The more we learn about our minds, and the more we learn about ourselves, the more tools we have to change, grow, and hopefully heal…

…but I too have experienced the dangers of a technical knowledge of psychology. It’s vital to remember the point you made:

“…we’re all a little mad, some more than others, but we’re all fighting trauma of some kind.”

If we were to all delve into the DSM, we would all find disorders to diagnose ourselves with—the great danger of that being that humans have the tendency to look for scapegoats. Once a fitting diagnosis is read, it’s no longer our fault—it’s the disorder, not me.

Progress is then stunted, we condemn ourselves, and paint our lives into a box without understanding that we all share symptoms throughout the DSM, we all register at varied degrees on a multitude of spectrums. But, for the majority of us, our lives are still our own and we are still capable of being both healthy and in control of ourselves.

I think the study and pursuit of mental health is as vital—it should be practiced by all and it’s the last discipline that should be looked upon as taboo. But, it takes perspective, discipline, and great self-control to peer into our own minds with a textbook in our hands…

…that said, I think we can all use a little help—and there are good people out there who, despite having problems of their own, are still willing and fully capable of helping.