Bipolar blog Archives - Page 10 of 82 - Natasha Tracy Bipolar Expert

Mental Health Privilege — What Is It? Do You Have It?

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Apr 7, 2021

There is such a thing as mental health privilege. Most people, by now, know what racial privilege is — it’s the idea that some races (namely, caucasian, in North America) enjoy certain privileges that other races do not. Racial privilege is due to prejudice and discrimination against those of a different race. Simply put, with my white skin, my life does not experience the same barriers as someone with dark skin might. Well, health privilege and mental health privilege exist too. These privileges are enjoyed by those with good health.

Myths About Bipolar and Brilliance, Genius — We’re Just People and That’s Okay

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Mar 30, 2021

There’s a myth that people with bipolar disorder are brilliant. There’s a myth that people with bipolar disorder are geniuses. There’s a myth that bipolar disorder has made us “special.” None of this is true. People with bipolar disorder are just people with an illness. And like any other person battling any other illness, the illness may affect us, even greatly, but it does not define us entirely. People with bipolar disorder are just regular people and that’s okay.

When Suicide Is Welcomed By a Website — Pro-Suicide Sites

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Mar 11, 2021

There are websites that welcome suicide. Sure, they say they’re “pro-choice” when it comes to suicide, but, really, they’re welcoming the choice of suicide. And I think that when a site is welcoming of suicide, it is encouraging of suicide as well. When everyone on a site is suicidal and pressing forward towards suicide, it’s hard not to see it as a viable option, especially if you’re depressed or in distress already. I’m not sure I have an answer to the existence of pro-suicide sites, but I do have some information for their visitors.

What Is a Serious Mental Illness? Why Does It Matter?

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Feb 16, 2021

I talk about serious mental illness a lot, but I have failed to answer the specific question, what is a serious mental illness. Today I’m going to do that. I’m also going to talk about why it’s important to separate those with a serious mental illness and not just lump everyone with a mental illness together. As a person with bipolar disorder, a serious mental illness, I do feel strongly about this.

Exaggerated Emotional Pain Due to Depression

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Feb 11, 2021

Everyone experiences emotional pain, and sometimes that pain can be very difficult to bear. However, I posit that people with depression experience exaggerated emotional pain. Depression causes emotional pain in and of itself, of course, but what I’m talking about is regular, everyday emotional pain being exaggerated because of depression. This is similar to how depression worsens physical pain, which I have written about before.

Emotional Blackmail and Bipolar: What Is It? What to Do About It

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Feb 2, 2021

Emotional blackmail can occur in any relationship, but, unfortunately, some people associate emotional blackmail with bipolar disorder (or another mental illness). I’ve had many people talk to me about this over the years. It’s extremely hard to deal with emotional blackmail no matter who’s doing it, but when emotional blackmail comes alongside bipolar disorder or another mental illness, really, it’s double-tough. Read on to learn about emotional blackmail and what you might want to do about it.

Banned Instagram Mental Health Tags for Bipolar, Depression and More

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Jan 18, 2021

Did you know there are tags banned on Instagram? More to the point, did you know that hashtags for bipolar disorder, depression, self-harm, suicide, eating disorders and other mental health tags are banned on Instagram? Up until recently, I didn’t know this. Upon finding it out, however, I think it’s incredibly important to speak out against it. While I realize that Instagram may have the best of intentions with these bans, banning mental health/mental illness tags on Instagram is not the way to help people.

Happy Experiences Trigger My Depression More than Sad Ones

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Jan 13, 2021

So-called “happy” experiences trigger my depression more than sad ones do. This includes everything from witnessing happy people to taking part in a happy event to watching something happy in a movie. All of these things can make me more immediately sad than seeing something depressing. This seems counterintuitive — even to me — but it is what happens in my daily life. It’s one of the ways that I know I experience major depressive episodes — episodes of an illness.

How Psychologists Can Harm Your Mental Health (But They Don’t Have to)

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Jan 4, 2021

Psychology can harm your mental health in several ways. Some of you may have experienced this. In fact, just last week on Instagram, I posted an experience someone had that illustrated of type of this harm (more on this later). Now, don’t get me wrong, I know that psychologists are there to help, and certainly, not all psychologists will hurt your mental health, but some definitely do. I want to explore how I’ve seen psychologists hurt the mental health of others, even in spite of their best intentions.