“Denial is an unconscious defense mechanism used by those faced with a painful reality. It is an automatic reaction in an attempt to reduce anxiety by denying thoughts, feelings, or facts that are consciously intolerable. It is common for those who are diagnosed with a life-long illness to go through periods of denial.”

» Continue reading “Part 2: Denial”

Someone recently related to me that they had received a diagnosis but weren’t sure they accepted it. I have seen this scenario played out in the bipolar community many times: “But I am not psychotic/manic/suicidal” etc. The “problem” with diagnosis, with any kind of labeling or categorization of a person’s personality or identity or deeply ingrained mental characteristics, is that it is an incomplete way to communicate information.

» Continue reading “Part 1: Diagnosis, Misdiagnosis, and Manifestations”

I have been thinking about mental wellness over the past few days, in response to the idea that a patient might not accept a diagnosis and the role diagnosis plays in mental wellness. I’ve also been thinking about the concept of “reframing” that my therapist has me working on, and the concept of mental illness. I wanted to try to reframe the idea of mental illness to approach it from the perspective of mental wellness instead.

» Continue reading “Four Part Series: Diagnosis, Denial, Treatment, and Personal Accountability”

Two Families Grapple with Sons’ Gender Preferences : NPR.

I have a friend grappling with the fact that her young child identifies as transgender. She will have many decisions to make in the comings days, months, years, not the least of which is how to treat her child right now, this moment. Does she respect the preferences her child is expressing, or does she try to redirect her child to more “appropriate” forms of expression that validate the child’s physical gender?

» Continue reading “Link of the Day: Gender Identity”

Yesterday I came across this story on NPR:

A Social Experiment: Communes In Cul-De-Sacs : NPR.

The story is about “cul de sac” communes, planned neighborhoods where people share resources. Different from the Utopian societies of yore, where the main requirement was isolation from the rest of civilization, this cul de sac commune idea integrates modern culture with communal living.

» Continue reading “Commune vs. Community”

Iowa High Court Strikes Down Gay Marriage Ban : NPR.

I will never understand the fear and loathing surrounding the issue of gay marriage. If you don’t want one, don’t get one. Why shouldn’t love in all forms be celebrated? Aren’t the values embodied by marriage exactly the values we want to espouse? Separate is not equal.  I hope I get to see true marriage equality in my lifetime. God loves us all exactly as we are.