Psychologists, What are some things people think are NORMAL but are Actually NOT - Reddit Podcast

podcast reddit, reddit storytime reddit top posts r/confession r/entitledparents r/tifu r/prorevenge r/maliciouscompliance r/choosingbeggers r/entitledpeople r/IDOWorkHereLady r/Idontworkherelady r/personalfinance r/AmITheA**hole r/AITA
Voice Actor - Ryan Henning

[SilveerStarr]

ive had adhd my whole life and only got diagnosed with it this year. there's a laundry list of things I thought were normal, like erratic sleep schedule, punctuality & timekeeping problems, inability to stay focused on some things but being super focused on other things, a memory best described as a selectively holey bucket, a need for fidgeting or movement, and so many more things I wish were caught when I was a kid. but I was quiet, well behaved, and smart so obviously there was nothing wrong :P

[kellidinit]

Sometimes people stop communicating because nobody is hearing them. If you are told get over it enough, you just stop trying to resolve it. I am constantly trying to explain to a friend of mine of over 50 years, regarding her sister, that there are some things in life you never “get over”. Her sister has issues. She has since our teen years. Nobody has ever bothered trying to get her help. She’s just always been told she needs to change. The family that loves you, doesn’t always do what is right by you.

[MezephelesArt]

As a young teenager, I genuinely, truly thought every teenager had a "suicidal phase" and that it was just hormones or other inherently-teenage problems making me want to stop living.

[charlottewallace]

It wasn’t until I started therapy that I realised it’s not normal to be in a constant state of panic and worry, I was so used to living each day with crippling anxiety I just assumed everyone felt the same way. The fact that others didn’t obsess over the possibility of failure and hypothetical worries blew my mind

[theblurryblackcat]

It makes me so angry that this information isn't readily available to kids, teenagers, and people of ALL ages. Mental health isn't taboo, it isn't "inappropriate". I'm tired of people acting like my own brain function is a secret that should be kept from me.

[Keshlynne]

Therapist here: many people think when they do see a therapist that if they don't like their therapist (for whatever reason) that they are stuck with that therapist. This is absolutely not true. If you are dealing with a therapist through work or insurance, you can go outside of work or insurance. If this is questioned by work or insurance, you are entitled to an unbiased therapist, aka a second, opinion. Don't ever feel "stuck" with one specific therapist. Therapists are people, too, and sometimes people just don't jell. Don't ever feel ashamed or afraid to reach out to another therapist. Many therapists have some type of payment plan they can work with you on, as well, so PLEASE don't let money be an issue, either.

[mentallyrandom]

I’ve heard this explanation about anxiety and I use it to explain ptsd and anxiety to people:
Anxiety was created to protect us from external threats. Anxiety is great when your in a forest and there’s a bear. Not having any anxiety at all in these situations is basically a death sentence. You’re not going to go up to bear and give it a handshake or a hug because you know that it’s a threat because you’re brain is saying “run!” Or “Hide”. This is great. But it becomes a problem when the bear follows you home everyday and you’re constantly on edge. Then your brain starts to blur the line between threats and.. well… not threats. So we start to think that everything is a threat and instead of thinking logically, we think irrationally and out of the blue. Another problem is that the brain can be stupid sometimes and can’t tell the difference between a test and a bear so it treats them equally. Even though you know you can’t die from sitting down to take a test, your brain still thinks it’s dangerous so it goes into fight flight or freeze mode and BOOM anxiety overload.

Sorry that was kinda long but I hope that made some sense. ❤

[slipspacesurvivalist]

Man, hearing the effects of anxiety on a child's brain... Really makes me despise my mother even more for hearing it confirmed she raised me to be afraid of everything so she could keep me close. Clearly, it didn't work and only led to me not having a functional relationship with my mother OR my housekeeping habits.

[_be_determined]

The most concerning thing is that mental health issues are so common nowadays. That says worlds about society, culture, and out current economic conditions. Stay strong fam not sure if things will get better but focus on healing yourself.

[jmi]

A girl I know from college almost dropped out senior year because she got a C on an exam. She had never had less than an A her whole life.
It was particularly difficult for her because is was legitimate mistakes on her part. That particular instructor intentionally makes their class hard enough so that there is always a bell curve by the end of the semester.

[TheMeatballMan]

I've lived my entire life with schizoaffective bipolar disorder type 2. I ignored it for the majority of my life, and by the time I finally took it seriously I was in and out of the hospital almost weekly from attempted suicides via overdose. It took years and years of work and mistakes but today I have a job, live alone in an apartment, supporting myself and feeling content. I'm a genuinely happy person now, and it is because I worked out all my shit in therapy and are on the right combination of meds.

