Making Light of Mental Illness

Hello again Lovely Internet People!  Long time no see!  I am afraid I have been so wrapped up in my own head again lately that I haven't been able to get in here and write anything interesting for all of you to read.  Hopefully I am finally beginning the long climb out of my own head so that I can start getting back into other peoples heads again.  Having an emotional and psychological meltdown on the internet is probably not the way most people would have addressed it, but you learn to work with what you have.

I was reading an article yesterday, (I think it was in the Huffington Post but I can't find it now to link it for you) about how people who are diagnosed with mental illnesses don't like the idea of other people co-opting their illnesses for petty issues.  They claimed that a movie star who says she must be bi-polar because she can't decide what color her hair should be is seen as demeaning to those who actually suffer with bi-polar disorder.  While I understand that trivializing other peoples suffering is an awful thing to do, I am not going to stop trivializing my own because that is how I have learned to cope with them, and it works for me. 

I think it far too important to bring mental health issues and illnesses into the light of day so I can't keep mine to myself.  Now, granted, not all of my issues have an "official" diagnosis from a "trained professional", but that is due to a lack of access to those "trained professionals", it does not make the issues any less real or my struggles any less valid.  I make light of my "obsessive compulsive crafting disorder" or my "bi-polar ego" because these are real issues that I really struggle with, and I don't think I am alone.  In no way, shape, or form am I trying to make light of the struggles of those who actually have OCD or a bi-polar disorder, their issues are far more complex, and in most cases, far more challenging than mine.  I do firmly believe that we are all a little crazy, and the more you pay attention to the world around you the more reason you have to be crazy, and there is nothing wrong with being crazy because it is really a totally fucking normal response to the world we live in.

I mean really now, we live in a world where "Christians" are preaching hate and selfishness as virtues, and a significant portion of the country thinks science is hocus pocus, the Bible is a history book, and the Flinstones was a fucking documentary!  Can anyone really tell me with a straight face that this shit isn't crazy?  Millions of people flock to the defense of one bigoted hypocrite flim-flam man spouting nonsense from the dark fucking ages, calling it "Christian values"?  WTF!?  Seriously, I just cannot even wrap my head around the level of insanity that that shit takes!

Misogyny, Homophobia, Racism, Intolerance, Bashing the poor, and glorifying gluttony, greed, false prophets and false Gods, like money, are NOT fucking Christian values and I am sick and fucking tired of these assholes being allowed to claim that they are!  Hate is NOT a fucking Christian value!  Christianity is supposed to be about loving your fellow man, helping one another, and NOT FUCKING JUDGING PEOPLE!  PERIOD.  Either get in line with your own fucking teachings or admit that you don't buy any of that crap at all!  If you want a "Christian Nation" you need to start acting like fucking Christians!  I am an Atheist and I behave in a more "Christ-like" manner than anyone I have ever encountered who claimed to be a Christian!

So yes, I am fucking crazy.  I live in a world that has lost its damn mind, how can I not be crazy? How can any of you not be crazy?  If you require a "professional diagnosis" I have three you can choose from: severe chronic depression, anorexia, and/or generalized anxiety disorder.  And I have no problem admitting that in a public forum any more than I would hesitate to admit having cancer or diabetes.  Mental health issues are nothing to be ashamed of, they are fucking normal.  Just another fact of life, like poverty, that a little more understanding, and a lot less judging, might find a way to alleviate.

When I make fun of my struggles that is how I cope with them.  When I tell you I am obsessive compulsive with my hobbies I may be joking, but I also am totally serious.  I don't mean that I like to buy stuff, I mean there is an actual physical and psychological NEED to have these things, most of which I will never use.  The ways in which I have learned to cope with my issues are probably not the best ways, or the healthiest ways, but they are they ways I have available to me, so they are what I use.  And making fun of myself before anyone else can has allowed me to maintain a fragile hold on sanity that I just cannot relinquish.  

So If I have offended you at any time with my comments on these subjects please know that I never intended to do so.  If my struggles are not as severe as yours, or if you don't think I take them seriously enough, maybe, just maybe, learning to laugh at your own troubles might make them a little easier to bear.  I mean, its worth a try isn't it?  After all, as someone much wiser than I once said, "Don't take life so seriously, no one gets out alive anyway."

Until Next Time ...