labels....

I call myself an alcoholic (I say I have an addictive personality:

food, alcohol , internet) but don't want anyone else to call me that.
Maybe I feel it is a judgement on their part, judging me.

I don't want to be judged. My medical chart says chronic substance use disorder. I don't like that either. I guess it is a personal thing...they think it is a diagnosis.
It does not define who I am.
bizi
I am ok with being called/labeled bipolar though.

I completely agree. We don't want to be part of a group. We're individualized by our thoughts and emotions, not a generic label.

I don't care what I'm labeled, as long as I get the help I need.

good ted talk:

Johann Hari: Everything you think you know about addiction is wrong | TED Talk

I know what you mean about labels. Some people speak about certain labels in a condescending manner, so now those types of labels--especially "alcoholic"--have negative connotations. Of course, not all labels are like that, but certain ones are.

I'm actually bothered by my new label, "bipolar 1 disorder, most recent episode manic, with mood-incongruent psychotic features." It's the "psychotic features" part that I don't like. I know the label is accurate, but at the same time, I feel like people will think I'm batshit crazy if I tell them.

Some people will judge no matter what you tell (or don't tell) them.

I don't feel "labeled" by anything really, though I don't mind being called a woman, funny, a nice person, or a "hot babe". I do happen to HAVE some medical conditions. I have hypothyroidism, some rash behind my ears, genital herpes (thanks go to my husband's first wife for cheating on him), high cholesterol, bipolar disorder type 1, near-sightedness, a past history of alcohol abuse, a toenail fungus on my little toes, mitral valve prolapse, and diastema (a gap between my front top teeth, like the Wife of Bath in Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales".)

Actually, come to think about it, I also don't mind being called a "gapped tooth girl", "a survivor", or a "tough gal".

About two weeks ago, I had a toothache in one of my top front teeth. I went to the dentist afraid of the worst. What if he had to pull it out? Luckily, that wasn't necessary, but I told him about my fear and said that I wouldn't have wanted him to replace it in a way that closed the gap. I said that that would make me wonder who I was looking at when I smiled at myself in the mirror. He gave me a big smile saying he understood, pointing to the gap between his own top front teeth.

I guess my point is that I really only like to be called things I want and like to be. I don't want anyone to ever say, "There's a fungus among us!", pointing in my direction. I don't want to be "bipolar", either. But if people want to be, that's their choice if certain symptoms of it are ones they like and want to equate themselves to.

Yeah, and sometimes labels start to define you instead of you defying the label and being yourself. When I was in college and diagnosed with anorexia, for a long time, that was my identity. I was the girl with anorexia, the skinniest person in the room (usually). It became my whole world. After I recovered, I had to re-define myself and start actually living a life again. It was a tough time.

But now I have so many mental health "labels", I just don't bother letting them define me. I am who I am although I probably am not who I would be off the medication. But you can't have it all.

Sometimes family tends to stereotype me, and that makes me mad because to them, the one stupid label that sticks is always the eating disorder