If I had not been a BPD BPD was my identity for many many years. If not that, I would have been a lawyer.

I never had a true and long standing identity. My identity was based on who my therapist was, who I was around, what mental health program I was attending, in or out of hospital, bad or good patient, acting out or playing games, etc. My identity was always that I was a mental health patient. I gained everything from that title. That meant I did not have to be responsible for myself and that I only had to be a "good patient" and "follow the simple rules". I could get benefits and free housing and meds. I could lay around all day because everyone just saw that I had a mental illness and there was no need to push me into being anything else. BPD back then was a life ending sentence. I was only suppose to follow the mental health system rules. No such thing as a career or any type of life enhancing things in our lives.

Never really had to look at my life and say what am I to do, I am a BPD - that was my identity. IT was a life escape.

Now that I am 64 I guess having an identity no longer matters. Now I am just an "old lady" with mental health issues but no one cares. The old lady title takes care of looking weird. Everyone just assumes that anything I do wrong has to do with old age not mental illness. So I would have had a better life without this disorder but that is done and over with now I just wait to die. Law practice is not available with all of my physical illnesses. I just now am a old lady with lots of physical doctor appointments and tests. Oh well hopefully this will help someone else when you are still acting up and doing mental health craziness.