#so it was either dissociate from my identity/the content enough to enjoy the parts I did like or not engage with anything at all

[infernallegaycy]

Writing Psychotic Characters

Hi! I’ve seen a few of these writing things pop up recently (and in the past), but I haven’t seen any on psychotic characters—which, judging from the current state of portrayals of psychosis in media, is something I think many people* need. And as a psychotic person who complains about how badly psychosis tends to be represented in media, I thought I’d share a bit of information and suggestions!

A lot of this isn’t necessarily specifically writing advice but information about psychosis, how it presents, and how it affects daily life. This is partially purposeful—I feel that a large part of poor psychotic representation stems from a lack of understanding about psychosis, and while I’m not usually in an educating mood, context and understanding are crucial to posts like this. A lot of this also relates to writing psychosis in a modern-day setting, simply because that’s where bad psychotic representation tends to mostly occur (and it’s the only experience I’ve had, obviously), but please don’t shy away from applying this advice to psychotic characters in sci-fi/fantasy/historical fiction/etc. Psychosis is not a wholly modern phenomenon, nor would speculative fiction feel truly escapist without being able to see yourself reflected in it.

Please also note that I am not a medical professional nor an expert in psychology. I simply speak from my personal experiences, research, and what I’ve read of others’ experiences. I also do not speak for all psychotic people, and more than welcome any alternative perspectives to my own.

*These people, in all honesty, aren’t likely to be the ones willingly reading this. But there are people who are willing to learn, so here’s your opportunity.

(Warnings: Mentions of institutionalization/hospitalization, including forced institutionalization; ableism/saneism; and brief descriptions of delusions and hallucinations. Also, it’s a pretty long post!)

Up front, some terminology notes: “Unpsychotic” refers to people who are not psychotic. This includes other mentally ill and neurodivergent people. Please try to avoid terminology like “non-[identity],” as much of it is co-opted from “nonblack.”

Also, “psychotic” and “delusional” will not be, and should not be, used to refer to anything but respectively someone who experiences psychosis and someone who experiences delusions. Remove these words as insults and negative descriptors for anyone you dislike from your vocabulary.

In addition, I generally use adjectives rather than person-first language because that is the language I, and the seeming majority of other neurodivergent and mentally ill people, prefer. Others might describe themselves differently (as “people with psychosis,” for instance). Don’t assume either way—I’d generally suggest you say “psychotic person” first, and then correct yourself if the person in question prefers different terminology.

1) Psychosis is a symptom, not a disorder.

As a term, “psychosis” describes any number of symptoms that indicate a break with reality, such as delusions and hallucinations (I’ll go into more detail about this in a bit). It commonly occurs as part of several mental and neurological disorders, including but not limited to:

Schizophrenia

Schizophreniform disorder (same symptoms as schizophrenia, but for a shorter period of time than 6 months)

Schizoaffective disorder (combined symptoms of psychosis and a mood disorder, but not enough to completely fill the diagnostic criteria for either)

Bipolar disorder (typically as part of manic episodes, but it can also occur in unipolar depression and depressive episodes)

Personality disorders, including borderline personality disorder (for which transient paranoia under stress is part of the diagnostic criteria), paranoid personality disorder, and schizoid personality disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder

Dissociative disorders (though psychosis =/= dissociative identity disorder; if you want further information on the latter, which I do not have, please seek out another post!)

Psychosis can also occur with forms of epilepsy, sleep disorders, metabolic disorders, and autoimmune disorders. It tends to be a major part of neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. In addition, it can occur when not related to a chronic health condition; things like sleep deprivation and stress can induce temporary psychosis, as can drug use and medication.

This isn’t to say you necessarily need to define a disorder for a psychotic character, as some psychotic people (including myself) primarily just describe ourselves as “psychotic,” and some aren’t diagnosed with anything specific. However, if your psychotic character is a main/perspective character, I definitely recommend it. Chances are, someone with that disorder is reading/watching, and I’m sure they’d love to see a bit of direct representation. In general, you probably should at least have something in mind, because psychotic symptoms and severity/onset can differ greatly.

Some psychotic disorders’ diagnostic criteria explicitly exclude others (someone cannot be diagnosed with both schizophrenia and schizophreniform disorder at the same time, for instance, though the latter can develop into the former), but comorbidity is possible—and often common—among certain disorders and other neurological/mental conditions. Rates vary, so definitely research this, but in short, it is very much possible for psychotic people to have multiple disorders, including disorders that don’t include psychotic symptoms. (Personally speaking: I’m autistic, ADHD, and OCD in addition to being psychotic, and I’m physically disabled as well.)

I’m not here to do all the research for you—if you want to know more about specific psychotic disorders, then by all means, look them up! Go beyond Wikipedia and Mayo Clinic articles, too. Talk to people who have them. Seek out blogs and YouTube channels run by people with them. Read books about psychosis by psychotic people**. Pay attention to how we describe ourselves and our disorders.

And if you want to write characters with those disorders, especially if you’re writing from their perspectives, then please for the love of God, hire a sensitivity reader. For authenticity, I would recommend seeking out someone with the same disorder, not just anyone psychotic.

**If you want a fiction recommendation: I don’t actually know if the author is schizophrenic like the main character, but I really enjoyed and related to The Drowning Girl by Caitlín R. Kiernan. Content warnings include, but might not be limited to—it’s been a while since I read it—unreality, self-harm, suicide, abuse, and mentions of transphobia. I haven’t personally read any autobiographies/memoirs/essays yet, so I don’t have any to offer, and quite a few that came up through a cursory search seemed only to focus on being an inspiration to neurotypical people or were from a perspective other than that of the psychotic person in question. If anyone (preferably psychotic people) has any more recommendations, fiction or nonfiction, let me know!

2) Not every psychotic person has the same symptoms.

As mentioned, psychosis consists of symptoms that involve separation with reality, which can present as positive or negative symptoms. Every person’s experiences with these are different, but some generalizations can be made. I definitely recommend reading studies and articles (especially directly by psychotic people) describing experiences and presentation!

I’ll start with positive symptoms, which refer to the presence of symptoms unpsychotic people don’t have, and can include hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thoughts, speech, and behavior.

You probably know what hallucinations are (perceptions of sensory information that is not really present), but you might not know the specifics. Types of hallucinations include:

Auditory (which tend to be the most common, and are probably the form everyone is most familiar with, primarily as “hearing voices”)

Visual

Olfactory

Tactile/haptic

Gustatory (taste)

Somatic

Some types with regards to bodily sensations get a little muddled from here, but some forms of hallucinations you might not have heard of include thermic (hot/cold), hygric (fluids), kinesthetic (bodily movements), and visceral (inner organs).

(Note: Hypnagogic/hypnopompic hallucinations, which occur when falling asleep or waking up, are not related to psychosis and can occur in anyone.)

As mentioned, there are some forms of hallucinations that are more common, but that is not to say that everyone has the same hallucinations. A lot of us have auditory and/or visual hallucinations, but not everyone does. Some have tactile, olfactory, or gustatory hallucinations instead of or in addition to more common forms (hi! Auditory hallucinations are pretty rare for me, but I constantly feel bugs/spiders crawling on me). If you write a psychotic character that experiences hallucinations, then you should definitely do further research on these types and manifestations of them.

You’re likely also familiar with delusions (a belief that contradicts reality), though again, you might not know the specifics. Delusions can be classified as bizarre (implausible, not shared or understood by peers of the same culture) or non-bizarre (false, but technically possible). They can relate to one’s mood or not.

