Insanity

Insanity.

By Sage Chandler – December 2, 2006

Have you ever considered insanity and what it might be like to be insane? Do we recognize our own insanity? Do insane people believe that they are normal and accuse the rest of the world of being insane, or are they even aware of a difference between themselves and those of us who are normal?

I have never associated with "insane" people that I know of. Oh I've had my suspicions about the sanity of certain individuals, but I have never known anyone who has been diagnosed, or labeled, "insane" and has done time in a nuthouse as a result. The thought of being diagnosed is frightening.

Once we become insane, can we ever return to normal? I know there are medications that supposedly help people, but usually the drug just slows them down and makes them dopey. Are they really less insane after administering the drugs?

Speaking of drugs, drugs can make you temporarily insane. LSD and certain mushrooms, among other mind-altering substances create insane-like qualities in people. I've seen it up close and more personally than I'd like to admit. Could it be that insanity is like peaking on acid? If so, then it could be a most exciting experience. On the other hand, it could also be the most horrifying experience imaginable.

What about your own sanity. Are you sane? Are you normal? How do you know? How do you gage our own sanity? Is acting according so societal norms and obeying all the rules set forth by society proof of our sanity? What about how we feel inside? Do we ever feel afraid for no apparent reason, even to the point of paranoia? Do these feelings of irrational fear indicate a tendency toward insanity?

Perhaps we are all insane to differing degrees. Perhaps sanity, or lack thereof, is genetic; perhaps environmental, but maybe none of us are truly normal, especially since describing normal seems to be impossible. I believe we are all nuts; some more than others. Society will tolerate a certain degree of insanity. We could call that the standard deviation from normal, if we could define normal as being the center, but since we are incapable of defining normal unequivocally, we are unable to define the limits of insanity and therefore are forced to deal with some degree of insanity. Another problem arises if we do define a normal. If we determine absolute normal and call it zero and negative three is the tolerable deviation toward abnormality, then how do we define positive three?
Would we call that “Super normal?” Or might there be a normal which equals zero, and positive and negative insanities?

For many people the term "Social Deviant" has come to mean someone who is dangerous; criminally insane; however, the term simply refers to someone whose appearance or behavior deviates from the normally accepted appearances ands behaviors. The trouble is, we can't define "Normal" and therefore can't establish an acceptable standard deviation from it. It’s a floating deviation because normal itself deviates from person to person and culture to culture.

So the real question is not what insanity is; but rather, what normal is? We cannot expect to define abnormal until we have defined normal, and that will never happen, nor would we want it to. For if we define normal and expect people to live within a very tight deviation of normal, then we will all be the same and planet Earth will become a very boring place to live.

So hopefully this rambling has been thought-provoking for you. Let me know what you think.

-- Sage