Living on the fringes: Life with a diagnosis

Jesse Sullivan2 said:I honestly thought this thread would blow up more—what happened? Did everyone suddenly become perfectly sane overnight? Everyone's quick to brag about their issues, then goes dead silent like we’re all living in some flawless utopia where everything is fine... Come on, people, just vent a little. It's easier that way, and at least we get to swap stories. No?

Well, I already shared mine. I’m somewhere on the edge—just sliding into pathology before pulling myself back. What about you?

restlessseal16 said:Look, I’m just being honest. I’m somewhere on the edge here. One minute I’m slipping into total pathology, then I pull myself back. What about you?

I'm basically just winging it through life one day at a time!

Little Red Riding Hood said:What’s her actual diagnosis, or like, what disorder is she dealing with? How do you even manage all that? I don't think I could handle being with someone struggling with mental illness because I feel like it would just wreck my own life, so I'm curious how you deal with it...

Even the psychiatrists in the US can't pin down a specific diagnosis for my girl, so honestly, neither can I. It fluctuates anywhere from schizophrenia to borderline depending on the day... but whatever. At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter. All those labels are just total BS when it comes to my actual life. My life is better just because this smart, gorgeous woman is in it. Things were rough at first while we figured each other out. She wasn't sure I could handle her, and I had all these preconceived notions about people with mental issues, but hey, here we are... doing just fine. Plus, I'm pretty convinced that "mental illness" is mostly something found in thick textbooks and the tiny brains of psychiatrists who spend decades wasting time and money, successfully ruining thousands of lives while thinking they're actually helping. They send people to places worse than anything an average person could imagine. Even if I knew the name of the asylum, where it was located, or if I passed by it on the subway every single day...

http://psychoblog.com/

Is anyone else even reading this? Honestly, diagnoses are total nonsense. I know plenty of people who have been stuck in psychiatric wards—myself included—and I also know plenty of "crazy" people. It’s funny how those two groups don't actually overlap much at all. 🙂 So, here is my advice for anyone living with a diagnosis: don't listen to anyone trying to tell you that you aren't normal. And stay far away from the people who just sit there pitying you. You might be dealing with some actual life issues that need solving, but that doesn't make you sick. Most of the time, you just need to cut out the toxic people in your life.

Batgirl said:Is anyone else actually reading this? Anyway, honestly, most diagnoses are total BS. I know plenty of people who’ve been through the wringer in mental hospitals (and yeah, I’ve been there myself), and I know tons of actual crazy people too. It’s funny how those two groups don't really overlap much at all. 🙂 So, here’s my unsolicited advice to anyone carrying a diagnosis: don't let anyone tell you that you aren't normal. And seriously, stay far away from the people who just pity you. You might definitely have some stuff in your life you need to sort out, but that doesn't mean you're broken or sick. Half the time, you just need to cut out the toxic people surrounding you.

I'm totally with you on this 😬

but it's not like you can fix everything just by moving to a new city or changing your scenery...
sometimes you really do need "professional help"
though whether that help is actually decent, competent, or even right for you is a whole different story...😢