I see a lot of posts in here where people are seeking advice on how to curb their toxic behavior, and a lot of the time the comments are filled with something along the lines of “I have BPD and I don’t do that, not everything is a symptom of BPD.”

This pisses me off for a few reasons. 
1. There are 9 criterion for BPD, and you must show at least 5 of those for a diagnosis. There’s tons of combinations of symptoms from one borderline to the next, it’s impossible for all of us to relate 100% to one another. 

2. It seems like people do this because they’re afraid of fitting into the BPD stereotype. I understand this, I wouldn’t want to be labeled as manipulative and crazy either just because of my diagnosis. However, some of us DO fit that stereotype. I know I do. It feels invalidating to treat those of us with negative traits as outcasts in our own community. 

Which leads me to my final thought, why aren’t we offering these people support when they clearly need it? Obviously it’s nobody’s job to take on another person’s mental health issues, but this is a support community. Everyone here deserves to share their experience without being demonized. I know my BPD has made me manipulative, mean, and downright abusive before. I’m working on that, and it hurts when people say that it isn’t my BPD and is just a fundamental part of who I am. But it isn’t! I am not mean and vindictive at heart, the way I can be when i split on somebody. I know that isn’t me and that it’s a part of my brain I’m trying to handle. 

Maybe this is just a pointless rant, but I figured it’s worth putting out there in case anyone else feels the same. I hope everyone has a great Sunday 💓