to see people treated this way.

Is there substantial evidence that psychiatric treatment improves quality of life in the long term?

Can we say with any confidence that our culture and health is broadly better thanks to psychiatry than it would be without?

If there are well validated studies, I would be interested to read them. In particular, are there any long-term studies to justify the drug regimens and the recommended doses which so many people are advised, or forced, to take for decades?

Are there well-validated biomarkers that can reliably support any psychiatric diagnoses?