Some people only experience delusions and no other significant psychotic symptoms (this occurs in delusional disorder). Delusions differ between people and tend to be heavily influenced by environment, but there are some common themes, such as:

Persecution

Guilt, punishment, or sin

Mind reading

Thought insertion

Jealousy

Control

Reference (coincidences having meaning)

Grandeur

Certain types of delusions are more common in certain cultures/backgrounds or certain disorders. I can’t really go into details about specific delusions, because I try not to read many examples (for a reason I’m about to mention), but if you plan on writing a character who experiences delusions, I definitely recommend heavily researching delusions and how it feels to experience them.

I would like to note: I’m not sure how common it is, but I’ve noticed that I personally have a tendency to pick up delusions that I see other psychotic people talking about having. Just kind of, like, an “oh shit what if” feeling creeps up on me, and before I know it, that delusion has wormed its way into my life. Just in case you want some idea of how psychotic people can interact amongst ourselves!

Another quick note: Delusions, by definition, are untrue beliefs; this does not mean that anyone who has ever been delusional is inherently untrustworthy.

Disorganization of thoughts/speech and behavior is more self-explanatory. Problems with thinking and speaking tend to be one of the most common psychotic symptoms, sometimes considered even more so than delusions and hallucinations. There are a lot of ways thought processes can be disrupted, and I honestly think it would be kind of difficult to portray this if you haven’t experienced it, but some common manifestations are:

Derailment

Tangents (which you might notice me doing sometimes in this very post)

Getting distracted mid-sentence/thought

Incoherence/“word salad”

Thought blocking (sudden stops in thoughts/speech)

Repetition of words/phrases

Pressured speech (rapid, urgent speech)

Use of invented words

Poverty of speech/content of speech

(Note that thought/speech disturbances aren’t necessarily exclusive to psychotic disorders. They tend to be common in ADHD and autism as well, though symptoms can be more severe when they occur in, for example, schizophrenia.)

Behavioral abnormalities can include catatonia, which presents in a number of ways, such as mutism, echolalia, agitation, stupor, catalepsy, posturing, and more. Episodes of catatonia last for hours and sometimes longer, which usually requires hospitalization and/or medication. This tends to overlap heavily with symptoms of autism spectrum disorders, which can be comorbid with conditions like schizophrenia.

Negative symptoms, on the other hand, refer to the absence of certain experiences. It can include flat affect (lack of or limited emotional reactions), generally altered emotional responses, a decrease in speech, and low motivation. Most of these speak for themselves, and I’m not honestly sure how to describe them to someone who’s never experienced them in a way that isn’t very metaphorical and therefore kind of unhelpful. If any other psychotic people have suggestions, feel free to add on/message me!

Not every psychotic disorder involves or requires both positive and negative symptoms (to my knowledge, manic episodes of bipolar disorder mostly only include positive symptoms), but many psychotic people experience both. And, as expressed multiple times—and I really can’t stress it enough—every person’s experience with psychosis is different.

If you interview two psychotic people at random, chances are they aren’t going to have the same combination of symptoms. Chances are they won’t even have the same disorder. Therefore, if you write multiple psychotic characters, they shouldn’t be identical in terms of personality or psychosis.

There are also some qualities of psychotic disorders that may not necessarily be diagnostic criteria but are prominent in people with these conditions. These also vary between disorders, but cognitive impairments and similar traits are fairly common.

3) In a similar vein, daily experiences can vary greatly. Psychosis can be a major part of psychotic people’s lives, but it doesn’t always affect daily life.

For some people, psychosis occurs in episodes, not 24/7; you may have heard the term “psychotic break,” which tends to refer to a first episode of psychosis. This is especially true of disorders where psychotic symptoms occur under stress or during mood episodes.

For other people, psychosis is a near-constant. It can wax and wane, but it never completely goes away. These people might be more likely to invest in medication or long-term therapy and other treatment methods.

Psychosis’s impact on everyday life can also be affected by insight (how well the person can tell they’re having psychotic symptoms). There’s not a ton of accessible research—or research at all—into insight and how it affects psychotic people, and I’m not a big fan of describing people as having high/low insight because I think it has the potential to be used like functioning labels (which, for the record, are bad; plenty of other autistic people have written at length about this), but just something to keep in mind. It’s a sliding scale; at different points in time, the same person might have limited or significant awareness of their symptoms. Both greater and poorer insight have been linked to decreased quality of life, so neither one is really a positive.

Just something to be aware of: Yes, sometimes we do realize how “crazy” we seem. Yes, sometimes we don’t. No, it doesn’t really make things any better to know that what we’re seeing/thinking/etc isn’t real. No, people with low insight shouldn’t be blamed or mocked for this.

As such, the diagnostic process can vary greatly. Psychotic people aware of their symptoms or how their lives are being impacted may directly ask for a diagnosis or seek out information on their own. Other times, family or friends might notice symptoms and bring them up to a mental health professional, or someone might be forcibly institutionalized and diagnosed that way.

My professional diagnostic processes have been pretty boring: Over time, I just gradually brought up different diagnoses I thought might fit me to my therapist, whom I started seeing for anxiety (which I no longer strongly identify with, on account of my anxiety mostly stemming from me being autistic, OCD, and psychotic). I filled out checklists and talked about my symptoms. We moved on with the treatment processes I was already undergoing and incorporated more coping mechanisms and stuff like that into therapy sessions. Hardly the tearful scenes of denial you’re used to seeing or reading about.

Other people might have very different experiences, or very similar ones! It all depends! I generally don’t really like reading scenes of people being diagnosed (it’s just exposition and maybe some realization on the PoV character’s part, but it’s usually somewhat inaccurate in that regard), so you can probably steer away from that sort of thing, but you might find it useful to note how your character was identified somewhere? I don’t really have any strong opinions on this.

I’d also like to note: Everything I publicly speak about having, I’ve discussed in a professional therapy setting, just because of my personal complexes. However, I do fully support self-diagnosis. Bigotry and money are huge obstacles against getting professional diagnoses, and if someone identifies with a certain disorder and seeks out treatment mechanisms for it, there’s no real harm being done. If someone is genuinely struggling and they benefit from coping mechanisms intended for a disorder they might not have, then I think that’s better than if they shied away because they weren’t professionally diagnosed with it, and therefore didn’t get help they needed. With proper research, self-diagnosis is fully ethical and reasonable.

I do not want to debate this, and any attempts to force me into a discussion about professional versus self-diagnosis will be ignored.

Anyway! I can’t really identify any specific daily experiences with psychosis you might want to include, because as mentioned, everyone has different symptoms and ways they cope with them.

Some psychotic people might not experience symptoms outside of an episode, which can be brought on by any number of things; some might experience symptoms only under general stress; some might have consistent symptoms. The content of hallucinations and delusions can also shift over time.

Psychosis can also affect anyone—there are certain demographics certain disorders are more likely to occur in, but this could just as easily be due to biases in diagnostic criteria or professionals themselves as it could be due to an actual statistical correlation. If you want to figure out how a psychotic character behaves on a day-to-day basis, then you’re better off shaping who they are as a person beyond their psychosis first, then incorporating their psychosis into things.

(A note about this: I consider my psychosis a major part of me, and I firmly believe that I would be a very different person without it; that’s why I refer to myself as a “psychotic person” rather than “a person with psychosis.” However, there is a difference between that and unpsychotic people making psychotic characters’ only trait their psychosis.)

4) Treatment for psychosis differs from person to person. The same things don’t work for everyone.

