#mental disorder representation

[chronicsymptomsyndrome]

Having survived abuse from people with mental illnesses, I know the urge to warn others to be wary of those mental illnesses. I know how often it can feel like that is your only power in life…the only action you can take against what you went through. But listen. Just because a mentally ill person caused you complex trauma, doesn’t mean you get to generalize and slander and malign every person with that mental illness.

You do not have to forgive your abusers. but you do have to heal without spreading stigma and misinformation. you do have to heal without antagonizing or dehumanizing others who are also just trying to heal. you have to help break the cycle. because nobody can heal alone.

[wisteriawater]

bleh. something something, biker jacket for Malik Ishtar.

[disability-kitties]

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Kitty mock up

Designer: @zthesheep

Flag Design: Source unknown, used widely

[cripplecharacters]

How can give a villain a mental illness (specifically BPD and schizophrenia) without demonizing the illness itself?

Hi asker,

For one thing, consider exactly why you are giving your villain these conditions.

Is it because you find them "scary" or because you think the mental illness leads to a logical leap to their villainy? Because those often lead to a character that's not well researched and that in fact demonizes whatever mental illness they have.

For another, in order to not demonize the illness within the text, you have to ensure that not all traits of their villainy are tied to their mental illness. For example, if every single delusion or hallucination your character has causes them to engage in villainous acts (which I am being vague on because stories have different villains who do different things and etc.), that is demonizing the illness.

Make sure that whatever reasons the villain has to be that villain are not just tied to their mental illness. People who are mentally ill have other things that piss them off, too. Personal vendettas, petty things they've hated ever since they were a child, feeling slighted by someone, actually being slighted by someone, wanting to bring the whole tri-state-area down, wanting to get somewhere or become something or obtain something no matter the costs, whatever.

The villain has gotten to where they are because of more than just one reason, because they're a person. People are complicated and don't do things because of 1 reason. They do things because who they are and what they want is cumulative to their whole life.

Another thing you can do that we tend to recommend is to include characters with the same mental illnesses that are not villains. Like, have a character with BPD who's just a Normal Guy or an ally to the hero(es) or their sister or something like that. This can make it clearer within the text that the mental illness, just by being a mental illness, is not what makes the villain.

I recommend you look through our villains with disabilities tag, as well; and since you mention schizophrenia and BPD, our psychotic spectrum representation tag and our personality disorders tag. I have linked them here, but also this post is tagged with all three.

Hope this helps,

mod sparrow

[lilqu33rboi]

Ableism PSA cuz some ppl at my school are pissing me off

Ableism is everywhere, and it's way more common than you'd think. It's not just about wheelchair users and blind people (although disability justice is also equally important for these groups!!! they're just the most common disabilities people think of). Ableism is that "funny" nickname you gave to an autistic kid that has a stereotypical presentation of traits. It's that joke you made about a disabled guy that struggles with hygiene. It's avoiding and ignoring an intellectually disabled kid that wants to be friends with you instead of just telling him you're not interested. Disability justice is justice for ALL disabilities, not just the ones you understand. And no one is immune from this way of thinking- not even disabled people. I've said and done ableist things in the past, too, but i unlearn the shitty things i do as i notice how they affect people. some of the people that i used to disregard and misunderstand the most are now really great friends of mine, and i can't imagine what i would've been missing out on if i hadn't given them a chance. this isn't to say that you have to like every disabled person you encounter; some people's personalities just don't mesh with yours, just as it is with anyone else. i just wanted to say that it pays off to open your mind to more inclusive ideas and unlearn hurtful ways of thinking. here ends the psa, thanks for reading :))

[noodle-shenaniganery]

I think one of the big issues with autism representation is largely that we don’t get that many autistic characters in media. It’s impossible to represent the entire spectrum in one character. And oftentimes, even when we do get representation, it’s the same types of characters over and over again. The spectrum is broad! It’s chaotic! Almost any representation could hypothetically reflect someone’s experiences, so why keep using the same few archetypes repeatedly? There are so many ways an autistic character could be written. Look, here’s some:

- A nonverbal autistic character with the power to manipulate plants who often uses plants to communicate (e.g. grows cacti when upset, dandelions when happy, roses when they like someone/something, orchids when confused, etc.). They also use plants to move around, grab things, point, etc. due to significantly impaired motor control.

- A nonspeaking, physically disabled autistic character with strabismus who is the ‘tech genius’ of the group. They often can’t go on missions themself because of their disability, but are completely fine with providing the rest with the gadgets, advice, and the occasional Dad Joke™️.

