Sibyl Siwik: I guess another way of putting, are there diseases where one is not able to feel anger, etc?
Elva Batie: It would be nice, but no there are no positive mental disorders. In actuality, mental disorders are characterized both by their symptoms AND by the inclusion of the fact that the disorder must cause distress or some level of impairment in major life functioning. So, if it does not cause harm or dysfunction or distress, it would not actually be classified as a mental health disorder.Now, there are some symptoms and disorders where there may be brief moments of beneficial symptoms or, more accurately, symptoms some of us (without mental health problems) might not mind on occasion. For instance, a hypomanic episode (for someone with bipolar disorder II) may actually feel good, energetic, happy, etc. Feeling like one is on top of the world...that wouldn't be bad to feel when one is stressed out about work. But, these symptoms inevitably result in ne! gative consequences or distress due to the swings in mood. Another example, schizoid personality disorder frequently involves-among other more distressing symptoms-feelings of indifference toward other people. So, people that are overly sensitive to criticism and perceptions of others, may actually find it refreshing for a short time to be indifferent and essentially not really caring about what others think of you.I hope some of this makes sense. Basically mental health disorders will never = positive. It is an oxymoron. Some symptoms may seem like they would be positive at times, but it's the totality of the symptoms that create the distress and dysfunction....Show more
Curt Broadhead: Use your weakness as a strength whenever you can.
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