Mental health injury / Psychological injury

General public definition

• Mental health injury and psychological injury are currently not listed as diagnoses in either the DSM-5-TR or ICD-11.
• Mental health injury and psychological injury may also be used as different names for a mental health condition, including a mental disorder, especially when the condition is caused by exposure to one or more potentially psychologically traumatic events.
• The word “injury” is used when describing mental disorders or conditions to try to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness. The terms mental health injury and psychological injury were coined by members of the Canadian Armed Forces to describe posttraumatic stress disorder as a mental injury that results from engagement in military operations and as “honourable” as physical injury (see the “Operational stress injury (OSI)” section).

Academic definition

• Mental health injury and psychological injury are currently not listed as diagnoses in the DSM-5-TR or ICD-11.
• These are terms describing a mental health condition, including a mental disorder, especially when the mental health condition is caused by exposure to one or more potentially psychologically traumatic events.
• The word “injury” is used when describing mental disorders or conditions in an attempt to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness. The terms mental health injury and psychological injury were initially coined by members of the Canadian Armed Forces to describe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a mental injury that results from engagement in military operations and no less “honourable” than physical injury (refer to the “Operational stress injury (OSI)” section).

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