#“mental health awareness” is a joke | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

theresistanceneverquits · 2 years

Text

So this last week was OCD Awareness Week and it got me thinking about how in TMNT 2012, Donnie was “confirmed” to have obsessive-compulsive disorder. (A writer who worked on the show confirmed it.) However, as someone with OCD I have never related to Donnie, and I’ve recently been rewatching the series with this knowledge in mind and still have not seen any good evidence of representation from him.

However, I feel like a character that actually displays themes of OCD well is Leo. I will say that my view of Leo’s OCD-coding is more based on his mentality, as opposed to actually showing signs of rituals or anything. This is me acknowledging that in-canon he does not exhibit Actual signs of OCD (neither does Donnie), but rather that his mentality better reflects OCD than Donnie’s does, to the point where I’ve related to Leo at times because of these themes.

There are also aspects that overlap with Leo possibly having ptsd and/or depression in the series, but I am making this analysis to educate you about how OCD works regardless, as I feel there is still something to be learned from headcanons and theories when it comes to analysis. I will also analyze how Donnie’s traits that can be skewed to represent OCD actually better fit a diagnosis of autism, using research provided to me by some friends who are autistic.

Onto the analysis! Starting with Donnie, there were a few traits I was able to identify that could work as OCD. He’s neat and organized, dislikes change, and hyperfixates on his work. He also had that chart to help him ask out April, which shows his need for preparation. However, his chart was in preparation for the sake of a goal, whereas for OCD the “preparation” is like preparing for a tragedy that will never exist. And the chart is being used to avoid social conflict as opposed to his own internal anxiety. These traits are not caused by a need to satisfy intrusive thoughts and compulsions, but are rather how he processes his environment better. Donnie would feel frustrated, off-kilter, and overwhelmed if his routines were messed with. Leo attaches more of a moral weight to the actions in his routines.

So that brings me to how Donnie shows signs of being autistic. He tends to explain things and volunteer information when the situation doesn’t call for it, and especially during dire situations. An interesting parallel is how in Rise of the TMNT, Donnie is canonically autistic; in the Rise Movie Donnie says, “Data collection calms me down.” In the season 2 finale of 2012, Donnie tells Leo that oversharing and being technical is “how I deal with stress!”

Donnie also stims, such as often sticking out his tongue when he works. He is also very particular about the layout of his stuff in his lab, and shows great distress when someone (Mikey) messes with his stuff. He doesn’t want to feel out of control of his environment in his own workspace. He also tends to take things literally, such as when Raph said “Could we pick a more cliche way to get eaten?” sarcastically, and Donnie proceed to list off actual cliches to Raph’s annoyance.

Finally, Donnie sometimes experiences sensory discomfort. When Mikey spilled “greasy popcorn” all over Donnie, Donnie was enraged, noting the fact that it was greasy in particular. Additionally, at a point where all the Turtles get sprayed with monster guts, Donnie’s initial reaction is to ask for hand sanitizer. While washing your hands and being clean is a common OCD trait, Donnie’s concern here is with because of the texture and germs associated.

Leo’s turn!

Okay so before we get to how 2012 Leo is OCD-coded, I want to point out that Leo actually definitely has OCPD in every version except for Rise and you can fight me on that. “Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is characterized by a pervasive preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and control (with no room for flexibility) that ultimately slows or interferes with completing a task;” Leo is consistently portrayed as being a controlling perfectionist. Additionally, “OCPD is a personality disorder, which means it involves personality traits that are stable, long-held, atypical, and problematic in some way. In the case of OCPD, people with this condition may find it hard to relate to others, and their devotion to perfectionism and rigid control can make it difficult to function.” This is Leo to a T. Others around him get annoyed with these traits in him, and these traits make up many of his definitive personality traits across the franchise. This side note aside, we may move on to OCD.

I am reiterating here that my purpose is to show how Leo’s themes as a character and in his story reflect those of obsessive-compulsive disorder and am seeking to analyze and educate based on that. I am not arguing that he canonically has OCD. That being said, his themes align best with the subtype of moral scrupulosity OCD, which has people obsess over the morality of their thoughts and actions and often seek outside help to distinguish the truth.

