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Mental Illness Contagious (??)
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<blockquote data-quote="trinityroyal" data-source="post: 257099" data-attributes="member: 3907"><p>GG, I think Marcie puts it really well. You don't necessarily "catch" whatever mental illness you're dealing with, but the added strain of coping with all the chaos that mental illness and other issues brings into your life certainly does have an effect. </p><p></p><p>As MWM pointed out, you can't "break" a healthy mind, but you can certainly put it under so much strain that the wheels start to come loose, if not actually fall off.</p><p></p><p>My therapist and I have been working through this very issue lately.</p><p>My mother is schizophrenic, my father has anti-social personality disorder and my older brother has severe ADHD and a fairly substantial sadistic streak. I KNOW that growing up under those conditions has affected who I am and how I interact with people. I couldn't possibly have grown up with those people and NOT been affected.</p><p></p><p>There are certain coping mechanisms I developed over the years that are downright odd. Thing is, I don't have the underlying symptoms that the rest of them do. My life has been affected, but my underlying brain chemistry hasn't.</p><p></p><p>I don't know if any of this is making sense. I'm thinking it through as I write this...I guess what I'm trying to say is...the basic framework, the raw material with which you came into the world, doesn't include mental illness. However, painted on the canvas of your life are all of the experiences you've been through. Some leave scars. Others leave joy.</p><p></p><p>Trinity</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="trinityroyal, post: 257099, member: 3907"] GG, I think Marcie puts it really well. You don't necessarily "catch" whatever mental illness you're dealing with, but the added strain of coping with all the chaos that mental illness and other issues brings into your life certainly does have an effect. As MWM pointed out, you can't "break" a healthy mind, but you can certainly put it under so much strain that the wheels start to come loose, if not actually fall off. My therapist and I have been working through this very issue lately. My mother is schizophrenic, my father has anti-social personality disorder and my older brother has severe ADHD and a fairly substantial sadistic streak. I KNOW that growing up under those conditions has affected who I am and how I interact with people. I couldn't possibly have grown up with those people and NOT been affected. There are certain coping mechanisms I developed over the years that are downright odd. Thing is, I don't have the underlying symptoms that the rest of them do. My life has been affected, but my underlying brain chemistry hasn't. I don't know if any of this is making sense. I'm thinking it through as I write this...I guess what I'm trying to say is...the basic framework, the raw material with which you came into the world, doesn't include mental illness. However, painted on the canvas of your life are all of the experiences you've been through. Some leave scars. Others leave joy. Trinity [/QUOTE]
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