Constructivism and Mental Illness

According to radical constructivism, there is no objective reality or truth that we as humans can know about. Mental illnesses, often diagnosed due to "abnormal behavior", are relying on the assumption that there is a "normal" and objective way to behave, think, and feel. First of all, if all we can ever know is how we ourselves feel, how can we medicalize the way somebody else feels? A radical constructivist would say that we cannot tell a delusional or hallucinating person that what they are experiencing is not real; a doctor/medical professional has only his or her own experience to pit against the patient's.

Even a medical professional cannot know the way most people feel, or the "normal" way to feel. They can only know the way they feel. So, how can they determine if somebody's mental state is abnormal? How do they know that their own state isn't abnormal? Are medical professionals judging what is normal based on what they experience? Furthermore, what is considered abnormal, and is it socially constructed?