As the Lenten Season progresses, I continue to focus on my Lenten Penitence. I find it somewhat difficult, however, because humans are difficult. With the pandemic finally coming to an end, inflation, the turmoil many have been through, and what is clearly a mental health crisis that we are now in, there are a lot of angry people in the world. The financial struggles and frustrations of finding a job where I can tolerate the stupidity of the people…these are just a few of the irritants that have me finding the need to re start my penitence on nearly a daily basis. In past years this would discourage me. Now that I am in tune with my mental health, I simply pray, breathe, and restart. I am constantly reminded of 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. In this scripture, we are reminded that mistakes made are in the past. Each day is a new day to begin again and start anew.
As humans, we are all born with different personalities. Naturally, those personalities will sometimes clash, causing conflict. It is imperative that we all make a conscious effort to take into account that we are all different; and take the feelings of others into consideration. This takes patience and oftentimes, extra care when interacting with others. Now more than ever, many of us are much more sensitive. Knowing this, I do my best to treat others the way I would want to be treated. I also make a concerted effort to make peace with people when I can. This is why when I do lose my temper it gets ugly; I have done all I can up to that point. I have no patience for unfair people. I strongly believe that so many people today do to others what they would not accept, wanting no accountability for their actions. The term People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones has become more obvious today than ever before. It is always those who always judge, always pretend to be perfect, who act as if they have it all who are hiding the most. Those people are where the lack of support come from…afraid that skeletons will be revealed. If God can accept me for my faults, my sins and who I am, then what anyone else thinks doesn’t matter. Not being comfortable in our skin is a clear sign of a mental illness. In addition, those who berate others and can’t admit fault or wrongdoing, yet constantly feels the need to pretend for others are displaying mental health issues as well.
There are many people who have certain personality traits that we become accustomed to because we get used to the way they are. This can become detrimental to the mental well- being of the individual as well as those they have to interact with. If we take the time to care for our mental health and understand the mental illnesses our loved ones may be suffering from, we may be more apt to being kinder, gentler, and more loving people. Naturally, as Christians, we wouldn’t have to put such a great deal of effort behind it. A personality trait and personality disorder are not synonymous. A personality trait is a pattern of how one thinks, feels or behaves. It may change over time. It usually does not affect all of one’s life. A personality disorder is defined as seeing the world in a way that deviates from the norm. There are certain behaviors that affect all of ones life, all of the time, in a negative way and usually negatively impacts others. This is a part of who they are usually since early adulthood.
There are a variety of personality disorders. Included under the mental illness umbrella, personality disorders are also called mental disorders. These involve inflexible and unhealthy long-term patterns of thoughts and behaviors. Because their way of thinking and behavior is normal to them, people oftentimes do not realize that they have a personality disorder. For this reason, personality disorders may go undetected for years and even a lifetime for most individuals. While we may need to protect our peace against some of the behaviors of those with personality disorders, it is important to remember that we are all human, and imperfect. Alienating someone with a mental illness could be detrimental. If we take the time to help the person to seek the proper support that they need, we will find that only a small percent of cases are lost causes. Disorder TRAIT
Adventurous Paranoid personality disorder (PPD)
Sociable Paranoid personality disorder (PPD)
Trusting Depressive personality disorder
Trustworthy Psychopathy,
Vibrant Narcissism
Loyal
Catty
Childish
Insecure
Jealous
Rebellious
Rowdy
Empath Not labeled a psychological disorder.
These are simply a few known psychological traits; some are positive, and some are negative. The psychological disorders range from mild to severe, and some are more common than others. It is clear from this list that every one of us has a psychological trait, whether it be negative or positive, and therefore is under the mental health umbrella. How we care for our mental health is what truly matters. If we focus on the importance of caring for our mind versus the negative connotation and stigma behind the labels, there would be greater possibility for treatment and healing overall. Through my therapy, I discovered that I am an empath. Unfortunately, my twenty-one-year marriage to a narcissist was not unusual. Take care of your mental health. Be true about who you are in order to figure out how to prevent repeating cycles.
One person at a time…TOGETHER…we can make a difference. Open your mind to the possibilities of realizing how beautiful relationships can be if we all simply let go of the stigma that surrounds mental health. Once we find out who we truly are there is a world of possibilities that awaits us in our new life with our healthy minds, if we only love the imperfect person that God created. There is still time to get back on track before Lent is over, and to see the NEW YOU in 2022!
Defy the Stigma
MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS!
Dying to be Perfect 