What’s The Real Lesson?

sometimes I just get so sick and tired of fighting just to survive.

what’s some of y’alls favorite songs that u feel are relatable as a person with bpd/hpd/npd?

From what I’ve read and observed, bipolar symptoms exist on a spectrum. Using these charts inspired by @levianta’s graphics about autism, you can visualize the extremity of every symptom you experience. As an example, here is a chart visualizing how i personally experience hypomania:

Habits, Tics, Stims, Compulsions, and Behaviors

You are tapping your foot. Someone asks you to stop. You do. You feel no ill effects aside from maybe disappointment at having to stop. You tap your foot often. This is a habit.

You are tapping your foot, whether you want to or not. Someone asks you to stop. You can’t. If you try to it feels like holding in a sneeze and the pressure builds up. It might come out in a different, even less controllable action. This is a tic.

You are tapping your foot. Someone asks you to stop. You do, but immediately feel worse physically or emotionally. It was a way for you to express yourself and how you feel. You may feel pressure. This is a stim.

You are tapping your foot. Someone asks you to stop. You can’t, because if you do something bad will happen, possibly some specific bad thing. You know it’s irrational, but not doing it gives you anxiety. This is a compulsion.

You are tapping your foot. Someone asks you to stop. You can’t, because if you do this specific bad thing will happen. It is not irrational to you, although it is to others. This is an erratic/disorganized behavior.

“All the effort in the world won’t matter if you’re not inspired.”

— Chuck Palahniuk, Diary

Autism Myth-Busting Part 2

[Part 1]

1. Autistic people are violent: Autistics are more likely to be on the receiving end of violence and abuse than their neurotypical counterparts. 

2. All autistics are non-verbal: Only 25-30% of autistic people are considered non-verbal. Some autistics are hyper-verbal and/or possess advanced language skills. 

3. All autistics are good at math or science: Only 10% of autistic people have a savant skill. Many autistics aren’t particularly good at math at all. Although they may have certain skills or traits that are well suited for math and science, autistics can have interests or talents in any field. 

4. Autistic people are asexual: Here are some videos discussing autism and sexuality:   Autism & Sex Autism & Sexuality 

5. People can “outgrow” their autism:  Autism is a permanent genetic condition. More accurately, it is a neurotype. Someone who is autistic always will be, so autistic kids turn into autistic adults.

6. Autistic people can’t lie: Autistics may have a tendency to be more honest than neurotypicals, but they can definitely lie. I couldn’t find research on this one that isn’t terribly ableist, so I’ll just say this - I’m autistic and I can lie if I want to. 

7. Functioning labels are an accurate way to describe autistics:  Functioning labels are highly inaccurate for multiple reasons. Functioning can fluctuate on a day-to-day basis for many autistics. These labels are also used to invalidate autistic people by assuming that if they are low functioning they cannot make decisions for themselves, and to deny support for those who are high functioning. 

8. Autistic people can’t have healthy relationships: Autism In Love is a documentary that discusses autistic relationships. Over 32% of autistic adults are in relationships. I myself am autistic and married.

9. All autistics have a great memory:  Autistic people can have both memory strengths and memory difficulties. They may also have a working memory that’s entirely average. 

10. Asperger’s isn’t a type of autism:  As of 2013, the DSM considers Asperger’s and autism to be the same diagnosis, both falling under the category of ASD. 

Different Thought Disorders Common With Those On The Schizophrenia Spectrum / Psychosis Spectrum

Thought disorders are when your thinking process is impaired, often affecting your speech! They’re common in ADHD and autism, but also can appear in those in the schizophrenia spectrum or psychosis spectrum. Let’s talk about them!

Remember, none of these are done on purpose!

Alogia - randomly stop talking in the middle of the sentence, slurred consonants, being unable to grasp the right word, and trailing off into a whisper before ending the sentence

Blocking - suddenly stopping in the middle of the sentence, forgetting what the sentence was about, and then starting a new topic after the blocking

Clang Association - Rhyming or doing alliterations in the middle of the sentence. An example would be “So yesterday when I went to the store door floor more … I mean, yesterday say lay may..”

Echolalia - Repeating what someone says right after they say it or repeating sentences heard earlier. An example would be a mom asking “Do you want icecream” and a child responding “Do you want icecream…. yes!”

Pressure of Speech - speaking rapidly without pausing, loud, and hard to understand

Word Salad - Using a series of words in an odd order making it impossible to understand the sentence, some of the words not having ti do with the sentense at all. An example would be a woman asking “What kind of coffee did you get?” and her friend responding “Several, several berries. Strawberries. Steaming, colours, fruits, red blue pink”

(word salad is often confused for manipulative behaviour, please know that nobody displays word salad on purpose. It is not manipulative. )

Tangentiality - going off topic before answering the question. An example would be, your friend asks “when did you start gardening?” and you reply “My garden has three main vegetables. I love vegetables but my brothers don’t. I haven’t seen my brothers in years, I should call them.”

Stilted Speech - spoken in a formal essay format rather than casual speech, more information than average when explaining, repeating information

(also common in autism spectrum disorder, if you’re on the spectrum you may find yourself doing this more while info-dumping about a special interest)

If I happened to miss any! Feel free to add on!

The present study examined the utility of meaning to differentiate between depression and grief in a sample of suicide survivors (N = 555). Three regression models were tested, each with a different measure of meaning predicting depression and grief. Across three models, meaning was negatively associated with depression but positively associated with grief. Additionally, grief and depression were negatively correlated across all models. Results support a conceptual distinction between grief and depression, with the presence or absence of meaning in life as a key distinguishing factor between the two in a population with a relatively high risk for pathological grieving.