I’m very open about my condition. I even write about it on Facebook and volunteer information in class. And I like calling myself “a borderline.” The peculiar self-reference is deliberate. For a while I subscribed to the idea that we are not our diseases—we are not borderline, we have borderline—and to be fair, I still do; however, I also think there’s power in language and have decided to reclaim "borderline" to reduce stigma.

I am an avid video game player. Recently I discovered Half the Sky Movement: The Game. Based on the book, it educates the player about poverty issues around the world. It's not all sweetness and light--one character is sold into prostitution at age 11, another character has an abusive husband--but it educates the player and offers solutions in the form of charitable gifts. It made me think about offbeat ways people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) can educate others about the disease.

Sometimes, as in the case of Robin Williams, mental health help fails. It's a minority of the time, but it happens. So what should we do when our help doesn't help? How can we change a treatment failure into a treatment success?

When I was a patient at Larue D. Carter Memorial Hospital, we had a few bullies on our unit. One, named Katie, ruled through physical force--and at a whopping 500 pounds, that was easy. Another one, named Angel, enjoyed provoking people to self-injure and was even responsible for a couple of suicide attempts. Both were probably sociopaths, in addition to having borderline personality disorder (BPD). Such people can dominate your life if you let them. So how do you take your power back?

Recently a hospital in Indianapolis cut its number of beds for psychiatric patients, despite the fact it was already running at 98 percent capacity. More Than Borderline blog author, Becky Oberg, argues that psychiatric care, although expensive and unprofitable, should not be a budget casualty.

Every year, I'm faced with the same dilemma - what do I give to someone who has everything? And, every year, I come to the same conclusion; give in their name to a charity or a non-profit organization. This year, I'd like to recommend three different mental health organizations as possible contenders for your gift.

I went for four months without medical treatment that I received within four days of my transfer to LaRue D. Carter Memorial Hospital. The major difference between the two state hospitals is that LaRue receives some private funding--which made for better conditions.