Some basics of Leo’s character that fit OCD themes: he has several episodes of panic, recurring nightmares about his worst fears, he’s controlling and a perfectionist, and thinks something bad will happen if he isn’t at his best and puts all that pressure on himself alone. People with OCD tend to believe that bad things happen because of certain things that they do or don’t do, regardless of how accurate that belief is (it is not an accurate belief). They also can seem oddly controlling to others as they try to gauge certain no-no actions from those around them. Additionally, in “Fungus Humongous,” Leo says, “I face my fear every day.” OCD is run by fear and paranoia, and we too face our fears every day. Fun fact: I like to watch “Parisitica” and “Fungus Humongous” when I’m feeling low because of how relatable I find Leo’s struggles in them.

FINALE SPOILERS: Finally, a symptom of OCD includes “Aggressive or horrific thoughts about losing control and harming yourself or others,” which I feel parallels in Mutant Apocalypse, when Leo attacks his family in a crazed state. He becomes just like the Shredder at this moment; a direct contradiction to his worst fear of losing them. He becomes double mutated because he chose to save his family over himself.

Examining now how Leo’s struggles line up with the morality theme, it’s like his brain is giving him ultimatums and black and white statements about ‘ok you have to be THIS or else THIS will happen.’ In a smaller scale, he would rather do training “right” than quickly, like in that scene where Leo’s doing his katas slower than his brothers and he makes a jab at them for their ‘poor’ form.’ Another interesting example comes with how he is consistently obsessed with finding and helping Karai throughout the series. He feels an intense sense of responsibility about it, even in situations when it really seems out of their hands, either because of wacky circumstances or because of her own actions. He says he's doing it for Splinter, but Splinter has already reassured him several times that he doesn't NEED to. His obsession conflicts with the interests of literally his entire family; it’s a situation that is linked with his morality. Leo is a very kind person who sees the best in people and wants to help them. Karai is his sister and his father’s daughter; he takes it as his personal responsibility to save her—a savior complex born from this obsession.

Now I wanna talk about Leo’s fears and where he turns to deal with them. OCD thrives off of people “Doubting and having difficulty tolerating uncertainty.” The next few sections includes major spoilers for the season 4 finale as well as talk of Main Character Death, so feel free to skip this section. Season 4’s space arc and events taking place after “Requiem” show intense examples of this for Leo. While a part of his actions here are likely due to ptsd and/or depression, it also parallels well with how OCD works.

Leo often goes to his father for advice. However, in the space arc when he’s separated from Splinter and in season 5 when Splinter is dead, Leo still has a need to seek advice and validation from his father. It is a response of grief, but it’s also his way of feeling like he’s getting guidance in a time when he doesn’t trust himself. This is similar to the reassurance-seeking compulsion, where someone with OCD goes to an outside source to entertain whatever thoughts the OCD has come up with, instead of just letting those thoughts go. Leo talking with Splinter practically every day via hologram in the space arc is his coping mechanism during that time, but even his brothers view it as excessive. It’s as if it’s the only thing tethering him during that time where he has little stability.

Additionally, ruminating is seen in the form of Leo constantly focusing on Splinter’s death, both in the space arc and post-“Requiem.” “OCD obsessions are repeated, persistent and unwanted thoughts, urges or images that are intrusive and cause distress or anxiety;” in “Trans-Dimensional Turtles” in the space arc, Leo is talking with the past version of Splinter and sees a vision of him being stabbed by the Shredder. This flashback is presented as something he is constantly thinking and worried about; very little else consumes his thoughts. The ptsd overlap once again occurs here, but I am pointing out that it is this sort of rumination that people with OCD experience often.

Finally, people with OCD “may try to ignore or stop [their] obsessions, but that only increases [their] distress and anxiety.” In the space arc, Leo is slowly being put through it, until he snaps near the end of the arc, going off on a suicide mission alone when he thinks they’ve been led astray by Fugitoid. No one in his family brought up their concerns for his mental well-being to him, and when not surrounded by his family he expressed his doubts and fears. But most of the time for those 6 months Leo spent in denial, singularly focused on their mission to save Earth and Master Splinter. It wasn’t until that vision was seemingly put in jeopardy that he finally snapped and acted reckless to the point of nearly dying. Leo simultaneously indulged in his obsessions while consciously ignoring their existence while in the presence of others, and that led to him being in great distress.

2012 Donnie is not at all a representation of obsessive-compulsive disorder past being the “smart character,” but he is a good representation of autism, whether intentional or not. Leonardo, while not explicitly being a character with OCD, does carry similar themes that make for a relatable OCD-coded character.

Here’s my contribution to OCD Awareness Week. You are now Aware.

Special Thanks:

@/sailor_the_robot on Insta for practically co-writing this with me. Much of this essay includes direct quotes from her.

