The Label
Does It Symbolize Everything About Me?
Growing up in the 1960’s and the 70’s, I never heard labels or diagnosis on anyone.
Occasionally you would hear someone was crazy, but all do respect it meant that they had a mental illness. Usually due to that they were put in hospitals, and were never talked about again. Looking back. that is so wrong.
The reason I decided to call this article “label” was to indentify with how far our world and the medical world has come with diagnosis. One thing I personally feel that when you are given a diagnosis, it does not identify with who you are or what you love to do in life. You are beautiful, you may learn differently than others. Most importantly you are unique in everyway.
I am going to use the term dyslexia as I have seen first hand in our family, such amazing and talented individuals ,that found their way to cope and best of all do really well in life.
In my own family, one individual was given clay. Words like it, a, the, were the parts that were missing while trying to read. With using clay and directed by an amazing individual (who taught and wrote about it himself), showed the use of clay and helping to guide those words by creating something like “the house”.
This individual can now read great big books. In all do respect there are so many different types or forms of dyslexia and every individual learns in their own way. Hoping that there are tools and teachers that can guide and take the time to help them.
Acceptance-Learning-Growing
My opening paragraph was about mental health, I really want to focus on this especially this month as we really need to stop the stigma.
“We all have it.”
I know many will disagree with me, yet as I have personally suffered, due to trauma. I have had wonderful doctors and councillors that worked with me and guided me. I will not allow it to be me, but I have wonderful tools to cope. One in particular is the ability to write and be creative.
Again, there are so many different types of mental illness but it does not label you as only that. It may or may not be something you have to live with, but if you do there are wonderful ways of living and most of all coping.
Finding the write tools and the right guidance for you. Trust me it will be the best thing you can do for yourself and you are never alone.
One can not go through life without having mental health, to have lost a loved one, to grieve is one of the hardest things to go through and you do not have to go through it alone.
Drug addictions, there is help for that. Many drug addictions happen when you have real pain or suffering, such as an injury. The doctor does not put you on medication to make you addicted, they only hope it will help to get rid of the pain.
When the pain gets worse, you dont feel better many (not all), reach for pain medication and keep increasing until they cannot stop. This is one way many become addicted. Yes, there is help for you. “Never give up hope, your pain will go and your addiction will to.”
The stigma to fit in, from drinking to vaping, to smoking weed to doing drugs, now that is a sad path to get on. When it becomes something you can not go a day without doing, especially several times. Then you are putting your life in danger, those who love you want to help but do not know what to do.
Trust me in our city, our streets and tucked away behind buildings are many who are homeless and only looking to get more drugs. Willing to do anything they can to get money for a drug.
This is when it hits close to home. This is when the label hits you, that person is still a beautiful person and truly has no idea of how they can reach for help. Personally, as I tend to be a fixer I wish I could save and help them all.
I wish in our community there were more resources that could go out and help them. I wish when the city gets money to build this, take away green space that is so needed for the wild to run free. They take that money into consideration of those who really need the help.
Every human being matters, every individual with a label or not are all equal. Things do not make a person, money is what we need to pay bills but it does not have to be the root of everything in life. Remember we all came into the world the same , we were created equal even if we have rough spots on the way. The rough spots only make us stronger.
The Path
The path ahead is your path, it is not identified by where you have been, what you have done. The path is a reflection of you.
Every single one of you are wonderful in everyway.
Do not let greed, make you greedier. Learn to give.
Allow yourself to look around at the goodness on your path, you in particular.
A label is a diagnosis but it is not you. There are amazing tools that will guide you and your path will be beautiful in everyway.
Allow yourself not to judge, but to listen. To love not to hate.
“I am taking a journey in life, my path may change each day.”
“The beauty of the path, is the wonderful people I meet along the way”
Author: Catherine Deslippe
