Does Hardin Scott have bipolar? (+3 Important causes)

In this post, we have explained if Hardin Scott has bipolar. We will also be looking at the various signs and symptoms of Hardin Scott’s mental health issues. Finally, we will be checking out the causal factors which could have led to these issues.

Does Hardin Scott have bipolar?

No, Hardin Scott does not have bipolar. In the ‘After’ franchise, it is not clearly mentioned as to what mental illness Hardin Scott actually suffers from. The ‘After’ franchise follows the life of Hardin Scott and Tessa Young as they navigate romance and life together.

While it is not confirmed as to what mental illness Hardin Scott actually suffers from, it can be clearly understood that the British youngster definitely suffers from some disorder. Some of the theories as to what mental illness Hardin Scott may be suffering from are listed below:

  • Narcissistic Personality Disorder: One theory is that Hardin Scott suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder. This mainly is because of Hardin’s very inflated ego and over-confidence in his abilities and skill sets.

Hardin Scott tries his best to be the cool kid wherever he goes and desperately tries to get the upper hand in any relationship that he participates in. Even in the relationship with Tessa Young, Hardin Scott can often be seen making it all about himself.

  • Antisocial Personality Disorder: Hardin Scott may also be suffering from Antisocial Personality Disorder. As a result of this antisocial personality disorder, he is not hesitant to take up his fists against another person.
  • Substance abuse disorder: Right from the start, it can be seen that Hardin Scott is definitely going through some substance abuse disorder. He regularly consumes drugs and drinks alcohol which leads him to dangerous activities later.
  • Intermittent Explosive Disorder: Hardin Scott clearly has some major anger issues which leads him to cause a lot of harm to those around him. For instance, he sees a friend flirting with Tessa and immediately tackles him to the ground and beats him up.

Signs of Hardin Scott’s mental health issues

Both the ‘After’ books and movies do not specifically mention what mental illness Hardin Scott might be suffering from. However, there are many signs and symptoms of the character’s mental illness portrayed clearly. A few signs of mental health issues in Hardin Scott are listed below.

He can be very manipulative

Throughout the ‘After’ books and movies, Hardin Scott can be seen as a highly manipulative person. He easily plays with the feelings and emotions of others to get them to do his bidding and be the way he wants them to be.

This can also be seen in his relationship with Tessa Young. He easily manipulates Tessa with his words and even through sex to be with him. He also gets into a relationship with Tessa as a result of a dare and hides it from her until the end.

He does not know how to deal with relationships

Hardin Scott also finds it hard to deal with relationships. Hardin can be seen withholding his affections and kindness from anyone, including his own mother. Apart from Tessa Young, Hardin Scott does not have any other long-term relationships.

The relationships that Hardin Scott has are all because he wants something out of it, whether it is sex or simply some friendly company. Having difficulty in maintaining relationships is definitely a sign of some underlying mental illness.

He cannot read between the lines

Hardin Scott also shows an enormous difficulty in reading between the lines. Most of his negative experiences with others are because he only absorbs everything as logical and analytical. Hardin rarely understands what others are feeling.

Empathy is purely a human quality. And even those who consider themselves to be emotionally unintelligent will empathize with others at certain times and experiences. Empathy is a very important force and is mandatory for healthy relationships.

In Hardin’s case, he looks at the logic of every situation and nothing beyond it. For example, due to the toxic relationship that his mother and father shared, he believes that all relationships will be like this and therefore does not want something long-term with Tessa or anyone else.

He constantly abuses substances

Hardin Scott is the definition of a bad boy. Apart from his dress sense and his tattoos and his devil-may-care attitude about everything, he further adds to his bad boy repertoire by drinking alcohol and abusing substances.

This was mainly seen in Hardin Scott in his teenage years when he started rebelling against his abusive father. The dysfunctional family that Hardin lived in also led to him abusing drugs and alcohol to numb his feelings.

He does not plan for the future

Hardin Scott also is known for living in the moment at all times. While this can seem like a pretty healthy attitude, it is not a mature scene. Only living in the present and not planning healthily for the future can also be a sign of some underlying mental illness.

This also shows Hardin Scott’s careless attitude towards his life and his future. However, this all changes when he realizes how important Tessa Young is to him and how much he wants to build a great life with her.

He does not like to talk about his feelings

Another personality trait that is characteristic of Hardin Scott is that he does not like to talk about his feelings to anyone. This is another trait of Hardin’s bad-boy attitude. He also finds that talking about feelings in general is something that only weak people do.

This particular characteristic trait, however, leads to a lot of problems in relationships with those who are close to Hardin. Finding it difficult to talk about feelings in a healthy manner is also a sign of some underlying mental illness.

He takes impulsive decisions

Hardin Scott also makes many impulsive and reckless decisions which actually lead to lot of problems for him. This can actually be seen right from the start, and is the whole reason why his mother Trish sends him to the US for education.

The impulsive decisions that Hardin Scott takes part in are also very dangerous in nature. For example, when he learns about his father’s wedding to someone else, he burns down his childhood home.

Causes of Hardin Scott’s mental health issues

Hardin Scott’s mental health issues are mainly due to his childhood trauma and the various negative experiences that he went through when he was little. These factors have been elaborated in the following points.

  • His father abused him: When he was a child, Hardin Scott experienced a lot of physical abuse from his father Ken, who also abused his mother, Trish. This abuse left deep scars on Hardin Scott’s mindset and emotional status.
  • His mother’s rape: When he was eight years old, Hardin Scot witnessed his mother being physically abused and raped by a group of soldiers. This came about as a result of his father Ken hitting one of the soldiers on the head with a bottle.

Witnessing this experience stays with Hardin Scott forever, leading him to constantly experience nightmares about this. Traumatic experiences like this can lead to mental illnesses like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

  • His friends circle: At the age of 18, Trish has enough of Hardin Scott’s antics and sends him to the US to study in a university where her ex-husband Ken is the chancellor. In order to avoid living with him, Hardin joins a frat.

He then joins a group of friends who all share the same persona and toxic habits. This further creates a spiral for Hardin’s addictive and abusive habits which could have affected his mindset and mental health even more than before.

Conclusion

In this post, we have explained if Hardin Scott has bipolar. We have also looked at the various signs and symptoms of Hardin Scott’s mental health issues. Finally, we have checked out the causal factors which could have led to these issues.

If you like this post, please leave your comments and questions in the space below.

Citations

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/After_(film_series)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4126476/
https://after.fandom.com/wiki/After_(film_series)
https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/04/229432/after-movie-cast-characters
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/narcissistic-personality-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20366662#:~:text=Overview,about%20the%20feelings%20of%20others.
https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/narcissistic-personality-disorder
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/9657-antisocial-personality-disorder
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK546673/
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/intermittent-explosive-disorder
https://psychcentral.com/disorders/intermittent-explosive-disorder-ied

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