Member-only story
My therapist diagnosed me with generalized anxiety disorder
This is what I’ve learned…
I resisted going to therapy for a long time because of the stigma attached to mental health. I knew, because of the insurance system in the United States, my therapist would be required to assign a diagnosis.
I was nervous about how I would be ‘categorized’ and who would find out. Whether I would be judged as mentally ill and what that would mean for my future. I’ve long been diametrically opposed to a medical system that seems to focus on what’s wrong with people, instead of what’s right. I prefer to utilize a strengths-based approach with the clients I serve.
As it turns out, she did assign a diagnosis — generalized anxiety disorder.
I recall being shocked, dismayed and angry. I wasn’t some out of control, anxiety-ridden, mentally ill person, I was high-functioning, dammit!
It took some time for me to process not only this diagnosis, but also the corresponding anxiety I’d been feeling most of my life. These are my interpretations, the most important of which is, I’ve had legitimate reasons to feel anxious. Not just some nebulous, runaway emotion that sprung up out of nowhere, many aspects of life created conditions for a perfect inner storm.
