Welcome

Considering how prevalent mental illness is, why do so few bloggers talk about it?

The aim of this blog is to write about my experience with mental illness, developments in my life as well as issues in the field of mental health all the while keeping a feminist framework.

I hope you can take something from this blog, whatever that may be.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Shows with mentally ill characters: the good

Dexter
I love Dexter, the show and the character (I have such a crush on that anti-hero). For those of you who have never seen the HBO show, it stars Dexter, a guy who can easily be described as a psychopath. Since a young age he has had the symptoms of conduct disorder and later, antisocial personality disorder (the technical term for what is commonly known as psychopathology.) Because his father saw how violent his tendencies where he began to teach Dexter how to express that inner violence without getting caught (and institutionalized and hence taken away from his family). Now Dexter is grown and is a blood spatter analysis working for the police who is also a serial killer (of violent criminals only). It is surprisingly funny

When i first started watching it I couldnt help but be like "that would never happen, those with ASPD dont have a sex drive... they dont have feelings like that" bla bla bla.... seems the text book got the best of me.
Dexter shows a different side to severe mental illness. Dexter allows people to see a different side of the people living with such conditions. Once I was able to get past the fact that Dexter does not fit the text book DSM description of ASPD I was able to appreciate so much more the complexity of the character. It reflects life so well: We are often typecast as 'the mentally ill' but we are more than our diagnoses! We are complex too.

-disclaimer: Dexter is ridiculously and horrifically graphic and violent... but I think the good out ways the bad... though as a huge fan of the show... i am a bit biased!

posted 3:36

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