"Are You Crazy!?"

This past weekend, while I was sure I the stomach flu was going to end me—ask my husband, I annoyingly mentioned it at least hourly—I spent a LOT of time in my bed on Netflix and Amazon: in between sleeping and doing inexplicable things in the bathroom. Thank the Lord my mother was able to come over and take care of my kiddos because my husband was at work alllll day. Mostly, I watched television shows like Bones, Impractical Jokers, and Criminal Minds. Those are three of my favorites offered through these media service providers. 

Something I noticed over and over again, was people saying things like, “are you crazy?” It only slightly caught my attention the first time, but by the third time, I was listening for it. I’m sure it’s similar to when you buy a new car, and all of the sudden you see that same car everywhere. But whether I was looking for it or not, it definitely seemed like it was everywhere. 

Why is this something we feel is okay to say to other human beings? Let’s take a step back for a minute and think about this further. What if that person has a diagnosis people tend to think of as “crazy?” Well, first-of-all, they’re probably extremely self-conscious about that diagnosis already, so calling them crazy is likely one of the last things they need to hear. Second, what if that person is just having a bad day? I’m sure we all have bad days where we act in ways or say things that we don’t mean or typically wouldn’t do. I know I have those days. Those outbursts don’t make us “crazy.”

But more importantly, these are all three fairly popular shows, and promoting such speech, is detrimental to the fight to end the stigma against mental health. Don’t worry, I’m not calling for a boycott of these shows or anything… to be completely honest, any of these shows could probably do just about anything aside from swearing allegiance to the devil or something, and I would still be an avid watcher. I’m only bringing attention to the fact that this is a phrase said often, and that people think it is okay. When really, it’s NOT okay.

So, while I’m on my soap box of things that are not helping reduce the stigma of mental health, I’m going to go ahead and stay up here a little longer to say a few other things. We need to stop saying things like, “I’m so OCD,” and “Ugh, my sister/brother/mother/whomever is so bipolar!” And other situations when we label someone or ourselves as having a mental disorder when it’s not actually the case.

Sure, we all have our things. For me, it’s picture frames. If they’re not lined up perfectly it drives me absolutely bonkers. But that’s just a personal preference; albeit an annoyingly perfectionist one. People have bad days and bad moods, and you know what, that’s okay because people are human and they have feelings. It’s okay to have bad days. It’s okay to need your picture frames to line up perfectly. But those things don’t mean someone is suffering from bipolar or OCD.  

Now, I don’t say all of this to say that it is bad if you are suffering from, or know someone suffering from these disorders; just that labeling yourself as having these disorders in a joking matter can really hurt those around you who may actually be suffering. It also turns those disorders into somewhat of a joke, which hurts the fight against decreasing the stigma around all mental disorders.

So, stop it. And look, I’m guilty of this too. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought, wow that’s so OCD of me. Yes, I’ve even said it out loud before. But if we can just be aware and try to watch the things we say, it would help tremendously.

Thanks for reading! :)

 

I’ve been asked to share some tips about moving across the country, so I’m going to go ahead and do that for my next post. Stay tuned.