#self dx culture is

[self-dx-culture-is]

Self-dxed SZPD culture is (possibly) having periods of time where you're aware of logically feeling an emotion (e.g. recognizing that you're angry at someone/something), but not emotionally feeling that emotion (e.g. you don't feel angry; you just know that you are angry)

And no one understanding it when you try to explain it 🥲

[brokend0ll]

chat am i cooked if i think about slitting my wrists just because i am bored?

[the-npd-culture-is]

Self-diagnosed npd culture is "probably I'm faking it to feel special" *proceeds to spend half an hour adoring their own body while looking in the mirror, falling in love with their own reflection like fucking Narcissus*.

⚜️

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[aspd-culture]

would it be strange if i reclaimed psychopath if i was armchair diagnosed as a kid? + i do have aspd traits but not particularly in a situation where i can get a psych eval

Being armchair diagnosed, especially as a child, is not enough to know if you have ASPD. We’re perfectly cool with self-diagnosis here, but it needs to be well researched. One thing you’ll find in the process of that research is why that “as a child” is a problem. ASPD cannot be diagnosed as a child for a reason: because under the age of 18 the traits are not able to be differentiated between normal stressed teenage behavior and in children younger than that, there is a high potential they will not go on to develop ASPD despite having traits of it.

There is quite a high threshold of things that need to go awry in neurological development for someone to end up with a trauma based personality disorder. ASPD in particular comes with a strong potential to avoid the traits becoming the PD if a child or honestly even a teenager is introduced to the support system they need and given reason to trust it.

And even as an adult, you can have some traits without having the disorder. I would definitely do some research, starting with but not exclusively reading the current DSM (DSM V-TR) entry on ASPD, and not just what’s posted in my bio, that’s the criteria but none of the important surrounding information in the ASPD section. That’ll go over a lot of info, and from there you wanna go through both scholarly stuff (articles & research papers - many of which will be stigmatized but it’s important to read because somewhere in there they hide some good info), and anecdotal stuff like this blog but not just this blog. Take in as much information as you can, learn about what it is and what it isn’t, and especially learn about the things that are similar to ASPD but are not ASPD. There are other disorders that look similar, but have key differences.

I suggest all this because unlike some disorders that are either easy to self diagnose (panic disorder - the main thing you need to know is if you have panic attacks, and if you have panic attacks about the fear of having a panic attack) or at least much more straightforward than self diagnosing a personality disorder. PDs are in fact some of the most complicated disorders to categorize and diagnose - even professionally - because when something is affecting every facet of someone’s personality, it’s not going to be easy to figure out what’s a symptom vs what’s situational. They usually require a long rapport with the diagnosing professional because they have to be persistent and consistent across time and situations. That means that it’s not something you can look into quickly and decide, you’ll need to keep watching for the symptoms once you know them and see if you are responding that way across the board or if something is triggering that response in only certain situations.

I can’t stop you from using that term, but I can say that being armchair diagnosed as a child is not a good way to figure out if you have something as complicated as a personality disorder. Honestly, a big reason that I say to people that they need to look at other anecdotal sources from other places too is because someone I’m very close with who has known me for over 10 years at this point and lives with me has BPD and thought I did too, like was 100% certain. In fact they directly thought I had the hyper-empathy of BPD - and so did my ex who knew me for much less time but also has BPD. Even having the disorder yourself and knowing someone for a long time doesn’t mean you can accurately armchair diagnose them. Like I said, these are complicated to diagnose.

For reference, it took me at least a year of fairly constant research (bc I have mental health as a special interest, I was researching something about ASPD or its differential diagnoses for at least a couple hours per week at that time), probably longer, to feel secure self diagnosing with ASPD. While it doesn’t need to necessarily take that long, it does take some effort to understand a disorder like this.

Plain text below the cut:

Being armchair diagnosed, especially as a child, is not enough to know if you have ASPD. We’re perfectly cool with self-diagnosis here, but it needs to be well researched. One thing you’ll find in the process of that research is why that “as a child” is a problem. ASPD cannot be diagnosed as a child for a reason: because under the age of 18 the traits are not able to be differentiated between normal stressed teenage behavior and in children younger than that, there is a high potential they will not go on to develop ASPD despite having traits of it.

