MistressKel
Posts: 44
Joined: 2/3/2007 Status: offline
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About the term 'disorder'...I don't like it --they quickly become labels by which we learn to identify ourselves. A disorder is nothing more than a specific set of symptoms that are successfully treatable by specific means. If anyone tells you any different, they're full of crap. I constantly hear, "I'm bipolar, or I'm BPD..." No...you are NOT bipolar...you are NOT BPD! You HAVE---I repeat you HAVE that diagnosis, that diagnosis is NOT the sum of who or what you are! And the mental health system does NOTHING to get this through to clients...it's just sickening to me that people who are already suffering have to get those stigmas (the labels) and have to deal with that on top of symptoms that are already making their life dysfunctional. Symptoms are things that happen TO you...not things that you are. Please, if you walk away from my post with anything new, let it be that. I have over 60 credit hours in psychology and probably 30 more in sociology--someone needs to nail that guy who claims to be a therapist and get his ass off the streets! I highly doubt he is actually a therapist because I don't know any of them that would risk their careers (and the money it costs to get there) by announcing such ignorant bullshit to anyone at any point in a relationship. (and I know some really stupid therapists--believe me) More likely, they would just do it rather than discuss it. Also, I agree that posting that straight off is probably not a good idea, for the reasons already mentioned in this thread. However, I think it is necessary to tell a person soon after meeting if you have severe symptoms that usually cause relationship problems for you. The reason that I say this is because I myself can not be in "intimate" relationships with most people who have bipolar or borderline personality disorder symptoms. The symptoms tend to agitate my own mental illness and make me dangerously aggressive, which quickly escalates to severe mental instability. Why would either of us go through that if it can be avoided? I just got out of a 14 year relationship with someone who has recently been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia (yeah, I spelled it without help) and it was hell for both of us! Now, he's my best friend, but we have to back off after spending time together because our symptoms harm the other and it ends in a cycle of uncontrollable violence for us both (and I like violence--which is not good for our friendship or his life). I think your own instincts on the subject are pretty good, and the advice here is really good as well, I just wanted to put in my two cents because I think it's relevant here. Thanks for reading!
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