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In 1919 my great aunt was found wandering in Central Park (NYC) with her clothes off. She was 19 years old. The cops took her to a psychiatric institution. She ended up living there until she was in her mid-50's. So most of her life. Although my mother took my sisters to visit their great aunt (I wasn't to be born for quite a while), no one ever knew her diagnosis.
I have asked family members who knew her for information, but all I get is a cold shoulder - even though my great aunt was, by all accounts, a "kind and gentle person". Unfortunately, she died shortly before I was born. I am named after her.
I had an uncle with severe OCD, a cousin with bipolar disorder, my mom had borderline personality disorder to an extreme (and I suspect some added psychosis in there, too). My father, I believe, had bipolar disorder.
Aside from my great aunt and my cousin, none of the other relatives ever received (or stayed with) treatment.
How about others? What does the mental health map in your family look like?
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