When I decided to write a comedic mystery series about a female psychologist and her crazy family, friends, and patients, I knew I was going to have to research various mental disorders. Little did I know what I would discover about myself!
In shopping for crazy people to inhabit my story, one place I turned to was the “DSM” or “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.” While reading through the diagnoses, it didn’t take long for me to realize I had a crap load of issues. For example, I’m fairly convinced that I have ADHD, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Anxiety Disorder, combined with maybe a sprinkling of passive aggressiveness and something akin to bipolar illness. Bipolar people spend too much money. That would explain why my large storage closet resembles a strip mall. In my defense, I try to buy things on sale all year because I have so many gifts to give at Christmas. Still, my unprofessional diagnosis of myself was scary. Also, menopause brings a lot of mood swings. What if I have multiple personality disorder as well, I thought! Knowing what I know, I’m almost afraid to be alone with myself. (this is a guest blog at Love Is An Exploding Cigar, Please see the rest of it and comment): http://loveisanexplodingcigar.com/charlottehughes/welcome_guest_author_charlotte_hughes