Some people are on antipsychotics; others aren’t. Medication is a personal choice and not a necessity—no one should be judged either for being on medication or for not being on medication. There are many reasons behind either option. Please do not ask psychotic people about their medication/lack thereof unprompted.

If you want to depict a psychotic character on medication, then research different forms of antipsychotics and how they affect psychotic people. I’ve never been on medication and don’t really plan to be (though if I ever do, I’m definitely taking a note from Phasmophobia’s book and calling them “Sanity Pills.” Just to clarify, I don’t want unpsychotic people repeating this joke, but if you want some insight on how some of us regard our health…), so you’re better off looking elsewhere for this sort of information!

I’m not going to get into my personal opinions on institutionalization and the psychiatry industry in general now, but institutionalization is, while common, also not necessary, and many psychotic people—and mentally ill and neurodivergent people in general—have faced harm and trauma due to institutionalization. Again, I can’t offer direct personal experience, but I recommend steering clear of plotlines directly related to psychiatric hospitals.

I would also like to emphasis the word treatment. Psychosis has no cure. It is possible for psychosis to only last a single episode (whether because it’s only due to stress/another outside factor or because it is treated early), or for symptoms to be greatly reduced over time and with treatment, but for the most part, psychotic people are psychotic for life.

However, with proper support networks and coping skills, many psychotic people are able to lead (quote unquote) “normal” lives. What coping mechanisms work for what people differs, but some psychosis-specific coping mechanisms might be:

Taping webcams for delusions of persecution/surveillance (which is honestly also just something everyone should do with webcams that aren’t in use)

Covering/closing windows for similar reasons

Using phone cameras/audio recordings to distinguish visual and auditory hallucinations from reality (most of the time, a hallucination won’t show up on camera, though it’s possible for people to hallucinate something on a camera screen too)

Similarly, removing glasses/contact lenses to check a visual hallucination

Asking people you trust (because of stigma and delusions, this might not be a long list) to check for symptoms of an oncoming episode

Avoiding possible triggers for psychosis (for example, I don’t engage with horror media often because a lot of it -- both psychological horror and slasher-type things -- can trigger delusions and hallucinations)

I’d also like to mention that treatment isn’t a clean, one-way process; especially with certain disorders, it’s normal to go up and down over time. I’d honestly be really uncomfortable with a psychotic character whose symptoms don’t affect their life whatsoever. There are ways you can write how psychosis affects someone that are… weird, which I’ll touch on, but overall, I think it’s better to actually depict a psychotic person whose symptoms have a clear impact on their life (even if that impact is, say, they’re on medication that negates some of their symptoms).

Just to reiterate: I am not a medical professional and cannot offer real-life advice regarding treatment, especially medication. Please do not ask me too detailed questions regarding this.

5) There are a lot of stereotypes and stigma surrounding psychosis.

The way psychosis is perceived both by general society and the field of psychology has changed a lot over the years, but even now, it still remains highly stigmatized and misunderstood. Wall of text incoming, but it’s important stuff.

Typical media portrayal of psychosis tends to fall into specific categories: The scary, violent psychotic person, or the psychotic person who is so crazy you can’t help but laugh. There are other bad depictions, but these are generally the ways I see psychotic people regarded and represented the most, so I want to address them directly.

Let’s talk about psychosis in horror first. Psychosis is often stereotyped as making people aggressive and violent. You’ve all seen the “psychotic killer” trope and depictions of people who are made violent and evil by their psychosis, even if it’s not explicitly named as the case. You’ve all seen “psychotic” used as a negative adjective, used synonymously to murderous, evil, harmful, violent, manipulative, etc—maybe you’ve even used it that way in the past. There’s no denying that the way society regards psychotic people is overwhelmingly negative, and that leaks into media.

If you are considering giving a violent, irredeemable antagonist psychosis, consider this: Don’t. More or less every psychotic person hates this trope. It’s inaccurate and, needless to say, rooted in ableism.

There are racialized aspects to this as well. People of color, especially Black and Latine people, are already stereotyped as being aggressive, violent, and scary; there’s also a history of overdiagnosis (and often misdiagnosis) of schizophrenia in Black people, especially civil rights activists. White and white-passing people will only be singled out if someone notices us exhibiting psychotic symptoms, but Black and brown people are already under scrutiny. Be extra cautious about how you write psychotic characters of color.

I’m not saying you can never give a psychotic person, say, a temper; in some cases, it might even make sense. Spells of uncontrollable anger are part of the diagnostic criteria for BPD, for example, and irritability is a common trait of manic episodes. Some delusions and hallucinations can affect aggression (emphasis on can—it would be inaccurate to imply that this is always the case. Once again, each person has a different experience with their psychotic symptoms).

But when the only psychotic or psychotic-coded characters you write are angry and violent, even when the situation doesn’t call for it, then there’s a problem. When you want to write a schizophrenic character, but only in a situation where they’re going on a killing spree, there’s a problem.

Studies have shown that no substantial link exists between psychosis and violence. There is a small association, but I think it would be reasonable to say this is partially because of the stigma surrounding psychosis and various other overlapping factors; no violence or crime exists in a vacuum. In addition, though I can’t find any exact statistics on this, psychotic people are susceptible to being victims of violence (likely because of this very stereotype).

On this note, don’t use mental hospitals as a setting for horror, especially if you plan on depicting the mentally ill patients there as antagonistic and unhinged. As mentioned earlier, institutionalization is a huge trigger for many psychotic people. True, psychiatric hospitals have definitely served as a source of trauma and pain for many in the past, but mentally ill and neurodivergent people have been (and are) the victims in those situations.

Also, don’t do the “what if it was all a delusion” thing. I know this is most common in ~edgy~ theories about children’s series, but… yikes.

In the same vein that you should avoid depictions of psychotic people that are ripped straight from a bad horror movie, don’t push it too far into comedy either. You’ve heard “psych ward” jokes, you’ve seen “I put the hot in psychotic” jokes (a supposedly humorous instance of that psychotic as a negative descriptor thing), you’ve heard people say “I have anxiety/depression, but I’m not crazy!”

Even other mentally ill and neurodivergent people constantly throw us under the bus, as can be seen in that last one. We’re the butt of plenty of jokes—we see things that aren’t there, we talk to ourselves, we believe things that are just so wacky you can’t believe anyone would think that way. (Even when we don’t.)

If you have to write another character laughing at a psychotic character for their symptoms, then have it swiftly criticized in the text, and try not to imply the reader should find psychosis funny either. Treat psychotic characters’ symptoms with sympathy and understanding, not ridicule.

Psychotic people literally cannot help our delusions/hallucinations/other symptoms. If something we think/say seems “crazy” to you, chances are it does to us as well.

(We’re talking about portraying psychosis in fiction, but this applies to real-life treatment of psychotic people, too!)

Also, I’d like to note—all of this is about the way unpsychotic people view psychotic people. If you see a psychotic person laughing at themself or viewing their symptoms as scary, then that is not an invitation for you to laugh along or go beyond symptoms and think the person is scary for being psychotic. That’s the thing about gallows humor; you have to be the one on the gallows.

Moving on! In romance, there is often a presumption that love can cure psychosis. This is false. No matter how much you love (whether romantically or platonically) and want to help a psychotic person, that alone will not “heal” their psychosis. Please do not depict a psychotic person having to be cured to be happy or in love. It doesn’t work that way.

This doesn’t mean you should stray away from romance in general—I personally would definitely like to see more portrayals of psychotic people being loved and supported, especially in romantic relationships. I’d prefer it not be in spite of their psychosis, either; it would be weird if someone loved a person because of their psychosis, but I don’t think you can really love someone whom you disregard such a large part of either.

