“I heard she’s crazy, like an absolute nut job. Multiple people have told me that too, so you know she’s a psycho.”

We sat staring at a girl’s Instagram page. I had seen her a few times on campus and always thought that she was really nice. We scrolled through the pictures of her with her friends and her on the beach. She had a bright smile and kind eyes. Her Instagram page was full of funny and adventurous photos. She seemed like the kind of girl that I could be friends with.

Too bad she’s crazy.

I think of all the people who must have looked at me the same way. The people who might have wanted to be my friend, but didn’t because of something they heard about me. Because someone, one day, decided that I was crazy.

What makes someone crazy? What line do you have to cross to have that label branded across your forehead?

He called me crazy because I had trust issues after my parent’s divorce. He called me crazy because I called one too many times. He called me crazy because I cried when I was sad, and yelled when I was angry.

I don’t think any of those things make me crazy, I think they make me human. But to him it was too much.

I hear about crazy girls all the time. How they don’t know how to let go, how they freak out for no reason. I hear how they cry and how they yell and how they are coated with issues and call one too many times.

“What a psycho,” I say. “An absolute nut job.”

But what happens when that girl becomes me? What happens when that girl becomes you?

My heart hurts for girls. We are so quickly judged and labeled. If you say no, you’re a prude. If you say yes, you’re a slut. If you cry, you’re too emotional. If you don’t, you’re heartless. If you’re confident, you’re vain. If you’re insecure, you’re depressed and annoying. And if you make one wrong move, you’re crazy.

Sometimes it feels like we can’t win, and maybe we can’t. Maybe we can’t stop people from branding these labels on our foreheads.

Maybe we just need to accept the fact that the reason he thinks we’re crazy is simply because he’s a douchebag who didn’t take the time to understand why we act the way we do.

I am a lot of things. I am reckless and emotional. I am outspoken and I have issues with trust. I yell when I’m mad and I cry when I’m sad. I am and do all of these things, but I am not crazy.

I know this. My friends and the people who really know and care about me know this too.

They know that I act the way that I do because I care. They know that I will do anything for the people that I love. They know that I can make people smile and laugh, and that I never make a promise that I can’t keep. They know that I mess up sometimes but I always try my best. They know that I am a good friend and an even better person. They know this because they took the time to really get to know me.

And you could know these things too..

Too bad I’m crazy.