There is quite a high threshold of things that need to go awry in neurological development for someone to end up with a trauma based personality disorder. ASPD in particular comes with a strong potential to avoid the traits becoming the PD if a child or honestly even a teenager is introduced to the support system they need and given reason to trust it.

And even as an adult, you can have some traits without having the disorder. I would definitely do some research, starting with but not exclusively reading the current DSM (DSM V-TR) entry on ASPD, and not just what’s posted in my bio, that’s the criteria but none of the important surrounding information in the ASPD section. That’ll go over a lot of info, and from there you wanna go through both scholarly stuff (articles & research papers - many of which will be stigmatized but it’s important to read because somewhere in there they hide some good info), and anecdotal stuff like this blog but not just this blog. Take in as much information as you can, learn about what it is and what it isn’t, and especially learn about the things that are similar to ASPD but are not ASPD. There are other disorders that look similar, but have key differences.

I suggest all this because unlike some disorders that are either easy to self diagnose (panic disorder - the main thing you need to know is if you have panic attacks, and if you have panic attacks about the fear of having a panic attack) or at least much more straightforward than self diagnosing a personality disorder. PDs are in fact some of the most complicated disorders to categorize and diagnose - even professionally - because when something is affecting every facet of someone’s personality, it’s not going to be easy to figure out what’s a symptom vs what’s situational. They usually require a long rapport with the diagnosing professional because they have to be persistent and consistent across time and situations. That means that it’s not something you can look into quickly and decide, you’ll need to keep watching for the symptoms once you know them and see if you are responding that way across the board or if something is triggering that response in only certain situations.

I can’t stop you from using that term, but I can say that being armchair diagnosed as a child is not a good way to figure out if you have something as complicated as a personality disorder. Honestly, a big reason that I say to people that they need to look at other anecdotal sources from other places too is because someone I’m very close with who has known me for over 10 years at this point and lives with me has BPD and thought I did too, like was 100% certain. In fact they directly thought I had the hyper-empathy of BPD - and so did my ex who knew me for much less time but also has BPD. Even having the disorder yourself and knowing someone for a long time doesn’t mean you can accurately armchair diagnose them. Like I said, these are complicated to diagnose.

For reference, it took me at least a year of fairly constant research (bc I have mental health as a special interest, I was researching something about ASPD or its differential diagnoses for at least a couple hours per week at that time), probably longer, to feel secure self diagnosing with ASPD. While it doesn’t need to necessarily take that long, it does take some effort to understand a disorder like this.

[borderline-culture-is]

self-dx quiet BPD culture is trying to tell your family you might have BPD but you "don't act like someone with BPD" so it's disregarded and you're left dealing with your symptoms alone

.

[thescaryhyperfem]

npd culture lowkey wants a burger rn

[gotyouanyway]

in a hell of my own making or whatever

[narcissisticpdcultureis]

what is armchair diagnosis?? isn’t that kinda like self-diagnosis? do you support self diagnosis?

heyo! i completely support self-dx, i've been self-dx with multiple things myself (either currently or before i got confirmation, only really my depression and bpd were things brought up by a therapist first). armchair diagnosing is more like when someone who actually knows very little accurate info about a disorder and/or a person and tries to "diagnose" said person with said disorder. we bring this up specifically for npd because it's very common for people to armchair diagnose people who are abusive, self-centered, toxic, ect with npd simply because they view npd as "bad person disorder."

[selfdxculture]

self dx is doomscrolling thru the anti tags and ending up feeling awful

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[vulnerablepoet]

Let’s talk about self-diagnosis. Is it valid ? . Not everyone is privileged enough to get access to professional diagnosis, and there is also a lot of stigma surrounding mental health still to this day, which prevents people from seeking therapy. However, in order to make an accurate diagnosis, extensive research must be done thoroughly. But how exactly? checking off the symptoms from a list,scoring high on an online quiz, or relating to a 15-second TikTok is not enough to make an accurate diagnosis or self-diagnose. And why exactly is that? The answer lies in the overlap of symptoms in various mental disorders.

