Jackebear

I just finished reading an article on MSNBC.com about this condition called Irritable Male Syndrome. It's a research paper and now probably a book by the same person who wrote about Male Menopause a few years back.

The article name is Many Angry Men.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8962022/site/newsweek/

I found it to be quite interesting especially since I have been feeling quite irritable for some time now. So I decided to take the available test. It is very basic and easy to finish the 50 questions in about 3-5 min.

There are no questions but just a word like "tired", "frustrated", or "sarcastic".
So, just add in "Are you feeling ________? and answer each one. You score will be out of 100. (The article says it's out of 150 but when I submitted it, it said between 70 - 100 is a trouble zone.)

Here is the test.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8914601/site/newsweek/

I scored an 86 out of 100. Damn it I had better start exercising a little more to get my testosterone level up.

Anywho, I thought you guys might find this interesting and now you have something to say to your significant other when she tells you to quit being such a pain in the ass. Tell her you got IMS and that she is not the only one who gets to be moody...not anymore. Being bitchy is no longer gender specific.

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Schwan

I got 103. Dang. Not good.

I RTFA and actually found most of the things that they talked about to be true. The only problem is they're talking about middle aged men and I'm 22, so I probably should start getting worried. Or not. The only gripe I have with this article is that I tries to imply that most males get irritated because they suffer from some kind of syndrome. I'm not convinced. Lumping things into syndromes is something that doctor's like to do, just to say afterwards that they came up with something new. But, again, I admit I'm very irritable.

jwoody

I got a 16. My score could have been lower but I felt like putting a few sometimes' in for hell of it.

I have little to no faith in internet self-psycholgy tests.

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Seething

Got a 43. Damn! I guess I can't use that as an excuse...

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Ambient1

If you re-read the article, they state that it commonly happens during two different age groups - Mid life and 16-28.

I'm pretty sure I went through this a few years ago... It certainly puts my action in my old relationship in a new light. I would have been around 26 at the time.

Borla

Your score is: 53
50-75. Indicates that IMS is likely and we suggest you seek help.



I don't usually feel too irritable.......I'm at the low end of that range, but I need help? LMAO......I think I'll be ok.

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Charlatan

Your score is: 27
26-49. Suggests some indications of IMS. You may want to take the quiz again to see if things improve or get worse.


I guess I better work on this so I can get more irritated... then I can be a candidate for the latest pill that will cure my trendy disorder...

Excellent! My sarcastic streak serves me well. Now I just need to get less sleep and take more drugs and I will be on my way to an unhealty 110!!!

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guthmund

No, you just need to have the urge to do more drugs.

Don't worry, Charlatan, with a little help and little hard work you'll hit that 110 mark, I just know it.


I scored a 50.

Guess I'm not as irritable as everybody says I am.

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Schwan

So it does. Interesting. I wonder if I should do anything about it, or just live with it.

Besides, aren't the symptoms similar, if not exactly thesame, as depression?

AVoiceOfReason

Your score is: 35
26-49. Suggests some indications of IMS. You may want to take the quiz again to see if things improve or get worse.

Sounds about right.

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AVOR

A Voice Of Reason, not necessarily the ONLY one.

canuckguy

43, but not surprising since we just bought a new house and i'm blowing my stack almost daily. should have taken this quiz when i was working hehe.

Jinn

I really think that question was the best in the article. The answer sucked, because that question is true. Labelling this is a "disorder" just adds it to the laundry list of pyschological "disorders" that one can use to defend or rationalize asshole behavior. Hormones go up and down, but we're not rams. We have control over how we react in any given situation, and if you know anything about people you know they are NOT predictable. A man could have 0% testosterone and be a pacifist, or he could be the angriest summabitch you ever met. What's important to me, however.. is not his chemical levels.. but how he reacts -- that determines what kind of MAN he truly is.