Point-blank: Psychotic people are worthy of love and affection, and I think this should show in media as well.

In relation to relationships, I’d also strongly advise steering away from writing family members and friends who see someone’s psychosis as harder on them than for the psychotic person, unless you want to explicitly disavow this behavior. Sure, it probably is difficult for other people to witness my psychotic symptoms. But it’s harder for me to have them.

I’m not sure if this is a widely-held belief, but some people also seem to think psychosis is less common than it is. Psychotic people are all around you, and if you read that as a threat or anything like that, you might need to do some self-evaluating. We exist, online and in person, and we can see and read and hear the things you say about us!

Specifically: By the NIMH’s statistics, roughly 3% of people (3 out of every 100) in the United States will experience psychosis at some point in their lives. Around 100,000 people experience their first episode a year.

This also means that it’s possible unpsychotic people reading this will end up developing a form of psychosis at some point in your life as well. Yes, even without a genetic basis; yes, even as a full-grown adult (see how common psychosis is in neurodegenerative disorders). Now this one is intended as a threat (/hj).

Also, you can’t always tell who is psychotic and who is not. I imagine there are a lot of people who wouldn’t know I’m psychotic without me explicitly saying so. Set aside any notions you might have of being able to identify psychotic people, because they will definitely influence how you might go into writing a psychotic character, and they will definitely end up pissing off a psychotic person in your life. Because… you probably know at least one!

People often regard psychosis as a worst-case scenario—which, again, is something that occurs even by people and in works that uplift mental health in general (something I’ve mentioned before is The Bright Sessions, in which a telepath is misdiagnosed as schizophrenic and has an “I’m not crazy!” outburst). I’ve talked about treatment already, but I just thought I’d say this: Psychosis is not a death sentence nor a “fate worse than death.” It may be difficult for unpsychotic people to understand and handle; it is harder to live with. But being psychotic is not an inherently bad thing, and psychotic people should not be expected to act like our lives are constantly awful and hopeless on account of stigma.

I think that’s all I have to say, so thank you so much for reading, especially if you’re not psychotic! I hope you’ve learned something from this, and once again, fellow psychotic people are more than welcome to add on more information if they’re willing.

[spectral-musette]

I just finished reading Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, as expected.

If anybody was holding back because they hadn’t yet read Thrawn but they’re still excited or curious about the Thrawn and Anakin or the Thrawn and Vader team up, there’s not really any need.  Alliances stands alone very well.

(some spoilers to follow, both for the novel itself and references to the end of Rebels)

I wouldn’t even say that Season 3 of Rebels is necessarily required viewing to read Alliances, though it does set the scene. The novel picks up shortly after the finale of S3, so there are some Rebels spoilers, but fairly old ones (I mean, you could probably deduce that Thrawn doesn’t capture the Ghost crew at the end of S3 by the fact that a S4 exists, right?)

It also confirms that Vader stepped back from the pursuit of Kanan and Ezra at the end of S2 because Palpatine tugged on the leash and smacked him with a rolled up newspaper. Vader is fixated on Thrawn’s inability to capture the Spectres at Atollon, going so far as to suspect that Thrawn might be a Jedi sympathizer.  Ironically of course, this isn’t completely untrue. Vader knows that Thrawn had been a willing ally to Anakin once, and that the two had parted in mutual respect at least, if not tenuous friendship. It’s just that Thrawn’s sympathies don’t necessarily dictate Thrawn’s actions.

On some level, Vader is asking the same question that the reader might be asking (and I’ve asked as a reader many times): how can Thrawn, a keenly intelligent, charismatic person of some degree of principle, serve Palpatine, who is clearly very evil? Vader’s ongoing question is whether Thrawn’s first loyalty is to the Empire, or whether ultimately he still has a higher loyalty to the Chiss Ascendancy. And in the deepest, most hidden part of Vader where Anakin still lives, does he want the answer to be the latter?

The two time periods are completely intermixed. The effect is a little like flipping channels between an episode of Clone Wars and an episode of Rebels (albeit one featuring only Imperials). But it’s done in such a way that the interconnected storylines unfold simultaneously, with the reader getting just the right amount of information at the right time. It’s well done and basically effortless to follow along with. The chapter breaks often feature dramatic narrative parallels between the two stories.

TZ’s narrative voices for Clone Wars era Anakin and Padme are both very well done. Anakin is delightfully pissy and competitive with Thrawn, and the way that the two characters find their footing as allies highlights the fact that they’re both brilliant, just in different ways. We’re used to seeing characters like Pellaeon (or even Eli Vanto in Thrawn) being quite outpaced by Thrawn’s machinations. Anakin (and Vader) is perfectly capable of following, he just tends to attack problems in different ways, and Thrawn periodically goes along with Anakin(Vader)’s more aggressive solutions.

Padme’s adventure on her own is entertaining as well. She spends a bit of it rather stuck, stranded and waiting for Anakin to show up as reinforcements, but it didn’t come off as too damselly to me, just that she’s biding her time and planning her next moves.

Thrawn spends about 5 minutes with the two of them before he’s totally convinced that they’re a couple (despite their protestations to the contrary), which he clearly already suspected just from the way Anakin talked about Padme anyway. I could’ve done with a little more romance – Anakin and Padme’s dramatic reunion is pretty dampened by “let’s not make out in front of the blue guy” (he knows anyway, so why bother?). Not that I don’t appreciate the romance that I was given; I just would’ve liked a little more.

And TZ’s handling of Vader’s point of view was interesting. Anytime Vader is forced to recall something that happened to him as Anakin, he internally refers to his former self as “The Jedi”, avoiding the mere mention of his name as much as possible. He doesn’t even tell Thrawn that he killed Anakin (as he told Ahsoka at Malachor), merely repeating that Anakin Skywalker is dead. It rings very true to the character and the state of dissociated identity that he should be in at this point, still a few years before he discovers that Padme’s son is alive.

My big question as a reader was, of course: will Thrawn figure out that Vader was once Anakin Skywalker? Spoilers, naturally he does. But where we pick up the story, he seems to already suspect strongly enough to very deliberately namedrop Anakin and set verbal traps regarding their past adventure. It all reads very well, but I’m still left wondering what Thrawn’s first clues were. How do you look at Vader, and think, ah yes, this must be the passionate, reckless golden adonis I once met? You can’t really say it’s that Vader appeared as Palpatine’s apprentice right after Anakin’s death, because Vader’s appearance coincides with the deaths of the majority of the Jedi Order. I don’t doubt that Thrawn could figure it out, but I would’ve liked to know when it first occurred to him.

And because Thrawn treats Vader, in some respects, how he treated Anakin, Vader has moments where he tends to act in a slightly, marginally more Anakin-like fashion around Thrawn. There are moments when the troops in the First Legion expect a reprimand from Vader that never comes. And the moment that Vader chooses to hold back from Force-choking Thrawn shows that on some level he still wants to prove himself Thrawn’s equal at his own game of tactics and observation and intellect rather than merely cow him with a display of dark power. Ultimately it’s fleeting though - Thrawn finally accepts Vader’s insistence that Anakin is dead, and we know that they won’t share a stage again before Vader’s redemption and Anakin’s (final) death.