The first step is to, of course, learn more about the disorder that you suspect you might have. You can read articles on it, which you can find on the internet, and learn about subtypes if it consists of any. You can read books on it (if you prefer reading online with PDFs, oceanofpdf would be my recommendation), you can learn more about it on YouTube, you can follow content creators with the disorder, learn more about the experiences of people with it, and most importantly, check out the DSM-5 (you can find PDFs of it on the internet). From there, you’ll be able to learn about the [Diagnostic Criteria: Specific symptoms required for diagnosing each mental disorder], [Descriptive Text: Information about symptoms, prevalence, development, risk factors, and functional impact], [Cultural Formulation: Guidelines for assessing the cultural context of symptoms], [Environmental Factors: Consideration of external factors affecting mental health], [Emerging Measures and Models: Tools and models for assessing symptom severity and impact], and [Differential Diagnosis: The process of distinguishing a particular condition from others that present similar clinical features].

This brings me to my next point—researching mental disorders that consist of similar symptoms to yours. This is very crucial in order to prevent misdiagnosis and to find out whether another mental health condition better explains your symptoms and experiences, or to determine whether it’s a case of comorbidity.What exactly is comorbidity? [Comorbidity is when more than one disorder is present in an individual].Now, let’s say you’ve gathered enough information about the disorder and similar ones. What’s next? You can keep a journal, either physical or digital, where you record your symptoms and your experiences with them, the severity of those symptoms, and the areas of your life they are impacting. This will not only help you understand your condition better, but also serve as a healthy coping mechanism.

Previously, I had mentioned that checking off the symptoms from a list, scoring high on an online quiz, or relating to a 15-second TikTok does not always mean you have the disorder, and let me explain further. To be diagnosed with a disorder, symptoms must persist over time, cause significant distress or impair daily functioning, be severe enough to warrant clinical attention, not be better explained by other medical conditions or substance use, and meet the specific criteria outlined in diagnostic manuals like the [DSM-5] or [ICD-11]. Symptoms seen in people with a disorder can also be present in people without the disorder because human emotions and behaviors are complex and influenced by various factors such as stress, hormones, life events, or situational changes, which can temporarily trigger similar responses without indicating a chronic or diagnosable condition. Hence, without further research, do not start saying, “Oh, looks like I have this disorder,” because this can be extremely disrespectful to those who have it and know how debilitating it can be. Regardless of whether you have the disorder or not, if you relate to the symptoms, it may be a good idea to look further into it as well as find coping mechanisms to deal with it.

Now, while it’s true that nobody knows you better than you do, and even with the extensive knowledge you gather on the disorder, you cannot undermine the years of training and education a professional has, which they use to diagnose you. If you have access to a professional or can afford one, you can discuss your concerns regarding the disorder with them. I’m not saying to just go up and tell them that you have XYZ condition, but rather share your experiences that are causing significant distress in your day-to-day life and wait for their insights. If you trust them to be open to your thoughts on self-diagnosis, you can, of course, share why you think you have XYZ and ask them if they think it’s the case and if they could further evaluate you for it.Regardless, mental health professionals are human too and are capable of making mistakes, such as a misdiagnosis. However, it’s still a good idea to get checked by a professional if you suspect something. Also, if you’re not fully sure, or when it comes to complex disorders such as PDs, please use the term “suspect” rather than directly implying you have it. It’s not an obligation, just a suggestion.

To conclude, yes, I think, self-diagnosis can be valid if you take these factors into consideration, but there’s no guarantee of its accuracy. Therefore, it must be approached with great sensitivity and careful evaluation.

[self-dx-culture-is]

Self diagnosed NPD culture is knowing damn well you have NPD, displaying symptoms for years, and your bitchass therapist going "wElL mAYbe ItS jUSt hORmONes" like stfu

oof

[hpdcultureis]

(Questioning) Self diagnosed HPD culture is wanting to get a diagnosis because every time you think you’re faking it for attention and then realize that you exaggerate for attention and then you realize that that’s symptoms of HPD but you can’t just say that you have HPD because that would be self diagnosing without research even though you already did the research 10 other times when this same thing has happened but you have to do the research again cause then it wouldn’t be valid and god forbid you’re not valid…

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[obleke-yoonique-otherkin]

I once had the thought while watching anthropomorphic media . . .

