*Edit- I have had quite a number of guest posts, so my call for submissions are currently on pause. Thank you.*
I never have identified as a 'spokesperson' for BPD-- and I never will. 'Talking About BPD' is my singular, first-person experience of life with a borderline personality disorder diagnosis. In fact, being called a 'spokesperson for BPD' makes me shudder. Amongst so many vastly different experiences of living with this diagnosis, how could one voice ever fulfil the role of 'spokesperson'?!
I occupy my own position in society (with all its privileges) and my experience is just that: one experience. I don't speak for all people with BPD, I don't even speak for one section of people with this diagnosis. I can only speak for myself and that's what I hope I do. Of course, some people relate to me as we have shared experiences and that feeling of connectedness seems to be comforting.
That being said, over the years I have occasionally broken my first-person format and had a small number of guest posts from friends, mental health professionals and others who have (or identify with) a diagnosis of BPD. These are all still available on my blog. Right now, I am wondering if anyone would like to contribute and share their experiences of living with (or identifying with) a diagnosis of BPD.
I’m especially keen to hear from people whose voices are often silenced such as LGBTQ+ people and/or people of colour. I am very keen to publish more guest posts on my blog sharing the experiences of LGBTQ+ people and/or people of colour with a diagnosis of BPD. I have not found much online or in books about the experiences of people of colour and/or LGBTQ+ people with BPD.
Unfortunately, I cannot pay for guest blog posts as I make no profits from my blog, in fact I make a loss!
If you would like to have a guest post about your experiences of living with BPD published on my blog, please send your blog post of 250 - 500 words to me at rosie@talkingaboutbpd.co.uk along with your name/pseudonym, pronouns, a short bio of one to two sentences and any social media handles you would like me to share.
Prompts you may find helpful if you want to write something but are not sure where to start:
- do you find this diagnosis helpful?
- what has your experience of mental health care care been like?
- have you experienced stigma and/or discrimination?
- what do you want others to know about life with BPD or about being you?
Other formalities
I may want to make some minor edits to your guest blog post, such as altering sentence length or adding punctuation. I will check you are happy with my small edits before I publish. Depending on the language you use, I might need to add a short sentence to make it clear that your choice of language might be uncomfortable for some people and is your own preference. Please note that all posts are published subject to my discretion and in the unlikely event there is anything disrespectful or potentially harmful then I won’t publish the post. Please make sure any individuals you mention in the post are anonymised so that they cannot be identified. If you are feeling distressed as a result of writing (for example if the writing process is bringing up difficult memories etc), please take a break and ask for support if you can.
Looking forward to hearing from you with your posts!