- The ghost of an autistic person who keeps trying to make friends with the new residents of their home, but doesn’t understand social rules at all and keeps accidentally scaring people by appearing/saying things without notice. They also stim by yelling, singing, and moving (things) around, which understandably freaks people out.

- A blind, semispeaking autistic teenager whose special interest is music, and their life mostly revolves around music. They mostly speak in song quotes, and are trying to learn how to play as many instruments as possible. They switch between different mobility aids that help them get around (they are dynamically disabled from their Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome), from crutches to wheechairs. They could also try to be in their school’s music club and/or orchestra, while also dealing with high school shenanigans.

- An autistic adult who, after decades of going undiagnosed, is now adjusting to life knowing that they’re not broken, just different. They also have comorbid mental illnesses, partially as a result of their late diagnosis.

There you go. There’s some ideas.

(If anyone uses these, please tag me or let me know, I’d love to read some stories with these.)

[canonicallyplural]

The unnamed protagonist from Milk Inside A Bag Of Milk Inside A Bag Of Milk/Milk Outside A Bag Of Milk Outside A Bag Of Milk is canonically plural!

You play as a voice inside her head, communicating with her and either helping her calm down during psychosis or insulting her. It's different from games where you're controlling the protagonist, she does what she wants and you can only talk to her and suggest things. It's a really good depiction of schizospec plurality!

.

[mad0katsuki]

“S-stop romanticising disorders, I-it’s bad 🥺”

Yeah, I know your point, but the person of the video just put characters that have the same disorder as them. WHERE THE FUCK IS THE ROMANTICISING IN THAT?

[wheelchairbarbie]

Disability pride: accepting and honoring each person's uniqueness and seeing it as a natural and beautiful part of human diversity.

[hiemalice]

I hope everyone fangirling over tom holland’s new series The Crowded Room remembers that you are getting this cost at the lives of real fucking people living with DID. You are watching a romanticization of a man who threw the DID community under the bus by winning a case of “my alter did it” which people have spent decades fighting against. You are letting the man who turned the serial killer alter into reality, who turned this disorder’s stigma REAL.

I hope you know that while you’re excited for you celebrity crush’s new series, we are getting mocked and harassed by citizens and medical fields alike. That we are getting driven to suicide and being murdered because of the fearmongering. This is the cost that comes with it.

You have blood on your hands.

[angelellipsis-devilofdots]

traumatized people find comfort in traumatized characters because they represent our feelings and experiences, and serve as a reminder that recovery and healthy coping is possible and viable, and i think this is beautiful

[mightymelancholy]

A form only for those diagnosed or did the research and truly believed to have Antisocial Personality Disorder. This form does not require an email.

[disability-kitties]

Fragile X Syndrome Kitty mock up design

Designer: @alexandraisyes

Flag Design: @alexandraisyes

This Kitty is part of our Neurodivergent series

[annispillowfort]

A Story of Almosts

I’m sorry. I’m sorry.

This may be me at my best,

standing here, arms heavy with empty,

a battlefield of apologies spilling from my mouth.

Where were you when I was still kind,

when my edges hadn’t learned to cut,

when the world hadn’t carved me

into a space I don’t recognize?

You love each other, you do—

and here’s the tragedy: it’s not enough.

Not enough to silence the echoes of “maybe,”

to build a bridge over “perhaps.”

We are a story told in fragments,

a tragedy of almosts.

Where were we when we could have saved it?

I’m beginning to know myself,

and I’m afraid of what I see.

I don’t exist.

I am the space between what I’d like to be

and what others made of me,

a ghost haunting the ruins of its own creation.

You deserved more than this hollow version,

this shadow of love.

Still, thank you—

thank you for loving me

when I still tasted of heartache and war,

when my hands were bloodied with my own undoing.

You kissed the scars as if they were holy,

not knowing they would bleed you dry.

You loved me in the way the earth loves fire,

even as it burns.

Let me be very clear:

every version of the story ends the same.

Every version ends with you being slaughtered,

love turned to ash beneath the weight

of what I could never become.

And I’m sorry. I’m sorry.

This may be me at my best—

a tragedy of almosts,

a whisper of what could have been.

[chloe-creating]

Doll artist Anne Aeves made a blythe doll of me, with my bald spot. I love her. 🥺❤️

[dangersnekcrowleylover]

Today on Good Omens Showerthoughts:

As much as I hate "diagnosing" ocs, or canon characters, I have always strongly felt that Crowley is intensly ADHD coded with mild sprinkles of BPD (not bipolar-!). And I just like that.

Any other interpretations are JUST as valid! Everyone can feel seen here!