The story also makes a Nature-of-the-Force statement by telling us that, to Thrawn’s knowledge, Force Sensitivity manifests in the Chiss only in very limited ways. That is, the Chiss navigate deep space via the precognitive abilities of Sensitives, but that Force sensitive Chiss are only gifted with precognition, only female, and that their sensitivity fades over time. I’m feeling…skeptical about this. It’s possible that Thrawn’s knowledge of these matters is limited (he admits that it’s pretty secretive), or that Chiss culture is actually shaping the experience of the Sensitives? Maybe precognition is the only skill they’re encouraged to develop? Maybe it’s only tested for in girls? Maybe the girls are permitted to retire from their stressful careers as navigators when they reach a certain age and live normal lives? We’ve seen Jedi knights from dozens of species, and while different Jedi certainly seem to have different gifts, we’ve always been led to think that this just varied by the individual, not that there were definite species-specific limitations.

This does clarify the fact that Thrawn’s pilot/navigator in the Clone Wars era storyline who never appears on page is in fact a little girl or a young woman. (What did the story look like from her point of view? How curious she must’ve been about Anakin! What is her dynamic with Thrawn like?) And so, at the end of Rebels, with Ezra Bridger and Thrawn cast blindly into Wild space/The Unknown Regions by the Purrgil’s hyperjump, this actually is a situation that Thrawn is relatively familiar with – he could presumably help Ezra figure out how to navigate via the Chiss method? And, if they end up in Chiss territory, Ezra could open up the horizons of the Chiss navigators to Jedi abilities they’ve perhaps always had but never developed? The idea of Ezra trying to train a herd of tiny Chiss girls in Jedi teachings is somehow pleasing. It’s an interesting seed planted here, and I would love to see what it flowers into, if things go in that direction.

Another interesting suggestion is that, because the Force sensitive Chiss navigators are called “sky walkers”, Anakin’s family name could’ve originated out in the Unknown Regions near Chiss space. Perhaps some precognitive Skywalker ancestor had a brush with the Chiss, and either took the epithet for the navigators as their surname, or, conversely, gave their surname to the profession. Or it could just be a coincidence.

I’m a little confused about Thrawn’s initial response to Anakin’s name. Either Anakin translated his surname into the trade language (which doesn’t make sense), or Thrawn already understands much more Galactic Basic at this point than he lets on (likely).

And I was pleased that, I’m pretty sure, Outbound Flight remains mostly canon-compliant. I know it’s not canon, but I’m very fond of it, and so far I don’t think anything in either Thrawn novel contradicts it in a major way.

And, as an aside, though I really enjoyed the Thrawn and Anakin dynamic, I can’t help but wonder what a team up between Thrawn and Obi-Wan would’ve been like. I don’t think that Obi-Wan would’ve felt intellectually threatened by Thrawn’s personality in the way that Anakin did. I also think Obi-Wan would’ve been much more curious about the Chiss, in contrast to Anakin’s single-minded focus on the mission/saving Padme, which Thrawn might’ve been quite wary about. I’m not really sure how I think they might’ve gotten along, only that the collaboration of two of the greatest tactical minds of the Star Wars galaxy must surely be a thing to witness?

On a note totally unrelated to the actual content of the book, I HATED the way that the matte dustcover of the book felt. I literally made blackberrycreek carry the book through Barnes and Noble for me. I read it with the dustcover off (not unusual for me), and I wasn’t pleased with the white-on-white binding either. I suspect that they were trying to evoke the white grand admiral’s uniform or something, but it just looked cheap to me. Anyway, that dustcover felt terrible, and also the B&N exclusive sticker was murder to remove and left a nasty adhesive residue, what the heck, go back to gloss, Del Rey.

[pyre-prism]

LONG POST ‘CAUSE BIO!! (and I still don’t know how to format things properly on this site ^_^’’)

