Thank you very much for this post. I have OCD and it is often troubling to me when people try to diagnose someone else or assume things about me because I have a mental illness. The stigma is very real. I am very open about my OCD because I am not ashamed of it and I want people to understand that stereotypes about it and other mental illness so rarely touch on the real pain that they cause.
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Originally Posted by puregrrl
Yes, there is an Antisocial Personality Disorder, but there are also others, 9 more if I remember correctly (I don't have my DSM at home). They are grouped into diagnostic clusters based on traits. And just because someone has been diagnosed with a personality disorder it doesn't mean they have psychopathic/sociopathic traits. It's kinda like saying that just because someone has auditory hallucinations, they must have schizophrenia.
There is a lot of stigma with mental illness. There are so many people with mental health problems that don't get help because of the judgment and assumptions people make.
When I tell people I am therapist, one of the first things I am most always told/asked is "Oh, that must be scary. Have you ever been assaulted/hurt/threatened/creeped out/etc etc.?" That's because of the stigma.
I could go on forever about it, but I'll shut up. 
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