You simply can't make a human face evoke the same level of emotion as baring teeth or ears moving.

Now, that's not to say that live action and animated human faces can't be very expressive, and exaggeratedly so depending on style.

That's also not to say that real human faces have a subtlety to them that we've evolved to notice, that can be very arresting in that it holds our whole, undivided attention and can be of paramount importance. Nonverbal cues make up more communication than verbal, some researchers say.

(autism cry in the corner)

But. you can't get the same basal ganglion reaction as a wolf snarling, or intense curiosity of a cat swiveling its ears forward to focus, nor can you create the contrast of previous placidity, the same degree of whoa freaky as a real horse rolling its eyes back so your can suddenly see the whites.

In the cartoon realm, if a chameleon, after its eyes have been wandering the entire conversation, then converge them both on you, that signifies far more this is important, hey emphasis than a human exchange where everyone's used to keeping eye contact the whole time.

The animal kingdom simply has more hit you in the head potential for emotions than a typical human quirk of an eyebrow, or tightened grimace.

And that's ironic, given that humans are (supposedly, who knows about elephants) the most emotionally aware animals. Visually, compared to animals, we are almost detached from strong, turbulent displays. We can't puff out a tail, or raise or lower one, we can't even raise or lower our own body hair in a visually noticeable way (unless an eagle was watching you from at least 18 feet away maybe, and had the sapience to note the significance of it)

Perhaps, at some level, this actually allows us to gain distance from emotions. Perhaps, as we vaguely take note of whether someone is acting defensive or anticipatory, we are able to focus more on language, as new as it is, this abstract form of communication, on the evolutionary front. Of course this distancing ourselves, even though it may keep us from acting on every impulse that occurs to us, isn't always a good thing- repression is the pits, and not being in tune with emotions can, in other patterns, also wreak havoc with being able to have self-control of our words or behavior. I think most everyone envisions a future where we are more and more logical- but I think not only do most humans not act logically 51%+ of the time (despite assuring yourself you do) I think losing a bit of this ability to both express and read body language on each other and other species is either a culturally developed trait we should look at ameliorating, or an evolved trait we should look at ameliorating the same way we moderate our violent tendencies. (as an extreme example- probably shoulda picked something different there)

I don't know if media can help us recapture this exactly- but as media does not contain the same social pressure of reading cues correctly and consequences of failure, it may be a good testing ground, especially for ND folks. May already be that. Serving that purpose.

Maybe that's why hyperfixation happens, to parse small meanings with no stakes.

We've had entirely silent series and silent movies (and I'm talking about recently, not 'silent movies' or 'move-ies' as the derivation goes). So what happens when we fill half of a scene with silence, as someone or an anthro someone tries to read the other. What happens when anthros and humans interact, and humans comment on the difficulty of reading cats, while solitude-oriented cats think other species entirely annoying at the level of emoting they do on a regular basis. A cat character raised by a human family tries to detangle how much they simply can't read due to missing the development window and how much is instinctual. A human character raised by dogs is astounded by how much other humans miss. A human character who goes to converse and study mice and learn their language has to be incredibly mindful of any even vaguely threatening tone or behavior on their part. And meanwhile, the audience has discourse among itself . . . did that mysterious character we don't know much about mean this or that by all those different head tilts? Because none of the main cast can figure it out and it's never resolved.

Then you go back to your IRL existence and find yourself starting to pay more attention to the subtleties of your own friends and enemies.

[aspd-culture]

Aspd culture is realizing 'huh. I only have one person in my life other than myself who id feel sad about dying or genuinely feel emotional empathy for when theyre hurt. Strange' and then going on to say you dont have aspd because youre not commiting crimes 24/7 and telling people they should die when they piss you off.

aspd-culture-is

[borderline-culture-is]

self dx bpd culture is less than an hour ago being -

"everyone hates me. I am the true scum of the earth. even my gf has beef with me. kids at school don't like me. everything sucks and I should just off myse-"

then being -

"omg music!!! =33"

intense mood swings gonna be the death of me ngl

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[evantuall]

when you're still following tags from a previous hyperfixtation like i haven't thought of bungo stray dogs in 7 months but i appreciate the art nonetheless