[TheDragon]

Sometimes I hear people say they can't do something because they have a mental illness, and when challenged about the validity of that, they liken mental illness to a physical disability.

I'm not going to debate that point. All I can say is that the only limitations you have are the ones you place on yourself. Even if it takes you a little longer, a little bit more effort, you can still do it.

Go BIG or go home!

[H3rmit]

"My disability is PC."

[yellowted]

i have both mental and physical stuff going on, i could easily and understandably give up, put up barriers as to why i can't do things, but i chose to keep going, achieve things and have a life which is as fulfilling and meaningful as it can be. ok i hibernate occasionally , more so to rest my bum and recharge my limited energy, but the rest of the time i am a fully contributing member of society. life would be so boring if i were to give up. i experienced what it is like to give up when i was not able to get out and had very little support, i never want to go back to that again!

there is always a way, but no one way is the only right way is my motto

i may not always do things the conventional way, but as long as i achieve the end result what does it matter how i get there!

i meet so many people who put obsticles up as to why they can't do things, it really grates on me, hey i can't sit unsupported so spend my time strapped into a wheelchair or mobility scooter by a body harness, if i can do things so can everyone else!
i asked a carer to help move some logs the other week, thinking she could move the big ones whilst i moved the little ones, only she instantly made excuses as to why she couldn't move the big ones, so i said that's ok i will move them myself, there was no way i could lift them up, but managed to get the biggest on its end and walk it(rock it) to where i needed it it was really hard trying to keep the log upright and move my wheelchair too, it took about 15 minutes for me to move it less than 10 feet but i managed it . the carer didn't say a word but i think embarrassement set in as she then went ahead and moved the rest in about five minutes the lot! just goes to show you can do things if you try.

[5678scream]

Lately, I’ve been identifying myself as a new spirit. And that is why it takes me so long to learn things and 'get' things. When I am looking for a diagnosis, it is not so I can say “oh I can’t do that, I am hurting right now”, it is so I can have an explanation, and a definition to help me explain what I am going through and to help me journey through life and succeed as me. The person I am and want to be.

[Hellion]

Mental illness can cause limitations, so I disagree that the only limitations people have are those they put on themselves as that's not exactly accurate. I am doing my best to not give up on life, but I am not going to pretend I have no limitations or that there aren't some things I can't do.

This just seems to go back to that whole, if you're not well on your way to recovery or an ideal life you're simply not trying hard enough which I also find flawed.

[Peeps]

"the only limitations you have are the ones you place on yourself"

While I appreciate the sentiment here, I have to say... this makes me feel really sad. It sounds a lot like, "You're to blame for your own limitations".... and this is the exact same kind of shaming self-talk I use (against myself) when I feel like I can't do something. In truth, I have a MEDICAL condition, requiring both therapy (to work on the limitations I set for myself) and medicine (to work on the physiological aspects of my disorder.) I am responsible for my own self care but I do have a mental ILLNESS.

[Frankbtl]

I'd say that everyone will have some limitations of varying degrees, and mental illness too can cause great limitations but it's about trying to push past the barriers of these limitations a little (bit by bit?) for some it may be a massive achievement to just get up in the morning or go out. But with real drive and determination some people can overcome amazing difficulties (climbing mountains to weightlifting to getting up in the morning!). Maybe keep on pushing those boundaries or barriers a little more and who knows where it might lead to- that's where Scott is a massive inspiration.
Do understand how some people find it difficult or impossible though due to particular circumstances though and this doesn't make them less of a person than many others.

[venusss]

Originally Posted by Peepshowgirl

"the only limitations you have are the ones you place on yourself"

While I appreciate the sentiment here, I have to say... this makes me feel really sad. It sounds a lot like, "You're to blame for your own limitations".... and this is the exact same kind of shaming self-talk I use (against myself) when I feel like I can't do something. In truth, I have a MEDICAL condition, requiring both therapy (to work on the limitations I set for myself) and medicine (to work on the physiological aspects of my disorder.) I am responsible for my own self care but I do have a mental ILLNESS.

what if one doesn't agree with medical model? No offense, but due to lack of tests to prove medical problem causing it... maybe you set your limitations further. And maybe your treatment team is setting your limitations each time they drop the "you are ill" line. I had been told to drop out of university (cause of "illness"). I knew few others who been told not to have high hopes of having a life... cause "illness". That is setting of limitations.

