Blog Post #12

Just because you act abnormally does not mean that you have a mental disorder. Some people do it for fun or to relax to act different is a way of expressing oneself, a way of being unique. To be considered a mental disorder the actions taken by a person must be “deviant, distressful, and dysfunctional.” (pg. 595) These behavior patterns show signs that there may be a mental disorder involved with the person. I for one know that I may act “abnormally” but not to the extent of what it is explained to make it a mental disorder.

My aunt had been diagnosed why bipolar disorder a couple of years ago. I haven’t really been close to her enough to know about what it’s actually like to have her be bipolar, but I know first hand from what it has done to her family and her life that bipolar disorder can be extremely bad. Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder in which the person alternates between two states a depressive state and a state of mania. My aunt has had many ups and downs with substance abuse and recovery. She has also been in and out of jail for many years. With being bipolar she was also given drugs to help ease the states she was in. I remember when I did spend time with her when I was younger that she would be really energetic and eager, always doing something. She was happy and carefree. Then she would shift to being lethargic and depressed. That’s when she would begin to drink and do drugs to bring herself out of her slump of depression. Bipolar disorder has very extreme sides of mood changes; it’s not just a little depression or a little excitement. When a person who has bipolar disorder becomes depressed they fall into major depression, life isn’t worth it. During this stage many people feel the need to commit suicide to end it all. Many famous people who were and are bipolar try committing suicide; some even succeed like Kurt Cobain. When in a state of overexcitement it’s considered to be mania, during this stage people are in constant motions. They usually don’t sleep very much and always are thinking of something. My aunt exhibited most of these characteristics of bipolar disorder and was eventually diagnosed with this disease. So far it has practically ruined her entire life, family, and how she is as a person. Bipolar can be a very scary and harmful disorder if not taken control of with the help of family or a doctor, even medication. My aunt is a very good example of not taking care of her bipolar disorder.

The most interesting thing I learned in this section was about the mental disorder of Dissociative Identity Disorder. It’s the disorder that deals with multiple personalities. After watching the Three Faces of Eve, I discovered another woman who experienced multiple personalities. Her name was Shirley Ardell Mason; she ended up acquiring 16 different personalities. I was then watched a movie that was based on her life with her mental disorder and how she over came it. The movie is called “Sybil” and it was an extraordinary movie about Shirley Mason’s life. It wasn’t until the remake in 2007 that Shirley’s name was even released. Because of her traumatic childhood, with a mother who was diagnosed with narcissistic schizophrenia, she made 16 different personalities to protect herself. I found it really amazing that all 16 personalities in Shirley’s case knew each other and worked together to make sure that Shirley/Sybil stayed safe. Most people don’t know that they have other personalities and when people tell them that they act different or dress different it makes them angry or deny what they did. I found it really interesting in the end when Shirley found out that she had other personalities and with they help of her physiatrist was able to meet all of her personalities and make them one. In the case of the three faces of Eve she had 3 different personalities and they knew each other. I also found it very fascinating that each personality can have its own voice, style, age, and even gender. In Shirley Mason’s case she had 2 boy personalities. I would recommend that people who were interested in this chapter watch the movie “Sybil,” it taught me a lot. I am currently reading the book “Sybil” which is also fascinating to learn more about Shirley Ardell Mason.