Depression, Psychosis, Hypomania, Bipolar, Borderline: What's the Purpose?

Something that is becoming a reoccurring theme throughout the posts of Poe and Woolf, and soon we will certainly move on from these two authors, is the prognosis of bipolar disorder vs. Borderline Personality in the two.

Why is there such an in-depth analysis between what the two potentially suffered from?

The answer is simple: representation.

Abuse victims of different calibers experience many of the similar symptoms to both Woolf and Poe regardless of the beginning of abuse. Poe and Woolf suffered from early childhood and continued on throughout their entire lives--some may not experience abuse until adulthood. Some only suffer as a child and may or may not even have memory of it but experience the same symptoms. This is so extremely important for victims to notice within others to feel less alone in the world.

The fact that both Woolf and Poe, in different eras, are being identified as potentially bipolar by the general psyche community throughout different education levels and universities, this is an odd overlap for both male and female abuse victims whose works represent their potential mental illnesses. Bipolar has no root cause other than genetics (a small amount, there is bipolar disorder in my family) but BPD is and can be caused by trauma and is often misdiagnosed for bipolar (I Hate You Don't Leave Me).

I will admit, I am not a psychologist or psychiatrist. I cannot diagnose either author, or anyone for that matter, but as an abuse victim myself, I experience the similar depression states and hypomania states that did not start until I experienced abuse. I have had clinical depression since 10-years-old, but the cause is still undetermined and I've seen many doctors and therapists for this and will soon see a psychiatrist (when life calms down enough that I can find one).

However, I have experienced friends with BPD and their art. I have heard about the abuse and mistreatments they experienced as a child. I have studied I Hate You Don't Leave Me, and spoke with two separate therapists about theories surrounding it, so I will give my educated speculations: I believe both Woolf and Poe had BPD as a direct result to the childhood traumas they endured.

Now this theory is not about BPD, but this is supposed to highlight how intensely abuse and trauma affect the individual. Withstanding these abuses gave these two individuals, at the very least, an entire personality disorder even in a time where BPD was not recognized as a mental illness or personality disorder. The traumas these two authors experienced affected them that their mind and body reacted throughout their entire lives.

Mental illness is not just mental, it impact the entire life. It's not a cold that passes or a disease you take medicine for, this is a permanent sickness that takes over the entire life and needs to be acknowledged and talked about more so that society as a whole can learn more about it and treat it so that maybe it doesn't affect the entirety of one's life.

Someone's life should not end at their abuse--and Poe and Woolf show that their lives did not end at such--but Woolf and Poe are well-known for their psychosis and their "insanity" just as much as their works. Poe arguably died from the mental illnesses caused by his trauma. Woolf's credibility and character was questioned due to her trauma responses.

This transcends time and circumstance and this is much more common than most will talk about. That will be the fuel of the rest of these pieces and the next essay.