An oxymoron? At face value, yes. Upon a second register, an examination of the structures and meanings within, this term, “the level headed crazy”, depicts nothing more than a dual rolled person, something we all are in certain contortions.
What is most problematic, and most telling, is the usage of the word crazy as a noun to the adjective level headed. Our understanding of “crazy” already takes form here. Crazy is not only something one can be, but can also be someone. You can be a crazy (such as a genius or a pessimist) or be crazy (thinking and behaving in a crazy state). The above examined term, assigning it LHC as an acronym, can be read using both these utilities of “crazy”.
My identification with these is of the roll I’ve defined as someone who is, in all technicality according to our society, crazy however lives with the consequences of being level headed. For me, this has meant getting an education, marrying my husband and having reasonable goals for my future. I trust all the above require some percent of level headedness. What conflicts here is the very definition, even the very defining factor, our society has for the term crazy. Level headedness, and in some interpretations logic and groundedness, is the crucial factor in determination of crazies. Simply put, crazy people do not make level headed decisions and often make no sense.
So to term someone a LHC is to say there is a cultural loophole. This is the oxymoron effect. Irony even. Someone can be both given the context. Traits of either identity, if not in full conflict, can coalesce in a simbioticy. Making good decisions can be an effect of the acute mental clarity those in a state of mania have. Abstaining from drugs and alcohol, while certainly not the overwhelming majority among those who are mentally ill, can be a result of being on a cocktail of psychopharmaceuticals that all increase the potency of alcohol. Having a strong, healthy marriage, when those with bipolar have a 90% divorce rate, can be the result of years of therapy and self-exploration that those with chronic mental illness sometimes go through to deal with the disorder itself.
A calm and poised demeanor under stress can be from the imbalance of neurotransmitters that can result in both depressed mood as well as composure.
This concept tarnishes the strong held idea of crazy people that are not understood and therefore one-dimensional. With this idea of LHC expanding and eventually being integrated into the re-education of the public, those one-dimensional people are more likely to be accepted, understood and approachable. This could be of huge challenge to the persistent stigma that, although lessening, continues to surround mental illness as a whole.
