11 Things That Used To Be Labeled Mental Illness But Now Are Considered Personality Traits
It's not about the ways you're different, but rather how society perceives you.
Bruno Ticianelli | Pexels Research has long shown it's human nature to fear what we don’t understand. It appears any kind of uncertainty or unpredictability increases discomfort, and that may serve us well at times. Unfortunately, this holds true when talking about misguided mental health diagnoses from the past as well. Luckily, many of the personality traits once considered mental illnesses are now considered personality traits, chalked up to being a normal part of human diversity.
This is a good thing! Rather than fearing and pathologizing anyone who doesn't fit neatly into little boxes, we now see our differences as adding to the diversity of the human experience.
Here are 11 things that used to be labeled mental illness but are now considered personality traits
1. Independence in women
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In the past, a woman who refused to comply with “proper” behavior was considered mentally ill. We now understand that rebellion isn't a mental health disorder, but rather a personality trait.
By using diagnoses like “hysteria” to demonize women, men and other powerful players could paint the signs of frustration or depression as a “condition.” By doing this, they were able to keep rebellious and independent thinkers silenced.
2. Learning differences
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Many of the modern-day symptoms of learning differences, like struggles with attention and focus, intense emotions, impulsivity, distractability or emotional outbursts, were characterized as “deviant” just a few decades ago. Now, people are better able to see the gifts that come along with learning differences and the personality traits that may be associated.
Children and adults struggling with ADHD symptoms a few decades ago were called “emotional deviants” and left to struggle and navigate the world without support. These days, with research around learning differences more common, it’s easier to acknowledge patterns in behavior and know that it's not an illness.
3. Psychic abilities
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Psychic and medium powers (skills and intuitive powers beyond the five senses) have been considered a gift or a curse, depending upon where you are in history.
This all comes back to a fear of the unknown — psychics who claim to have these supernatural abilities are far-and-few between and often dismissed and invalidated by scientific claims and research.
At least today many people recognize that intuition and intuitive powers — from psychic abilities to being able to feel or sense other people's emotions — are often facets of a person’s personality and not symptoms of a mental disorder or illness.
4. Not being straight
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The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is still used today. This guide changes with every edition, and looking at what changes within its pages can tell us a lot about how society and mental health care is changing.
Until 1973, LGBTQ+ identities were considered mental illnesses. The APA’s characterization of LGBTQ+ identities as a mental disorder helped lawmakers make laws against LGBTQ+ people.
LGBTQ+ identity as an illness was removed from the DSM in 1973. As a result of personal testimonials and scientific research, LGBTQ+ identities are now firmly established as an orientation or part of individual personality, rather than illness. Thank goodness!
5. A rebellious woman
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According to a study from the Violence Against Women journal, many women have been deemed “crazy” or “emotionally unstable” for making people — specifically men in their relationships — feel uncomfortable. This stigma could be used any time a woman (or a man who didn't conform to their expectations) disobeyed or rebelled against expectations.
While there are still times this happens, it's become clearer that women who won't "obey" their husbands aren't crazy. They just won't be controlled.
6. Interests in 'witchy' things
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Most of us learned about the devastating “witch hunts” between the 15th and 18th centuries in school. Looking back, it seems clear that this was designed to control people who might disrupt the status quo, depending on which period of history they took place.
Even when women who practiced things like tarot, astrology, Wicca weren't accused of witchcraft, they were often accused of being mentally ill.
Fortunately, this is changing. Actual medical conditions, including mental and emotional ones, are now distinguished from personality traits and quirky interests. That means lots of fun for those of us who like a little "magic", and better support and healthcare for people who actually have
7. Non-monogamy
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Recent research, like one 2023 study, argues that the wellbeing of partners is not all that different whether the partners are ethically non-monogamous or traditionally committed. Yes, ethical non-monogamy can work! Even better, it doesn't make you "crazy"!
A few decades ago, having multiple partners could easily have been considered a mental disorder. This was especially true for women!
These days, finding that your personality is better suited for non-monogamy doesn't mean society will see you as mentally ill. While ethical non-monogamy is still considered unusual, consenting adults are free to live in ways that best suit their personalities!
9. Grieving
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People grapple with on their own unique timelines when it comes to grief and loss. It may be hard to imagine, but navigating grief for “too long” used to be labeled as a mental illness.
How we handle grief is personal — some argue, a part of someone's personality, and the relationship to the thing or person we’ve lost is not something that can be defined by a rigid set of experiences or a standardized timeline.
Of course, we have grief diagnoses today, but not to the same degree as a few centuries (or even a few decades) ago, where grieving individuals were diagnosed with a mental disorder for grieving “too long” or “too intensely."
10. A passion for writing
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Just a few centuries ago, the practice of writing — specifically for women — was demonized, coined a symptom of mental disorders like “female hysteria” that were weaponized to control and silence women from speaking in opposition to traditional patriarchal structures.
Like many of the other “symptoms” that were simply objects of men’s discomfort, the practice of writing for women became stigmatized and controversial — taking years for our beloved women’s right’s activists to unlearn and attack.
11. Gender fluidity
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If you don't already know, gender fluidity — an umbrella term for nontraditional gender identities like transgender or nonbinary people — was largely coined a “mental illness” and stigmatized with the term “disorder” until it was changed by the APA in 2013.
Today, the DSM still includes “gender dysphoria” — an extreme state of unhappiness or disillusionment over teh fact that they male or female at birth because it doesn't align with how they feel. Many advocates note that this term exists in the DSM so that people can access medical care, not because there's anything wrong with people having this experience.
Regardless of the intent, this type of diagnosis can invalidate people’s identities — identities that we now attribute to their personality, rather than their mental state or emotional wellbeing, as a result of scientific research.
Yes, society has a long way to go in repairing damage done by diagnosing certain traits as illnesses. Fortunately, we are starting to move in the right direction and we can start embracing the wonderful variety of personalities among us.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