[Victoria'smom]

I have cerebral palsy also. CP is nothing compared to my mental illness. Not understanding your limits mentally can wreak havoc. it's much easier to physically change your body then to rebuild you mind,. There's a huge difference between living a normal life and convincing himself that he could be a runner on a school team that required try outs. being physically handicapped has limited me in a very specific ways, mental illness has a has a far broader influence. with physical handicaps you can look out a situation and figure out a solution with mental illness is a far more complex situation.

[eskielover]

I always believed that there was nothing I couldn't do......but now at the age of 60....& even before that I realized that is not exactly true.

When I was in college, I started off getting my AA in music...being a flute player, I really enjoyed performing.....when I transferred over to the 4 year college & got involved in the music department & all the juries involved in performance....& I got a really wonderful flute teacher & I practiced 8 hours a day....I still didn't have the TALENT that it really took to be the performer I had thought would be the direction my degree would take me in.

I really didn't relate to kids very well, so being a music teacher was not an option either.....so I had to figure out an other option. I changed from music to Accounting Information Systems with computer science as a minor. I struggled to get through the 1 year of calculus that my degree required.....I just couldn't grasp the concepts other than knowing that it had something to do with calculating the area under a curved line. I managed to squeek by & got the C that I needed to get through that course. I ended up graduating with a 3.25 in my Accounting & computer science degree....but the inability to be able to do the calculus ended up limiting my career in the aerospace engineering field I was in for 15 years. I did well with the date link & communications area, but when the only position that was available was in programming ballistics.....there was no way I could do it which ended up ending my career. I could do the work in the department I ended up in...but I hated it & the stress of hating the position was the end of my career.

There are certain things that we are born with the ability to be successful with....& there are other things that end up being a severe limitation no matter how bad we want to be successful....& those don't have anything to do with mental illness or disabilities...they just have to do with our God given abilities or not & sometimes we don't realize that those limitations exist in the path we are on until they come up & end up the limiting factor.

My lack of music performance ability was early on enough that I could change the path I was going....but in my career...it was down the career so far & the aerospace industry was dying where I was living....there were no other options at that time & going back to college to get another degree at the age of 45 wasn't a possibility at the time.

I have found other talents that I never believed I had...such as drawing & painting....I can do all kinds of crafts that my imagination can come up with.....I always got irritated at my mother who couldn't do anything without a pattern when I could just look at something & figure out how to make it. I am guessing that my mother's insecurities & lack of self-confidence was what limited her creativity.....but I grew up totally surrounded by insecure parents & have no idea how I ended up so different from them. My mother jokingly commented that she believed they changed babies in the hospital because I was so different from my parents.

I had to work harder than most to get the good grades I got....it's not like it came so easy for me....but determination was what I had growing up....determination to NOT BE LIKE my parents. It was that determination that initially made me think that I could do anything I set my mind to....but I did learn through the years that my mind did have some limitations at what it was capable of understanding.

I could have never been a MD no matter how much determination I would have had....there were just some things I couldn't grasp in school & it wasn't just because I wasn't determined to do those things or be in that career. Growing up I always thought how wonderful it would be to be able to think quick enough to answer questions immediately without having to think so much about the answer.....which I thought would definitely make being a lawyer difficult.....but over the years & with a lot of practice, I have become better at thinking quickly & understanding things at a much deeper level than I did growing up.

I believe that the level of thinking that we grow up around can have an effect on us initially....I have seen people who grew up having wonderful family discussions about books & about different issues at their Sunday dinners...my parents didn't know how to have an intellectual discussion about anything......I didn't realize that was missing out of my life.....but looking back & seeing the difference between people who experienced that kind of life growing up & those that didn't....I can see the difference....but it doesn't stop us from developing the ability through the years if we are truly capable of thinking in that way......I enjoy wonderful discussions & I have been able to read so much more & retain so much more after getting out of my horrible marriage that I can see where the freedom my mind now has has opened it up to being a lot more capable of going into places I only wished for in the past.......go figure, the first thing I went to when I moved away from my H was to the book club at the library I never even read books before then because I was so sick of reading the technical manuals for work, I didn't want to read anything else when I got home from work & always fighting with my H about issues never seemed to give my brain time to focus on anything fun like reading.

We definitely can develop certain aspects of our abilities through the years.....but even now no matter how much practice I would put into music...there is definitely a talent limitation that exists.

Now that I have bored everyone with my theories on such things after 60 years of living.......