WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PSYCHIATRIC ILLNESS AND A CHARACTER FLAW?

I may not be one to blame for being sceptical about the society’s many beliefs, desires, aspires, for it is not one person’s opinion to format the trails of the society. Long as one can trace back those trails, they seem to be of the origin of human minds and the very scars that get imprinted on their minds for life. But it leads one to wonder if it even truly is the spawns of one’s mind or the image of the person growing along with the minds, that birth these beliefs.

We are Often expected to drape a white gown to get married in. For it is said white embodies peace. For me, blue has always symbolised peace. Now I wonder how this abnormality would be categorised. An illness or a flaw? Either way blue shall always provide me peace. On a wider count however, these opinions present a much larger controversy. The likings of people are often approved by and at times disapproved by the society. This bounds the parameters of right and wrong for the society and its residents leading to a never-ending debate of the ideals set. I do not suppose it was ever written in any Bible, Gita or Quran to have a race or gender be superior. They were but mere standards of superiority set by the society to overrule or undermine those who did not make the cut. That is the flaw that has become a part of people's character for generations now. That gave rise to distinct disputes between people of different races and sexes. In the minds of some, inferiority, and others, superiority. At the end of the day, however, all that persisted for the spirit of mankind was a fib. People were not born with the choice of choosing their skins nor were they given a choice for what gender they would embody upon birth. To make one suffer embarrassment for a thing they had no control over, grew as a flaw in judgement, a flaw in the mindset and slowly as a flaw in the character of most people.

A flaw. To summarise, it refers to the incompetence or failure of a person to achieve what is asked of them. I remember my third-grade teacher thrashing my fingers for having “horrible” penmanship. I always wondered why she named it so. I could understand it perfectly well. And wasn’t that the whole entire point of writing? To pen down thoughts for people to understand? What was the harm if I did it a little differently from the others? That was however, only the way I saw it. There is a definition of perfection for penmanship and if one failed to fulfil the criteria, they were labelled as “horrible”. Truth be told, perfection is just as much as a point of view of the withholder as is a flaw. What might seem “horrible” to me, might be a beauty for the next person

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. These labels however turn one’s mind into a prison, a deep tormented place of abandonment that develops from a slight flaw to an illness. Flaws are what grow with people, along and side by side. On the other hand, illnesses are unwelcomed entities of pain and sorrow that are brought upon us, that we possess no control over. I could spawn a fib here and say it is not the fault of the spider who built its house inside my home. It only did, because it did not want to miss an opportunity to reside in a place better. Not much unlike the illness brought upon us. Some of us are born with psychiatric illnesses while some are mere victims to it over the course of life. An illness that comes along with the person to the world is one we can only do so much to fight. For those that are brought upon us over the course of life however are like butterflies. They are only attracted to those with large wide wings embellished with rich colours and patterns. The illness does not birth itself. It is transmitted from one sick person to another. My mother always told me to be careful with the friends you make. I suppose what she truly meant was the kind of mindset I was drawing myself into. People often are in search of companies of others that match their mentality, their idea of perfection. The flaw, henceforth, mentally existing in both, be it the same or different is also shared.

 Making the person unconscious of the surroundings but present everywhere. To dig a hole in the brain so deep that they cannot take hold of the rope that they suppose they still do. To lose track of time whilst wearing a watch. To use tears as a medium of quenching your thirst whilst sitting cross-legged in a river. To laugh your jaws out loud while your heart tries to clench itself to death. To be aware but not courageous enough to figure. A psychiatric illness is one that eats you alive but still desires the taste of the better.

As well as I understand it, there is always a thin line between what can be categorised as a character flaw and a psychiatric illness. A character flaw is one that becomes a part of the person should they let it. An illness is one that strangles the sight of a person without an invite. It is one that is brought upon them by years of mental trauma. To however say, it is only the result of one’s helplessness, is not the entire truth. An illness no matter how wild, how deep, how agonizing, can always be fought off. For an illness is merely the result of a wound or flaw left unattended.

                 Adyasha Priyadarshini