And really, this test doesn't say much. "When stressed, men tend to be more irritable." HOLY SHIT BATMAN! I mean really, tell me that these things wouldn't immediately tell you that the person was stressed and more likely to be irritable?

If that paper (or his book for that matter) had any real science to it, I might be more convinced.

You stress your body, you'll be more likely to be irritable. That doesn't make it a syndrome or a disease or anything other than the personal choice to let stressors effect your mood. I apologize for disabling a "fun" survey but this reeks of Quack Science and it bothers me. Ask me sometime if I think PMS is a "syndrome" too. (sorry ladies) We're all built of chemicals and changes in those can certainly change our possible demeanor but its still a choice.

And despite my apparent vehemence in this post, I'm mostly a pacifist:

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shesus

I'm not a man, but took it for fun. I scored a 75 and discovered that I likely have IMS and should seek help. I didn't need a test to tell me I need help

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ObieX

Your score is: 59
50-75. Indicates that IMS is likely and we suggest you seek help.

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We Must Dissent.

astrahl

DING DING DING!
JinnKai gets the prize for this thread. VERY well put!

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present_future

52. Apparently the people that wrote the code for this quiz have degrees in psychology and suggest that I seek help.

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mystmarimatt

70

Supposing then, that this is real...Yeah, I'm betting I'd have it.

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Lasereth

Yep. I would put more, but there's no reason to. I think you hit the nail on the head.

-Lasereth

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StanT

64

I'm disappointed, I'm a lot grumpier and irritable than that would imply. I really don't need a disorder or diagnosis to be a crotchety SoB.

calvin88

82
However I don't think I get angry without reason. It is usually only when im involved in some kind of competitive sports. Although i do seem to get annoyed at small things now that i think about it.

Marvelous Marv

34???? WTF is that all about!!!!!

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Dano069

I got an 80. I think that's a tad low for me. Of course, it could be my Manic-Depression.

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torgone

Yay. Somebody came up with a name for what I have. I thought I was just a grumpy old fart.

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justjt

60 was my f@cking score!...You got a problem with that!!!!!!

Hey what are you looking at???!!!!! YOU WANT A PIECE OF ME A$$HOLE???!!!!

Oh.....sorry about that it's my IMS acting up.....friends and family staged an intervention and I am now getting help.

k925

Just pointing out a difference here, as I did in another similar thread...

The people who study and research this and other various disorders should *not* be thrown in the same boat as those people who use the disorder as an excuse or rationale for "asshole behavior."

i.e. Don't blame the psychologists for the irresponsible assholes.


By the way, I got a 9. yay!

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Siege

53. I'm surprised. Maybe I went through the test too fast.

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This part just makes my posts easier to find

Daniel_

38 - on the plus side I'm already drinkig decaf espresso and not much booze, on the down side that's because they react badly with the Prozac....

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Grasshopper Green

Hubby just took it and got a 68. I took it "for him" last night and got a 69...pretty darn close. I'm sure he's going to refer to having IMS any time I mention him being grumpy...I can already see it

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tuffrr

Wow, only 43, I though i was more irritable than that. Dammit, I want to be more irritable.

Leo

28 - said "some indications of IMS", which was really irritating

Jinn

Why not? They're the ones who CREATED the "disorder" for easier assholism.. I fail to see why they shouldn't be grouped together, and I don't see your other post.

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"I'm typing on a computer of science, which is being sent by science wires to a little science server where you can access it. I'm not typing on a computer of philosophy or religion or whatever other thing you think can be used to understand the universe because they're a poor substitute in the role of understanding the universe which exists independent from ourselves." - Willravel

JustJess

I don't know that it needs to be labeled a "syndrome" as such, but I don't think it can hurt for people to become a little more aware of their reactions to life. If you're scoring high, hopefully you'll take that to mean that, okay, maybe your testerone levels are low, but maybe (and more likely) you need to change a few things in your life in order to not be so damned bitchy all the time.

Unfortunately, more people will use it as an excuse rather than a prompt for self-evaluation.

