Am I crazy?
Is the word crazy overused? When did different, emotional and struggling evolve in this way? Who is the “normal” person we are comparing them to?
Unfortunately, there is a stigma affiliated with any mental health diagnosis. Is there anyone who could say they have never experienced a bout of feeling anxious or depressed? These are commonly heard words. Being able to name a diagnosis could be positive and negative. Knowing you are not the only one and you are not losing your mind could be helpful. At the same time, once we have a diagnosis we could either feed into the symptoms more than before or try to “avoid” experiencing them.
There are cultures who don’t believe in therapy and are not allowed to show emotions. They look at the US and believe problematic behavior stems from feelings. We look at them and think the same in reverse.
What is wrong with being human? We are not built as robots which are unnatural. A variety of feelings are brought up throughout our lives. Can we make them disappear? When you go to the arcades and play with the frog game where you need to bop the frogs as they come up, what happens? They pop right back up. The same idea happens with a volcano. The lava slowly heats up and when it is ready to explode, there is no getting away from it.
For some reason anger is considered a more acceptable feeling because it makes you less vulnerable. I am not sure where that logic comes from but many consider anger a safe feeling. Anger is a cover for other feelings though. When someone is feeling embarrassed, vulnerable, hurt or disappointed they can lash out with anger but the anger wont dissipate on its own.
Back to the beginning of the article, who is crazy? Is that someone who doesn’t fit into society’s “perfect” mold? Is that someone who is struggling and may be stronger than you in many ways? Is it preferable to be true to yourself and your struggles or spend years trying to run away from what you know is you and try blending with others superficially?
Labeling hurts people. It hurts you and it hurts them as well. It affects the way you think of others and yourself. Mislabeling is more detrimental than labeling properly. It’s like building a race car, wiring it wrong and expecting to win a race. If you want to focus on something helpful then understand what is not helpful to you in your life and work with that.
In the very large book of mental health diagnosis, I have never seen one called crazy. So ask yourself again, are you crazy?
Zahavah Fishfeld, LMHC is a licensed therapist who focuses on relationships, self-esteem and self growth. She offers a phone consultation as well as sessions in person and through video. Her offices are located in Flatbush and Crown Heights. She can be reached at 845-596-1321 and zahavahsel@gmail.com.