Letters | Rip off the mask, shake off the labels, face the world to shape your future
- Wean yourself off the sweetness of self-stigmatisation, shake off the false sense of powerlessness and find your unique place
“I cannot play soccer well because I am a girl.”
“I cannot have a nice career because I have learning disabilities.”
“I cannot be accepted by society because I stutter.”
We always put unhealthy labels on ourselves, as an indication that we are special, we are different. Maybe this is how we can take the blame off ourselves for things we have done wrong, or outcomes that are not desirable. We can hide under the cover of these excuses when asked how things are going.
The sweetness of self-stigmatisation is that by then, we will have developed the misperception that every failure has its own reason, and that that reason can be forgiven; we will not have the feeling of powerlessness over taking on responsibilities that we might not be able to carry out. And, at the same time, we will not blame – nor demand success for – ourselves. Self-stigmatisation, in a sense, is a drug.
After living for a long while under the covers of self-stigmatisation, we are prone to stop trying, or stop having responsibilities … to stop facing life itself
However, after living for a long while under the covers of self-stigmatisation, we are prone to stop trying, or stop having responsibilities which, in the bigger picture, is to stop facing life itself.