Comparing Yourself to Others

HealthyPlace Mental Health Newsletter

Here's what's happening on the HealthyPlace site this week:

• What is "Normal?"
• From HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs
• Trip from Mental Illness to Advocacy on HealthyPlace Mental Health TV
• Depersonalization Disorder: Living in a Dream World on HealthyPlace Mental Health Radio

What is "Normal?"

"I wonder, will we ever stop comparing our experience in life to another's?," writes Katie, a new HealthyPlace fan.

Comparing ourselves to others is how we judge ourselves. Unfortunately, for some reason, we tend to compare our worst to other peoples’ best. We read about someone’s inspiring story of recovery and then we use it to tear ourselves down. We hear that a man with severe depression found a way to get better, yet, we ask “why can’t I do this even though I have mild depression? I must not be strong enough. I must not have the courage this person had.”

If we didn’t make those kinds of comparisons, maybe the stories of eating disorder recovery, anxiety recovery, and effectively managing Schizophrenia symptoms (what some consider the "worst mental illness") would remain inspiring and we’d all go out and actively pursue our recovery instead of using comparisons that tear down our self-confidence.

But How Do I Stop Comparing Myself to Others?

• Comparing yourself to others is like a bad habit. Instead of perfectionist thinking, remind yourself that no one is perfect.
• Don't be afraid to be yourself. Everybody is different. Some will accept you. Some won't. That's life.
• Learn to forgive yourself and others. Everyone makes mistakes. Learn from them.
• Accept the reality "everything isn't possible." Flapping your arms, no matter how hard, will not allow you to fly. Right now, there is no cure for Bipolar Disorder. But the real question is: "What can I do to reduce my symptoms and better manage my illness and life?"
• Set realistic, achievable goals and pursue them. Then congratulate yourself on a job well done.

Other Helpful Articles on HealthyPlace.com

• How to Live A Happier Life
• What Should Be Your Standards For Self-Comparisons?
• 10 Lessons Addiction Sobriety Teaches Us
• Each Person's Eating Disorder Recovery Is Unique - Be True To Who You Are

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From HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

Your comments and observations are welcomed.

• Schizophrenia’s Gradual Onset: Why Diagnosis is Difficult (Mental Illness in the Family Blog)
• Recurrent Major Depression: I Don't Always Want to Die (Depression Diaries Blog)

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• When to Fire Your Doctor (Breaking Bipolar Blog)
• Abuse Victims' Anger (Verbal Abuse and Relationships Blog)
• The Real Health Cost of Anxiety Disorders (Treating Anxiety Blog)
• The DSM and Addiction: Why Terminology Matters (Debunking Addiction Blog)
• Each Person's Eating Disorder Recovery Is Unique - Be True To Who You Are (Surviving ED Blog)
• Parental Responsibility Laws--Adding Insult to Injury (Life with Bob: A Parenting Blog)
• BPD and Catastrophizing: Is It Worth It? (More Than Borderline Blog)
• Dissociative Identity Disorder Video: Worlds Colliding (Dissociative Living Blog)
• Taking Action for Depression Recovery
• Mental Illness and Other People’s Standards
• The Abuser's Unpredictability
• Staying with Eating Disorder Recovery During the Summertime
• Psychiatric Medications and The Fat and Happy Paradox
• Losing Time: The Insidious Nature of Dissociative Amnesia
• Are Brand Name Drugs Better Than Generics?
• Schizophrenia and Parenting: Step In or Let Go?

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

Trip from Mental Illness to Advocacy on HealthyPlace TV

Shannon Flynn has survived the ravages of Bipolar Disorder, Depression and Self-Injury. Now she's out helping others. How Shannon survived and the motivation behind her altruism is the focus of Trip from Mental Illness to Advocacy on this week's HealthyPlace Mental Health TV Show.

Depersonalization Disorder: Living in a Dream World on HealthyPlace Radio

Depersonalization disorder is a type of dissociative disorder. It's defined by periods of feeling disconnected or detached from one’s body and thoughts (called depersonalization). People with depersonalization disorder describe it as feeling like you are observing yourself from outside your body. Our guest is Jeffrey Abugel, an editor and writer who has studied depersonalization disorder for more than 20 years. He's here to discuss his new book Stranger to My Self: Inside Depersonalization, the Hidden Epidemic on this edition of the HealthyPlace Mental Health Radio Show.

Learn about depersonalization disorder and other types of dissociative disorders.

Other Recent HealthyPlace Radio Shows

• Parenting an ADHD Child the Right Way: When parents first hear that their child has ADHD, many feel as if they've been set adrift on an emotional sea of guilt, isolation, confusion and fear. To help these parents and their children navigate the challenges of home life, school, and ADHD treatment, Tracey Bromley Goodwin and Holly Oberacker have created Navigating ADHD: Your Guide to the Flip Side of ADHD. We discuss discuss parenting solutions for ADHD children.
• Sexual Assault Recovery: I'm sure you've heard the phrase "can't you just get over it?" Unfortunately, so have a lot of people who have been sexually assaulted. Trauma specialist, Dr. Kathleen Young, joins us to discuss the recovery process and why it's difficult recovering from sexual assault and rape.

If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this onto them. You can also share the newsletter on any social network you belong to by clicking the links below. For updates throughout the week,

• follow HealthyPlace on Twitter or become a fan of HealthyPlace on Facebook.

back to: HealthyPlace.com Mental-Health Newsletter Index