There are still a couple of things that I may tweak further, and there's also a mention of a couple of other OCs I'm still working on, but it shouldn't be tooooooo long before I can not only fix those up but also post the mentioned characters, as well. Critiques are welcome~! ~*~ Real Name – Lucy Caitlyn Blumenthal Alias – ‘Ghost’ or ‘Ghosty’ Age – 18 Birthday – November 9 Gender – Female Species – Demon-Possessed Human/Demonic Vessel (possessed just before turning 16) • Lucy has been possessed by many, many demons for varying lengths of time, but there are two in particular who have stayed in her body more or less since the beginning. These two are Baal-Berith and Belial. Ethnicity – European Nationality – Australian Languages Spoken – English, also knows some old and even dead languages (primarily thanks to the demons, but also partially thanks to her parents’ investment in the occult and her own research) Eyes – Very light blue-tinted purple, look pink or even red in many types of light Hair – White, long, straight Skin – Albino-pale Build – Lithe, flexible, petite, 5’3” Demons’ Appearances: Ever since the event that resulted in Lucy becoming possessed, she has been the only one (as far as she’s aware) who can see any of the demons using her body. Usually, this only happens when she’s asleep or otherwise unconscious, but they have –on occasion– also shown themselves while she’s awake. • Baal-Berith – He has a surprisingly-humanlike appearance, resembling a tall man wearing blood-red armour and a golden diadem while riding a huge red not-quite-horse. Sometimes, he also appears to have charred and tattered feathered wings that are constantly smoking. • Belial – His appearance is reasonably in-line with a stereotypical ‘demon’; he is tall, heavily muscled, with large bat wings, a long reptilian tail, and animal-like legs –in his case, they are like those of a therapod dinosaur. His body is covered in wildly colourful snakes’ scales interspersed with black spikes, and large curling black horns sprout from his temples. • Others – A big part of the reason why Lucy hasn’t identified any of the others is that they generally only appear to her as smoky figures of wildly-varying shapes. The fact that there has been a lot of ‘shuffling’ as well merely compounds the issue. Typical Outfit – Lucy covers up as much skin as she can, out of habit more than anything else, and she favours purples over any other colour. Usually, she can be seen wearing the following ensemble: • Dark purple newsboy cap (often has her hair tucked up under it, after also tying it back) • Goggle sunglasses with ‘oil-slick’-like lenses, especially during the day • Lavender-grey turtleneck sweater • Dark purple motorcycle face-mask tucked under the sweater collar • Black gloves • Dark purple thigh-length coat • Grey jeans • Black knee-high flat-soled boots Host’s Personality – Usually somewhat subdued by the demons possessing her and afraid of not only the demons’ influence but also of any retribution for any interference she may attempt, sociopathic but not innately psychopathic, hesitant to get close to other people but also dislikes being left alone with only her ‘tenants’ for company, surprisingly determined considering her situation, steadily reaching a breaking point (with all of the things that come with that), quiet, observant Likes – Night-time, action movies, anything that resembles a kebab or burrito, carving and sculpting, running, the colour purple, animals, researching the occult (mainly started to try to understand what her parents actually did and also to identify her ‘tenants’ but came to enjoy it) Dislikes – Dreaming (including daydreams), being covered in blood for longer than absolutely necessary, anyone’s hands being near her head or neck, Baal-Berith’s steed, cheese Orientation – Bi-curious, both sexually and romantically Fears – Losing herself entirely to the demons inside her, facing the demons’ wrath for any reason Common Demonic Personality Traits – Vicious, arrogant, manipulative, silver-tongued liar, sadistic and bloodthirsty, uncaring of anyone’s interests other than their own, enjoys taunting and torturing victims, cocky and confident, prone to challenging the authority of others, brash… Demon’s Personality (Baal-Berith) – Serious, harsh, disdainful and haughty, proud, stubborn, dislikes those who let desire cloud their decisions, deems humans to be no better than livestock, actually looking for a ‘more suitable’ host body but is stuck with Lucy’s for the time being (due to finding those open to possession being more difficult than it was long ago) Demon’s Personality (Belial) – Demanding, obnoxious, dangerous, hot-headed and volatile, inventive, particularly vicious, quite fond of Lucy (also quite fond of tormenting her), very skilled at preening both his own ego and those belonging to others, possessive, complete adrenaline junkie Host’s Voice – Low, almost husky, tone and pitch can fluctuate wildly when her emotions are running wild or when any of the demons are particularly exerting their influence over her body Demon’s Voice (Baal-Berith) – Clear, even but turns icy when unhappy or angry, subtle, deep Demon’s Voice (Belial) – Rough, bestial, mocking, usually either purring or growling depending on his mood Strengths: • Lucy’s body is capable of extreme feats of physical prowess, due to it responding to the capabilities of the various demons possessing her rather than to her own. Alongside that, hosting the hellish creatures also significantly enhanced her senses, including the ability to perceive any nearby supernatural beings. • Knowledge is able to be shared between Lucy and her ‘tenants’, although her mind tends to shy away from what they know, more often than not. • As part of a continuing effect of the deal that started the whole thing, one of her more ‘permanent’ possessors [Belial, although some others do pitch in] can repair any damage that Lucy’s body takes, making her almost immortal while he’s/they’re still present. • An odd effect of being possessed has made it practically impossible for Lucy’s DNA to be correctly identified as being hers, let alone being entirely human –tests often come back with traces of various animal DNA and even plant DNA on occasion with only her albinism showing through with any form of regularity. This has become more and more potent the more that her body has been repaired by demonic power. • Using Lucy’s body, Baal-Berith is able to transform any metal from what it originally was into gold. On the other hand, Belial can influence people towards deferring to anyone that he chooses, which will last for a short time –depending on how easily they can be swayed. Weaknesses: • If the majority of the demons possessing Lucy are exorcised –or otherwise lose their power– her body will not only be subjected to a rapid repeat of all the injuries it sustained while possessed, but her original cancer will reappear with a vengeance. This state will continue until she’s dead or until ‘enough’ demons take up residence in her body once again. • Being an albino means that she is highly sensitive to light, which no amount of ‘repair’ can entirely remove. The poor eyesight she once suffered in connection to this condition has been more or less fixed, however. Because of this shortcoming, alongside other factors, almost all of her ‘hunts’ take place at night. • The format that Lucy’s mass-possession takes requires a regular ‘toll’ to allow the demons to remain; they need to feed on the stolen life force/soul of humans, and regularly push Lucy to kill often or in large quantities to satisfy this need. If the kills start to dry up, their grip on her body weakens as their power depletes… and her health suffers. • Lucy doesn’t want to kill, despite essentially needing to so as to preserve her own life, and is sometimes able to fight against the demons’ influence, which may create glaring openings for their victims to either run away or fight back. • Each and every demon that has taken up residence in Lucy’s body is physically repulsed –and even hurt, with extended proximity or contact– by objects, people, and places that are holy or otherwise blessed or sacred. • Invariably, if either Baal-Berith or Belial use their particular skills through Lucy’s body, she will be hit with a potent fever exactly 1 hour following the ability’s usage. None of her ‘tenants’ are able to break it –although they can alleviate it to a minor degree– and it will last for at least 28 hours, with an additional hour for every additional object or person that was effected. How They Can Die – Provided that the demons possessing her body are either weakened or removed and assuming that the immediate reaction described in ‘Weaknesses’ doesn’t occur, Lucy is just as vulnerable as any normal human to everything that humans are susceptible to. The demons cannot be truly killed, however, merely repelled; their lingering egos would eventually cause them to reform in the event of any of them ‘dying’. Physiological Conditions – Albinism (including photophobia and –initially– poor eyesight) Psychological Conditions – ‘Dissociative Identity Disorder’ (demonic possession); ‘Schizophrenia’ (demonic possession and lengthy periods of solitude); ‘Psychopathy’ (demonic possession); Stockholm Syndrome (traces of it, targeting the two demons she knows); Fear of intimacy (developed from growing wary of getting close to others); Sociopathy (high-functioning, actually born with it) Quotes – “I’m sorry that it’s come to this… At least there should be no pain after today.” [Lucy] “Did you really think that grovelling will make me change my mind? That it would somehow save your life? How pitiful…” [Baal-Berith] “I like it better when they run… So run, and scream to your heart’s content. No-one will hear you.” [Belial] Primary Reasons for Killing – Sustenance and Entertainment Primary Targets – Anyone, but both Baal-Berith and Belial seem to favour those younger than 30 Avoids Targeting – People older than 60, unless compromised, and Lucy always fights against targeting children younger than 6 Weapon of Choice – Lucy will use any weapon she can find, although Baal-Berith (in particular) has ensured that there is always at least one knife –preferably serrated or especially-sharp– on their person at all times. Preferred Method of Killing – Torturous cutting until the victim has either passed out or is nearing death from blood-loss, then she will either cut their throat to sever the windpipe or set about removing various organs from the victim’s body. Family – Lucy’s family was very small and largely-isolated from any extended family she might have. • Father – Patrick Blumenthal [deceased] From a broken and ravaged family, he spent a lot of his youth and young adult life on the streets, turning to the occult when he caught wind of ‘true supernatural events’ and his life started to take an upturn almost immediately afterwards. Worked night-shifts as a janitor for a local shopping complex until he met his wife. Dated her for a couple of months while juggling another job behind a retail counter to save up the money to buy an engagement ring. Lucy loved her father, but he was often tired and distant, and she came to feel that maybe he didn’t love her in return. When she learned what he and her mother had done for her sake, she was swept up in a storm of emotions… and still hasn’t truly grieved their deaths. • Mother – Belinda Blumenthal [deceased] Orphaned at a young age and raised in a series of foster homes until she managed to secure a job doing housekeeping in a hotel. Always had an interest in folklore and the occult, and when she met her husband it was a topic that they bonded over. When he asked her to marry him, she agreed immediately. As with Patrick, Lucy loved her mother. However, even as a child, she knew that her medical conditions put a great strain on the family, and she blamed herself for it all. Following her discovery of what her parents did, Lucy didn’t know how to process it and more or less suppressed any grief over their passing. Friendly Interactions – Connor Stanford/Chisel/Grey-Man (it’s complicated) [OC], and Lonán (being almost the only person who her ‘tenants’ allow her to be near without urging her to kill) [OC] Neutral Interactions – Most other people and creatures, until such time as they become a target Antagonistic Interactions – Slenderman (due to the ‘Connor Situation’), and most –if not all– of his other Proxies History – When Lucy was diagnosed with cancer [maybe a brain tumour, but definitely aggressive] at the age of 6, her parents were devastated. They were not wealthy, and it quickly became apparent that the costs of treating their only child’s condition was becoming far too much for them to bear without significant aid –aid which they didn’t receive. Eventually, when all other options had been exhausted, the desperate parents turned to the illusory chance that their shared interest in the occult posed… Patrick and Belinda systematically went through everything they could think of, until –at long last, three years after the diagnosis– they resolved to try summoning a creature and asking it to help their baby. They tried to summon the demon Barbas, due to being described in the Ars Goetia as having some connection with healing, but something went wrong; a different demon appeared, instead, and –being beyond desperation by then– they posed their request to him… heal their daughter in return for anything he asked of them. Belial –for that is who they summoned– took advantage of the loose restrictions placed on him. He did as he was asked, completely removing any trace of Lucy’s cancer, and told her parents that all he’d ask of them was that they prepare an offering for him when their daughter was 16 years old. In the years between his summoning and his inevitable return, while Lucy’s family returned to relative normalcy, Belial visited his ‘investment’ in her dreams; Lucy never remembered these upon waking, but the cold sweat drenching her body was clue enough as to the nightmarish nature they possessed. When Belial did return properly on the night before Lucy’s 16th birthday, Baal-Berith arrived alongside him, having been made quite curious about the nature of this family who had deliberately invoked one of their kind in the first place. Both demons pushed their way into Lucy’s body while she slept, and were surprised to learn that it was ‘far roomier’ than any previous vessel that either had taken in the past. Belial’s intervention had effectively turned her body into ‘prime real estate’. Throughout the night, more demons arrived in their wake, and –as the sun rose– they puppeteered her to kill her parents and run away. ~*~ Story is on the back-burner for the time being, but I will write one for her. I will update this with a link to the story when I've done it.

