Thanks for taking the time to read it, guys.
Sean, I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to refer to a couple of terms used in your repsonse that illustrate my point. It's not your personal choice of words. I think they're the most common ones called upon.
While even an aware and sensitive person might use the phrase "need(s) help," the stigma has already kicked in. When one goes to receive medical care, one doesn't refer to it as "getting help." It's a mentality that some part of one's body, that can be seen and felt, is broken, but not necessarily by one's own actions and therefore, not one's own fault.
The perception with mental health, is that the whole person is broken, when in most cases, there is no break at all, even in the parts. They may just not be working together as well as they should be. So, I'm not really refering to the people who suffer the horrific misfortune of psychotic breaks and serious psychoses. Rather, I'm refering to the entire rest of us who sometimes (inebitowawy) get kicked in the head by a horse we don't own, nor have ever seen. Simple word: life.
And just like with your body, you want to get even the tiniest of the bad stuff excised before it becomes malignant. It's like ignoring the monthly periodicals, even with good reason, then one day, you look at the coffee table and there are 30!
My big point is that this was all much smaller stuff that I ignored, avoided, was too dumb (distracted) to notice, knew was lurking and put off, thought about and dismissed, etc., etc. Not the stuff of psychopaths, the stuff that makes us all "normal." It's bad timing and large doses that push normal experience into overwhelming experience.
I haven't been paying attention (to lots of things) and it not only caught up with me, but took me by complete surprise. Now I have to devote more work/time/effort on the entire ball of puke than I would have had I been more, well, lots of things.
Could I get through this without therapy or a change in meds? Been through far worse with no assistance, no meds, so, "Yes." Do I want it to take that long, stay an interference for even one day more than necessary and still have new things cropping up before I've cleaned up this schmutz? No!
You don't have to have huge problems, you don't have to go for months and months or even weeks and weeks---and you do not have to end up with a perscription. The choices are all yours. How often do you get that? It can be revelatory, earthshaking, calming, redemptive. It is better than anything else you can possibly do for yourself, and more importantly, everyone who isn't you.
Which, of course, brings us back around to me. Like your family, friends and coworkers, I'm not you! You really effen piss me off, 'cause you need help and I can't deal with your nonsense anymore, you basket case.