Basically what I'm saying is that I'm not just a huge advocate of therapy, I'm also an extremely satisfied customer.

[fandompsy]

Psychology student here! About to get my degree.

Seeing a therapist should NOT be used/considered as an insult -I saw that way too many times-.

No Ma'am, if I gently tells you that maybe you should see a therapist, it is not me saying that's you're crazy and should be put in an asylum with a straightjacket. It's me saying that you're displaying signs of anxiety which seems to affect your life negatively, and as such, a professionnal therapist could help you kick its ass.

Mental health is as important as your physical health; the two affect each others in a number of ways too; seeing a therapist is the same as seeing a general practitioner. So please, do not use this as an insult, and do not take this as an insult.

[astronautraddude]

My mom ( a narcissist) used to lie constantly about the abuse I was going through at home and people believed her over me. It was awful to be trapped in a cycle of abuse where the people who are supposed to help you don't believe me.

[adoginacowboyhat]

When I was growing up, I grew up around a family that would fight constantly. Not just my parents, but my sibling would get into them too. I remember just being in the middle of all the arguments, sitting there, having to listen to it. I was lucky to have the ability to hide away into the woods, and find my passion for wildlife, but I remember telling myself "I'm not depressed, im supposed to make everyone happy in my family, i can't be depressed", so i never even thought about therapy. This video has definitely gotten me thinking about doing therapy, and not letting my morning hikes, and solo backpacking do it for me.

[paperkay]

The shit abusive parents/family members get away with, without there being any law, punishment or even social stigma about, baffles me. A sibling can abuse you for DECADES, mentally and emotionally crippling you, and never ever having to pay for it. And the family thinks it's funny, as if "oh, they were always such a sensitive child, never understood that it was just a joke..."

[Lucailey]

I think a big fear that is out there is finally getting up the courage to see a therapist and having the therapist tell you that you are "normal" and complaining about nothing. The thing is, you are the boss of your own mind and body. If you feel something isn't right - especially mental health wise than, truly something IS NOT RIGHT! I have a lot of mental health disorders ( Aspergers, severe anxiety disorder, depression, ptsd and I am somewhere on the "bipolar spectrum.) Yet I am very high functioning, I have pets, work full time, stay employed live without daily living assistance and outside of my therapist and my social worker, I take care of myself. No one has any legal power over me. Just because I can put on a mask and make the world believe I am fine, does not make it okay for me to struggle alone. If you feel like you need mental help talk to your primary care give. They may even know of some 0 cost options. I am lucky enough to receive absolutely free counseling and direct support. They will help with pretty much anything. It takes courage to admit you need help. But once you do that, there are options

[roahir]

Story 1 really hit home for me as I am recently diagnosed with dyscalculia myself. Math is... well... thank god for calculators.

[rocketsurgery]

For any therapists who might be reading this, I know asking "why" is important, but please be careful with when and how you ask. If a patient is telling you about a former boss who screamed something along the lines of, "You're mom called saying she wants to kill you, " (true story) interrupting the patient with, "And why is that a bad thing?" (also true story) will make them feel unsafe around you.

[lollybirdy]

My anxiety is so bad I actually became sick because of it. Like I threw up cause I had to take a test. I ended up taking the test miserably and I passed but my anxiety did not make it easy.

Edit: wow I'm glad I'm not the only one suffering from the same thing. Let's all suffer together 😭✊

[tobeseve]

Some things I thought were normal before finding out it's actually autism and/or ADHD:

-Having a hard time physically speaking in certain situations, and generally being way better at putting my thoughts into words through text rather than talking face to face or over the phone
-Getting extremely tired and burnt out when around too many people, or around people for too long.
-Masking. This is a big one and it manifests in a lot of different ways, but here's a few: My personality completely shifting to adapt to theirs (changing my sense of humor, adopting certain mannerisms, etc), forcing myself to make eye contact, repressing movements (aka not letting myself stim), and in general feeling like social interaction is a performance. I would also be really hard on myself if I messed up, saying something other people found weird, rocking without realizing it, etc.
-Getting overstimulated and understimulated easily
-Getting extremely obsessive about my interests
-Just not understanding people. Not understanding social cues or unspoken social rules
-Not being able to tell when I need to eat, sleep, go to the bathroom, or basically anything if I'm focused on something
-Executive disfunction. Oh my god I hate this one. This is the main reason I dropped out of school.