[katelinartjoker]

You know I've been thinking about a lot of stuff in my life, and kind of trying to analyze the things that have gone wrong and what has happened (either by my own choices and actions, the ways other people have acted in my life, how I've reacted to the environment around me and then how my reactions created a cycle of cause and effect) and I think a lot of it really stems from not only just my adoption, but how it was carried out and then how, as I got older, my behavior became increasingly chaotic. Early on I became very defiant and argumentative against any authority figure, like the teachers at school, and especially my parents.

But it was dismissed as me just being "emotionally unstable" or difficult, my anger and frustration was seen as just an angsty teen refusing to do what she was told and then misbehaving just for the sake of causing trouble.

But they never looked underneath. Not really. Except to say that I probably had ADHD, behavioral problems, and eventually would end up diagnosing me with Attention Deficit Disorder, depression, anxiety, and bi-polar. Oh, and insomnia.

(But even that could possibly be the subconscious fear of not wanting to fall asleep while I'm alone?)

But they never even really brought up the idea that it might be attachment disorder. Even though we would tell them that I was adopted.

Maybe because I was actually able to form connections with my family? At least, for the most part?

But even then, I've always been known to kind of just "go off and do my own thing" or "stay in my room" a lot. I tend to "zone-out" rather often and easily during conversations, into my own thoughts/imagination.

There will even be times when I forget what I'm saying mid sentence.

-- also times where I’ll be with a group of friends or family, and I’ll be enjoying myself and being around the people I love, but then all the sudden I just get a strange feeling where I like... dissociate or something. I kind of feel like my body freezes up, and I get locked inside my mind. I’ll just stare at something at a distance and let my vision get blurry, and almost feel like I’m separated from reality.

Not, completely, of course because I know that I’m still part of this world and I have to abide by its laws and physics.

So I’m not saying that when I have this sensation of “losing touch with reality” that I feel like I could go jump off a building and be able to fly, or that I’d have superhuman strength or be immune to any kind of damage or illness.

But... there are a lot of things in this world that make me not want to deal with daily human existence. A lot of things that have been bothering me for a long time that I’ve never really talked in detail about, that I think have really affected my mental health and general state of being. Lots of events from my past that people either don’t know about, don’t know how/don’t want to help me with, tell me to just learn to get over it, or charge too much in order to be willing to help me get over it.

Idk. I feel like it’s a story worth sharing though. Even if no one learns anything from the high multitude of mistakes I’ve made in my life, at least they would get some entertainment value in the sheer amount of ridiculousness lmao.

I’ve kind of been working on writing out as many important events from my life that I can remember. Especially ones that I think might have meaning/impact on who I am now.

I want to get enough of it put together and then see if I could get someone interested in working with me on a documentary, or a docuseries, or even a series that’s fictional but highly based off of events from either my life, or other people’s lives that I’ve known.

Cuz I’ve got a shit ton of content just from me alone, and then what would be cool is to open it up to other “characters” that could be representations of some of the people in my life.

I’ve always been good at drawing characters and even taking inspiration from other characters from shows or movies I love.

But when I try to “make up” a character’s personality and history from scratch, I have no idea where to start.

Yet, when I see certain people or interact with them, I get inspired by their personalities and their behavior, and what makes them happy.

What makes them who they are.

So maybe I just need to start looking for inspiration from my life, and other people in it to create my little sitcom or dramatic comedy.

Of course, I’d never make any one character so identical to someone else that it made it completely obvious.

I don’t want people to hate me for my interpretations on life hahaha 😂

Idk.

[meanwhileinoz]

10+ Misconceptions About Mental Illness Need To Be Cleared Up Right Now

Mental illness is a myriad of conditions that appear in different ways. Moreover, because of the constant misinterpretation of mental illness on social media. Mental illness is often misunderstood.

Therefore, to inspire a more positive discussion on mental illness, here are a few anecdotes to clarify the confusion:

Depression comes with a mask.

I have depression. People don’t believe me because I appear outgoing and gregarious in social situations, but it’s just a large coping mechanism and something I need to do in many cases for client meetings and gatherings and such.

It’s exhausting. I’m drained and many times feel horrible afterward. I wish people knew that just because you appear happy or content on the outside, you can still be the opposite on the inside. Many people with depression go to great lengths to disguise or mask it, which makes it all the more difficult for others to see that there’s something wrong.

– ldn6

The intricacies of Mental health.

Mental Health is a spectrum. It’s extremely unlikely that any one person is 100% Mentally Healthy, and it’s unlikely that they’re the opposite. The  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates only about 17% of adults are in a state of “optimal” mental health.

Just because you may have an issue though, doesn’t mean that you’re spiraling and unhealthy. Much like a physical health issue, a single episode isn’t the end of the world. – (Source)

Dispelling the ADHD myth.

ADHD; it DOES exist, and it’s not just about looking at squirrels outside the window.

And we’re not just seeking stimulants. Many of us hate taking medication because it makes us into zombies that can barely function and choose to deal with the symptoms of the condition rather than take Adderall or any other pills. – willflungpoo & Ketrel

Bipolar disorder needs to be understood better.

Usually when you say ‘I’m bipolar’, you get odd responses from either a) the people that think you are this rabid psycho bouncing off the walls one second and is dangerously suicidal literally the next second or b) the people who think “bipolar” is a normal, quirky personality trait. You know the kind: “you’re bipolar? me too! I’m so damn emotional all the time.”

I simply try to explain it to people as best as I can with a metaphor I came up with once: It’s not a balanced, steady rollercoaster of emotions, that most people experience and enjoy. It’s also not a rollercoaster that does 60 loops in a row, derails and explodes onto the ground below. it’s more of a rollercoaster that goes too high up with a bit too much energy and then gives everybody really bad whiplash when they drop to the bottom of the ride over and over until it’s too much.

The metaphor is kinda dumb at not completely accurate, but it just helps people understand better.

– zapsquad

Mental health and crime do not correlate.

Some people have an inherit fear of others who suffer from a Mental Illness. The media over-sensationalizes the effects of Mental Illness to a point where it seems that crimes are only committed by people who suffer from it.

This is completely untrue, as the American Psychological Association found that only 7.5% of crimes are directly related to Mental Illness.

– (Source)

Depression is not an illusion.

Depression.

“But you don’t have anything to be depressed about, sweetie.”

That’s like saying, ‘But you can’t have asthma! This room is full of air!’

– kernunnos77 & eeyore102

The importance of decreasing stigma.

Mental Health affects everyone. Research estimates that 1 in 5 people experience mental illness in their lives. So even if you aren’t suffering from it, someone you know might be suffering.

This is why it’s so important to decrease a stigma about Mental Health and open up a conversation about it. Everyone will experience the effects of it and the more we are able to understand and communicate about it, the more positive our relationships can be.

– (Source)

Psychologists are really trained professionals.

