when I saw this thread I had to smile. you know how you can read just about any post here and see yourself or others with in that post...well my head said two things..

uh oh some one is trying to call out other members for their behavior...

which is against the rules of the site so dont post with in that thread, wait and see if it gets deleted first

and second because I get frequent feedback about how I will not tell members they have or dont have a mental disorder, i felt this post may be about me.

and third I was sure this thread was about my posts because there are verbatum statements from my posts with in the original posters post.

since this thread has remained so it doesnt violate the no calling other members out for their behavior rules, I thought I would post "as if" this is about me. even if it isnt it may help others to understand why a poster words their posts the way they do.

the site rules are that we do not make diagnosis. "we" as in it is each members responsibility not to tell other members whether they have or do not have a mental disorder.

i follow this rule by placing with in my posts the generalized statement "we are not allowed to diagnose fellow members" or other variations of this statement.

the reasoning behind the wording of my statement actually came about through a lengthy discussion on the dissociative disorders board when I first came here 3 years ago. when I did not include that statement I got many many pms and questions on the boards asking things like "can you tell me what I have" people were getting very upset because I did not answer those questions. they thought I was uncaring, cold, ignoring them...

when I was saying this is what my treatment providers told me I had with those same symptoms the members felt that was telling others they had to be that way too.

so to fix this situation I started explaining with in any posts I answering that we were not allowed to make a diagnosis...so that those expecting me to tell them what they had would understand no members here can tell them what they have, and those thinking they had to be like me would see that statement and know I wasnt saying to them they had to be like me, I was not making a diagnosis of their problems.

Another reason I word my posts the way I do is because the moderators tell me how to word my posts... thats what moderation is.. all my posts go to the moderators. they read them and if they think my posts are worded correctly they post it for me. if they think the wording is making a diagnosis of the members problems, or they feel Im being rude, disrespectful and other rule breaking things, they send me back my post for rewording and ideas that they think will make my post better.

only after the moderators and I are satisfied that my posts are correct and up to the standards of this site do my posts appear on the boards for everyone to see.

now the "undiagnosing" I cant talk about the details of the pm feedback from the members, I have been getting lately but what I can say is that I understand some members concerns are that my refusing to diagnose someone / telling what the treatment providers in my own location say what these same symptoms within ***me*** are called is telling them they dont have the disorder they are asking about or that Im being rude, disrespectful triggering and other key words for describing my posts.

my posts are not meant to be taken as a diagnosis for or against any mental disorders or persons. I was told to speak only from the point of view of what those things are called in me, or what people can find by "googling" So thats what I do.

the bottom line is that we can read any post on psych central and see ourselves in the posts and interpret each others posts to mean things they do and dont mean.

my suggestion...Sometimes if I feel a post is saying something I dont like i will click the report the post icon and in the explanation box write what I "think" the post may be saying. pr pm one of the moderators that are on line at that moment. then the moderators write me back explaining the post wasnt saying what I thought it was, or it gets removed because it does say what I thought it said. doing this has been very helpful for me to not read things into other peoples posts that is not there or not what the post was meant to be.