Who Are the Worried Well ?

Having worked in the mental health field for almost ten years, I’ve often heard the term “the worried well.” I’ve begun to take umbrage at this term because I feel it minimizes the individual who has been classified as such. I also feel that there is a class bias to the term. To my mind, “the worried well” symbolizes a middle-class misfit who is upset because he or she can’t fit into the middle class.

Who uses the term “the worried well” to classify someone? I’ve heard it used by mental health professionals only. Don’t the “worried well” patronize the very professionals who offer this feeble description of their condition? Granted, maybe the “worried well” wear nice clothing and drive nice cars and visit banks. But does this make their life manageable? Or, since they are “worried well,” doesn’t this indicate that nothing is really wrong with them? Or can they just afford the treatment, so therefore are taken less seriously?

I for one would like to see a demographic study of who the “worried well” are. I would also like to see what DSM diagnosis mostly matches the person(s) with this condition. Should the “worried well” of this world stand up and say they are not “worried well” but mad as hell?

Posted by Bob Turri