Garland, TX – Today, it’s easy to find information on just about anything online, including mental illness. Many people try to label and fix their experiences by turning to the web. However the words we use to describe ourselves and our experiences can sometimes hide the real issue at hand. When someone labels themselves as “depressed, they may only see themselves through this new (and often inaccurate) lens. Instead of a permanent or irrational trait, our emotions are often normal reactions to things we haven’t fully dealt with.
The Problem with Mislabeling Normal Feelings
Consider when someone is grieving. When we lose someone we love, it’s normal to feel very sad, tired, and want to be alone. These feelings can look like depression. If someone tries to diagnose themselves or talks to a doctor too soon, they might be told they have major depression. While this label can help some people feel understood, it can also make them think they are “broken”, like they are doing grief wrong, instead of just going through a natural process of mourning. The same is true of overlapping symptoms related to anxiety and postpartum, or may be better accounted for by an underlying medical issue.
Before turning to the internet, ask yourself “Is this a state I am in or a trait that I have?” Traits being more long-term whereas states are generally acute and situation dependent.
Symptoms as Signs of the Past
Many feelings we think of as “disorders” are actually signs of past experiences that we haven’t fully processed. Here are some examples:
- Being overly alert might be a way of staying safe because of something dangerous that happened before, not just “anxiety”
- Feeling emotionally numb can be the mind’s way of protecting itself from pain by checking out at different times.
- Being irritable towards people or situations that didn’t cause the feeling is a sign emotions are not being managed well because of stress we’ve experienced.
Why Talking to a Professional is Important
When people try to diagnose themselves, they might not see the whole picture. Professionals have special training to tell the difference between conditions like Prolonged Grief Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder. They look for specific signs and track trends that may not be noticed by the person themselves.
By avoiding self-diagnosis, you give yourself a chance to understand your feelings better and give grace to yourself as you explore your history, without the shame of a mislabel.
