Posted by deirdrehbrt on April 14, 2004, at 21:53:02
In reply to Re: When diagnosis becomes identity, posted by starlight on April 13, 2004, at 12:21:46
I think this as real good question. I know that I don't call myself DID, or MPD, but I often say "I'm a multiple". Just because I'm bipolar though, doesn't mean that that's who I am. My diagnoses are a part of me, but they are not the total of me.
Falls, I want you to know that when I call you my friend, I am not befriending a diagnosis. If that were all there were to you, I couldn't be your friend. If I were asked "Who is falls?", I would say that she is an intelligent, caring, sensitive, loving, and lovely person. That is by far much more than 'depressed'.
Do the diagnoses of Borderline, Bipolar, Gender Identity Disorder, or Disociative Identity Disorder completely define ME? Heck no. Did being a member of Mensa define me? again, no. They define parts of me, but they aren't who I am.
I can't remember the whole phrase, but James Taylor has a song called "Frozen Man" and it's about a sailor who was lost at sea, frozen in ice, and brought back to life much later. He tells of all the things he did and says "But that's not who I am". I see it that way for us. We've been given a diagnosis, a psychological name, but like our own names, we can change them, but that doesn't change who we are. It's just another part of our life. It's an engrossing and consuming part of our life, but only part.
Dee.
poster:deirdrehbrt
thread:335038
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20040409/msgs/336485.html