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Naunet · **05-16-2015, 03:39 PM**

(05-15-2015, 05:17 PM)Foxberry Wrote:
(05-15-2015, 03:02 PM)Naunet Wrote: As the family member of a paranoid-schizophrenic with bipolar, the existence of that video disgusts me on a level I'm not sure I can put into words.

I want to contribute to this thread, as I have experience roleplaying mentally ill characters and would like to share it, but it's going to take me a bit to get over the anger that video has caused. -_-;

I'm sorry Nanut, it's one reason why I didn't post it. It made me angry so I know it would upset others

It's alright. I think I'm better now. It's an extremely personal and traumatic topic for me, probably to the point where I don't think I could actually RP with someone who was RPing a character with that particular illness. There's just too much hurt there. >_<

Regarding mental illness in general, I will agree with what appears to be the general consensus - that it crosses the line into insulting only when it is portrayed in an ignorant way, when it's just played for laughs, when it OOCly demeans real sufferers of these illnesses. But if you approach it from a respectful angle with the full intent of portraying it as honestly as possible, then I don't really have any issue; the same could be said for pretty much any theme in roleplay.

As for my personal experience roleplaying with such topics, it's not something I've gone out of my way to portray, but sometimes things just happen with a character. One of my TERA characters suffers from fully activated PTSD and situational depression that could develop into major, following a series of extremely traumatic events over the course of a year. I don't go around stating explicitly that these are things my character is dealing with, but they come out in how I roleplay her. I did my research - and pulled from my personal experiences - to develop what I hope is not just an accurate but honestÂ portrayal of these issues. The other side is, they're not the core of my character. She doesn't exist purely as a vehicle for PTSD and depression; they are facets that developed but are like an overlay, or fractures in her psyche.Â

I think that's another important thing to keep in mind when dipping one's toes into these topics in roleplay - don't let them define your character. People in real life aren't defined by their problems, and neither should that be so for your roleplay character.

On playing characters with mental illnesses

RPC has moved! These pages have been kept for historical purposes