Lived Experience Forum

[asdfge]

So, I just recieved an email from NDIS and it said that I should get an emergency alarm system installed into my unit, instead of getting a service dog. The lady assumed that I suffered from anxiety about burglars entering the house, instead of the problems that I actually deal with everyday. I feel really devalued. I feel as though people assume that I don't feel emotions when I actually do. I also feel as though people who are upset about stigma, feel ashamed of themselves because of the image that is percieved as a stereotype that struggles with the problems that I deal with. I don't think that I should feel ashamed of the whole stigma issue, but because everybody else feels weird about it, I now feel weird about it. I never worried about what other people thought about people who deal with stigma in the past, but now I feel so alone in dealing with the issue. I feel as though my symptoms that form the idea of bpd stigma (because I check all of the boxes to having bpd) are somewhat my fault and that therefore, the stigma is my fault. anyway, I felt as though the NDIS lady depended on stigma while responding to my formal request about something. 

[Whitehawk]

Hi there @asdfge 

Hello there and welcome to the SANE forums, we are so glad you found us and have joined our wonderful community. There are lots of members here that can understand what you might be going through and offer valuable peer support. We hope you enjoy connecting with everyone.

I'm the moderator on duty right now.   Feel free to ask the SANE forum team or the members if you need help with how to use the forum. You might like to check out the Guidelines as they can be pretty useful in understanding how it all works  https://saneforums.org/t5/help/faqpage#community-guidelines. 

Take care.

Whitehawk

[Aniela]

Hi @asdfge 

It's disappointing you weren't listened to or understood properly. I have BPD and as far as stigma is concerned, I like to look at the positive traits of my emotional sensitivity:

I connect deeper with other people than most.
I have higher levels of empathy and compassion for others.

I am creative when it comes to expressing my emotions in art and creative writing.

I have learned that no matter what anyone says, I am a good, kind and compassionate person. Those who judge me, are people who don't know me. I think of the saying "Those who matter, don't mind, and those who mind don't matter."  

I hope my response has even been a little bit helpful for you. 🙂

[asdfge]

Hi Aniela,

I really like the quote you added into this reply. Thank you for somewhat balancing out the perspective I originally put out there- I was only focusing on the negatives. I agree with you, in that it is better to view and to recall the positive traits associated with emotional sensitivity, rather than the misconceptions that others commonly highlight in the media.

🙂 

[jem80]

@asdfge 

Thanks for sharing your story about your experiences with the NDIS. I have heard a lot of heartbreaking stories about how people are treated when requesting for a package or certain requirements. Many are devalued and not heard. It's a shame that they aren't aware of how much impact it has on you.

You have the right to appeal any decisions that are made by NDIS and there is the Adminstrative Appeals Tribunal that hears any case.

https://www.dss.gov.au/disability-and-carers/programs-services/for-people-with-disability/ndis-appea...

I can only imagine what challenges you go through with BPD and hope that you know that it's not your fault. I hope you have some strategies to help you or supports that you can talk to. 

[Smudge]

Thank you for this helpful link.
Feeling v frustrated w NDIS support my son is receiving

[BPDSurvivor]

Hi @asdfge ,

How are you going?

Feel free to join us on Raising Awareness of BPD - Flipping the Script .

Looking forward to hearing from you.

BPDSurvivor

[asdfge]

Hi jem80,

Yes, I have heard that a few people have found it difficult to receive assistance through NDIS, although nobody went into detail about what happens in a lot of those meetings. Thank you for sending this link- I will keep it in case I need to use it. 

Yes, I think that BPD is a very misunderstood condition. I’m not sure that anybody quite understands how it affects people, unless they are a close relative or suffer from it themselves. But it is best to stay positive, because people can and do recover from it completely.

[asdfge]

Hi BPDSurvivor,

Great, thank you.

Thank you for sending this link. I will check it out when I have a spare moment.