On the heels of that, it’s important to talk to a medical professional about your mental health instead of just your close family and friends.

Treating Mental Health takes more than just ‘Talking and Listening’ and the techniques that Psychologists use are developed through years of education and training to positively impact their patients.

– (Source)

I think you deserve that rest.

I have severe anxiety. So much so it’s developed into agoraphobia. I stay in my apartment most days, and only really go outside in public accompanied by my safe person. The common misconception is that I’m lazy. I don’t have a life. Because I stay inside all day, most days, and I’m content not leaving. But I do a lot. I draw, I’m learning how to sew, and I try to get out a little more every day but it’s baby steps.

People also think I’m lazy because I sleep a lot. I have regular panic attacks. At least 3 times a day. It’s rather exhausting. My brain feels like it needs rest after having one.

– MetalMaiden420

Misconceptions about Anorexia.

I have anorexia. I think the most common misconception is that it is about being thin. I have honestly never met a person who developed an eating disorder because they wanted to look like some photoshopped model. For us, it’s about perfection and control, it just so happens that thinness is a trait that our society admires, which is why we strive to achieve it. At a certain point, you are intellectually aware that you are not attractive and dying, but this irrational little part of your brain won’t let you eat because you’re still too big. There is no such thing as “small enough”, once the disease takes hold no amount of weight loss can satisfy.

– purpleelephant77

Seeking help isn’t a sign of weakness.

For some reason, even with this debilitating stigma that people dealing with Mental Illness face, it’s still seen as weak to look that in the face and say: “I’m going to go to a therapist anyways”. That doesn’t make sense at all.

But for people with Mental Health issues, opening up emotionally is a very trying experience. That’s exactly what happens in therapy, you open up your emotions and face your mind at its worst.

How could that be seen as weak? – (Source)

Yeah, just stop thinking like that.

OCD isn’t about being organized and anal. It can be overwhelming and paralyzing at it’s worst and telling us to “just not have those thoughts” isn’t helpful.

– mycatisawh***

Another great analogy for anxiety.

Anxiety is that unwelcome, creepy stranger at a party that won’t leave you alone.

One thing people don’t get is how debilitating mental illness can be. With anxiety, it isn’t simply just worrying too much about a deadline…that’s stress. Stress is good. Anxiety is bad. Anxiety starts with automatic thoughts that ruminate into something bigger. It’s worrying about things out of your control. I’ve been told more times than I can count to “just quit worrying so much.” I don’t think people realize how much effort I have to put in to getting myself into healthy thought patterns. It is a daily battle to fight off thoughts like “everyone hates me” and “you’ll never amount to anything”, and not let them ruminate to the point where I cancel my day and crawl back into bed. – frazzled_wumbologist

When people think your illness doesn’t even exist.

I have Dissociative Identity Disorder.

Easiest way to explain it is that I’m so good at compartmentalizing, the compartments can’t all access each other (work-me can’t access school-me can’t access home-me). And since people are kind of the sum of their experiences, my different ‘mes’ seem different from one another.

Did you know DID affects from 1-5% of the population? That’s the same as depression, schizophrenia, and a host of better know physical illnesses. Did you know that doctors trained in trauma only find the CATALYST for DID to be controversial? In other words, they know it exists, they just don’t know why only some child abuse survivors end up with it. Most people think the existence of DID is controversial when it really isn’t anymore.

And the really bad part is, abuse is always denied, always minimized. To come out from that scarred, with a mental disorder that was, in essence, thrust upon you by others when you were too young to resist, and to then be denied or minimized….there is a reason only my spouse and my therapist know I have this disorder.

– ThrowawayDIDhardenuf

Maybe people are actually sick?

People who really are suffering from a Mental Illness aren’t faking it for the medication. I can’t understand why this is such a permeating thought. Mental Illness is such a debilitating condition and the stigma is so overbearing that it would be completely undesirable to fake it.

These are real medical conditions that are treated by real medicine and real doctors. Ignoring a broken foot and continuing to walk on it won’t let it heal

– (Source)

Misconceptions about Borderline Personality Disorder.

Borderline personality disorder does not mean I am an axe-wielding homicidal bunny boiling stalker. Never have been.

Therapy helped massively with my emotion regulation and crisis management skills. Also suffer from depression, so life is a constant juggling act and some days are better than others. I’ve been mean, manipulative and suicidal and I self-harmed. The guilt of the way I acted is what usually drives the depression. Many people make the assumption that all borderliners are evil, usually because of bad experiences.

There are bad people with BPD. But there are also good people who want to change their lives for the better.

– Welshgirlie2

Clearing up more misconceptions about OCD.

I have autism & OCD and as soon as people find out, they start making Sheldon Cooper jokes and asking if my pencils not being aligned perfectly on my desk makes me freak out. OCD does not universally equal being a neat-freak, and autism does not universally equal being a socially stunted outcast.

My desk is a disaster and I can function fine in most social settings, but I can’t drink out of a cup without rinsing it out first(even if it just came out of the dishwasher), I pick my bottom lip till it bleeds, I can’t look people in the eye, I add up number sequences(like totals on receipts) till I’m left with a single digit number and if the number isn’t “good” I get uneasy, and I have horrifying intrusive thoughts that replay in my head for sometimes weeks at a time.

The autism isn’t so bad, but the OCD is really bad. It sucks and I wish I didn’t have it.

– Lydious

No one is immune.

Children can suffer from Mental Health problems too. It’s also not just a product of a bad childhood experience or a bad parent. These things just happen to everyday people.

In the UK, 1 in 5 children have been diagnosed with a Mental Health problem, and 1 in 20 teenagers suffer from depression specifically.

– (Source)

A personal account of the stigma people face.

High Functioning schizophrenic. Being close to 40, I’ve lived with the stigma of not being able to be trusted, that it’s just an overactive imagination & that I have more than one person living inside of me since I was a teenager. But mostly it’s the overactive imagination one that really bothers me.

– iwsnvrhr

Stop saying this please.

Having suffered from both Anxiety and Depression, many times I’ve been told to just “snap out of it”, which obviously isn’t possible. I’m not sure people always realize how debilitating these illnesses can be for people.

– Anonymous

Maybe don’t judge people by their medical history?

People with Mental Health concerns can absolutely hold a job. Like we mentioned before, these people aren’t violent or constantly having manic episodes.

In fact, studies have shown that employees with Mental Health issues are just as punctual, motivated, and work at a level on par with or greater than other employees.

Misconceptions about Tourettes.

It really drives me nuts when I say I have Tourettes to someone and they immediately let out a string of swear words.

Yeah no. If you told me you had alcoholism, my immediate reaction wouldn’t be swaying back and forth and slurring my words. Thanks for belittling my issues.

I wish there was more awareness about Tourette’s outside of the Hollywood version of it. It sucks living with constantly twitching, but it sucks telling someone you have it and having them think you have a hilarious malady and making a joke about it. I’m easy going, but for some reason, that really gets under my skin.

– my_Favorite_post

Although, there are some terrible people out there.

PTSD is something that stole certain joys away from me (shooting guns, fireworks, etc.) And it really sucks. To see people fake it and use it to get notoriety and discounts makes me sick to my stomach. I can only trust therapists or doctors with my issues. Not complete strangers.

– nessn12

We’ve been talking a lot about the debilitating effects of Mental Illness, but the truth is it’s not a life sentence. People can recover completely from their Mental Illness with the right help and medication.

Some issues aren’t curable, but they are treatable. Again, with proper medication, it’s entirely possible to live a happy and positive life.

– (Source)

You may also like

http://ift.tt/2unpMpW