I had a client who regularly reminded me of her diagnoses to justify her behaviors and struggles. “I have bipolar disorder, and therefore I… “ , “I have autism, and therefore I…. “. I’ve heard other mental health professionals rail against giving people diagnoses. They’ve argued that it isn’t helpful, because labeling people makes them feel limited by their diagnosis.
I told my client: You are not your diagnosis!
I remember how relieved I was when
I was finally diagnosed with a learning disability. It finally explained my decades of struggling in school. My learning disability doesn’t have a specific title, but it came with a description of what I needed so that I could pass my last class in school. The knowledge gave me important information about what I needed to do to address my challenges. I also never saw my diagnoses of depression or anxiety as a way to define me. The diagnoses explained my past but I never believed I had to accept them as a sentence for my life in the future.
Judge Victoria Pratt says, “Failure is just an event. It is not a characteristic. People can’t be failures.” The same goes for a diagnosis.
You are not your diagnosis.
That mindset allowed me to find effective techniques to heal. While I might relapse into depression under difficult life circumstances, I know that it is temporary as long as I do what it takes to address the problems that caused it. While I doubt I will ever be as good at memorizing or learning as many of my former classmates in my Ph.D. program, I know that my memory and learning has improved remarkably, and that it is no longer getting in my way of my goals.
If you allow your diagnosis to define you, you are sending powerful messages to your subconscious that you are limited. Your diagnosis can be your excuse to stay stuck. It can be a prison if you let it.
The brain is neuroplastic. It has to be for us to learn. New connections are being made regularly, and even new neurons are created throughout our lifespan! As adults, our growth slows down, but it is still worth the effort. Growth gives our lives meaning and purpose.
Our growth can be minor or major depending on the diagnosis, the methods used, and our commitment to the cause.
You are not your diagnosis: manifest what we believe
We have to remember that we manifest what we believe. If we believe we are limited, then we are. If we believe that we can be cured, then that belief will give us the determination to keep looking until we find a solution. If anyone tells you that recovery is not possible, remember that it is from their limited viewpoint. Every “expert” is limited by the training they have and the options they are willing to consider. In the US the predominant viewpoint that we hear is through our doctors and mainstream media. Very few of them have much experience with alternative medicine, but if they were open to it, their views of what is possible would be expanded tremendously.
So don’t let your diagnosis limit you. Don’t your diagnosis define you. You are not your diagnosis! Use it as useful information to get what you need to heal and to succeed in life. I know that for the vast majority of diagnoses we are given, with the right methods, recovery is possible. If you are ready to learn more about what is possible, contact me for a complimentary consultation.