@phoenixquill-art for her help as well with Donnie’s analysis!

@mej2235 for beta reading :3

Sources:

#tmnt #tmnt 2012 #ocd #autism #media analysis #leonardo hamato #tmnt leo #tmnt donatello #mental health #MCD mention #obsessive compulsive disorder #ocpd #ocd awareness week #Leo is the most ocd-coded character I’ve seen #also a joke that I’m not putting into the post #but under ‘causes of ocd’ it lists biology #so I went ‘it’s because he’s a turtle isn’t it’ /j

101 notes · View notes

schizopositivity · 1 year

Note

Hey, I hope your doing ok and I love your posts, even though I don’t have schizophrenia your posts help me see from other perspectives and be more open minded and considerate.

So anyway in the past week I came across two posts from two different people that were on tik tok that said (jokingly) “none of these people know I have schizophrenia” and it was a picture of an empty room.

I felt the need to share this and I was wondering what your opinion on these “jokes” are. but I don’t get how people can say people with schizophrenia are evil and then turn around and make harmful jokes about it.

And I don’t know if you have tik tok or see any posts like these but I was wondering how you deal with them (or how I should deal with them)

I don’t have tik tok and I refuse to download it but posts like these give me anxiety I do try to avoid these posts but when they cross my path I get angry and upset and I wish these people were educated enough to not make these jokes.

I hope this makes sense and I you have a good day

Thank you! I'm always grateful to see nonschizophrenics follow this blog just to get a new perspective, it brings me hope that people without the experience can still have enough respect and understanding to listen to people like me.

And yes, I am very aware of these types of "jokes". It's common enough to have the name "schizoposting" and I hate it so much. That particular joke has been done many, many times, and the punchline is the person with schizophrenia. These types of "jokes" range from making fun of symptoms like hallucinations, making fun of people who take antipsychotics, or triggering delusions just because people think it's funny. (Sidenote a lot of these "jokes" seem to think hallucinations are usually like seeing full people for long enough, and not being scared by them enough that they are your friend, when that actually isn't a very common hallucination at all and I think that idea comes from misrepresentations in the media.)

I hate these "jokes" for a few reasons. First they are making fun of real mentally ill people who can, and do see these posts. I do not see what's funny about making fun of serious symptoms that people actually suffer with. I didn't choose to have these symptoms or this disorder, it's not funny to me at all. I honestly don't see "jokes" at the expense of people with any other mental disorder by people who don't have the disorder nearly as often as I see jokes about schizophrenics by nonschizophrenics. I've never even looked for them and they just show up. My partners TikTok (which they don't use to look up any schizophrenia content) will just have them pop up. And I rarely see any backlash to this content that I would expect in this time where a lot more people are aware of mental illnesses and mistreatment of those who have them. Secondly, these "jokes" seem to assume that actual schizophrenic people won't see them, or they just don't care. Honestly a lot of people don't realize that schizophrenic people actually exist and actually participate in life and online. Thirdly the "jokes" that purposely trigger delusions/unreality can be very harmful to psychotic people. Once again this isn't funny at all. Fourthly this just adds a new layer of stigma to the already highly stigmatized disorder of schizophrenia. We are still seen as dangerous and scary, and also just existing, taking our meds and having symptoms is funny to people who don't experience it. I honestly have very rarely, if ever see people who are not psychotic stand up for psychotic people online, it seems much more people are willing to just laugh at us.

For people like you who are not schizophrenic and see this content online anywhere, please report it as harassment and don't leave a comment/reply. Even if you are commenting to educate, the algorithm will just see this as engagement and possibly push it out to more people.

For anyone reading this who is schizophrenic/psychotic and you see this content, report it if you feel comfortable with that, and block the account.

These "jokes" shouldn't exist, and everyone should be able to see how rude and sanist they are.

For me, when I see these posts I get angry, but I try not to look at them too long, and I don't attempt to educate those people. It's not worth my time or energy and I think if everyone with respect for schizophrenic people just ignored them it would be helpful. Unless you personally know someone who is posting these "jokes" and they can listen to you, you can try to educate them. Honestly it comes down to letting nonschizophrenic people know that schizophrenic people are human beings that deserve basic respect, because they may have never been told that before.

#answered #schizoposting #schizophrenia #schizophrenia jokes #mental illness #nd #schizophrenic #neurodivergent #psychosis #actuallyschizophrenic #mental health awareness #pseriouslypsychotic

80 notes · View notes