Getting Rid of Flippant Language : Check Yourselves Here

[Medusa]

Originally Posted by SuperFemme

After sustaining a brain injury and being deemed "mentally incompetent" by the government? I have reclaimed the word "retarded". Rather than having it shoved down our throats by others, some of my fellow brain injury rehabilitation students used it in reference to ourselves. Before somebody else got the chance. When you set your own kitchen on fire 16 times in three months and order the same pizza 23 times in an hour from the local pizza parlor...you have to give yourself permission to laugh at that which is painful. I use the word very sparingly in front of certain company. It is not used in an offensive manner, but perhaps I need to rethink?

My love!

I have the same stuff going on around the word "crazy". I am, technically and medically, "crazy" and I have used that word to identify myself in mixed company as a way to show folks that Im ok talking about it. It is an intensely personal thing when it comes to medical stuff (as you well know) and I know that I have been in conversations where people are incredibly uncomfortable asking questions or trying to navigate around my idiosyncrasies. I use the word "crazy" to kinda say "Hey, I have a diagnosis for all of this eccentric stuff." I *identify* with "crazy".

But.

A mental health professional has told me that this word is hurtful to people who dont own it in the same way.

The question sets up a weird dichotomy for me where I put my identity as "crazy" first or those other "crazy" people's feelings. I dont think it has to *be* a dichotomy but Im still learning to navigate that.

In short, I HEAR YOU! YAY!