Oh, by the way, JinnKai... PMS? Not real? Tell my husband that when every month, at the same time, (when my hormone levels change) I'm crying uncontrollably and I don't even know why, and I get nasty !#@!$ migraines... or tell that to a woman who has the actual syndrome and not just the grumpies, when she's lying on the couch with cramps so bad she can't walk. Go on, I dare ya!
/threadjack over

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deri

Your score is: 33
26-49. Suggests some indications of IMS. You may want to take the quiz again to see if things improve or get worse.

analog

My feelings exactly, bravo. Yet another stupid name to give something so people can justify their horrible actions by saying they're in the hands of a disorder, and somehow incapable of rational thought. This test is completely useless. Quack science, indeed.

k925

Here's my post from the other thread. You actually posted in the same thread, as it turns out.

Psychologists do not CREATE disorders, but they discover, identify, and study them. When a behavioral trend is found, it's helpful to name it so other scientists can recognize it.

Did psychologists CREATE depression, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder? No, they identified and named (labeled) them so that treatment could be effectively administered to the afflicted.

Now, considering this "IMS" research, I can't vouch for all of (Dr.?) Diamond's work (he comes off as more of a salesman than a scientist to me), but I can say that a blatant disregard (or disdain, even) for actual research of any kind that may really help some people is rather haughty. And, once again, it's not the researcher or the psychologist who is to blame for some assholes making up excuses for their irresponsible behavior.

This what I think you're saying- tell me if I'm inferring wrongly with this example:
If a guy came up to you and sneezed on your arm, and he said, "Sorry, I have a cold." You would then say, "Curse those dirty doctors with their laundry list of excuses for assholes!" and instead of blaming the asshole in front of you, you blame the scientists who identified that sickness which makes people sneeze- the common cold.

Obviously, this IMS isn't as basic as the common cold, but it's likely something that shouldn't be so instantly discredited as "quack science." Especially if you weren't the one doing the research.

If this is still questionable, I'd be happy to discuss it further, so that we may all be enlightened.

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I can has furburger?

cyrnel

Just someone floating their theories. Couldn't live without them.

Whatever the condition, when a name is applied it implies some attention is being paid. As mentioned, researchers need words when trying to uncover more information, causes, effects, remedies. Maybe re-naming or blending with other disorders as dicoveries are made, this is the normal progression. No way around it unless we figure out how to communicate without words.

Unfortunately the aspects we as outsiders most often see are healthcare entities making a buck, be it the big drug companies pushing magic cures or doctors/insurance making their cut. Before that we hear it from media and attorneys using it as a catch-all when somebody goes postal. We see these things and become jaded to all references, including news of progress, even cures, because the circus is what usually touches our lives.

Then should you or a family member suffer from symptoms that may or may not be related, you may find yourself digging deeper, trying to understand. Perhaps defending or even trying potential treatments out of a desire to help.

As usual, whatever piece of the game most deeply touches our lives tends to dictate our opinion.

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Johnny Pyro

Your score is: 85
76-100. Indicates that IMS is definitely present and it is advisable that you seek help right away.

Shit. I thought I was just a bad boy.

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texxasco

Not to give the article too much credit, but it does seem liek they are on to something anyway. I too went through a rough time in my mid twenties..but I also divorced in the time frame as well. Now that I am in my 40's, I see another period where I am more self critical and taking a harder look at things. I don't know if I am starting a mid life crisis or not, but I did score 65. SHould I exercise more? You bet. But I think a bid reason for the way men are is the environment we live in these days...It's a hell of a pressure cooker we live in these days, much more so than 20-30 years ago. I think most will agree.
If you (men) haven't taken the test, why not give it a shot?

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Mr. Burns

I'm 33 yrs. old & scored 90!!! I think the test was a bit too much vauge generalizeations . .

Chingal0

Your score is: 13
0-25.None or few signs of IMS.

Not bad I guess. Hah.

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