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Mental disorders

I recently heard a podcaster say that mental illness is a tragedy.

Hearing that made me angry. Fortunately, it did not take me long to figure out why.

Mental illness/disorder is not heroic. It is not tragic. It is not inspiring. It is nothing to fear. Mental illness/disorder is normal. It is a normal thing that happens to normal people. Sometimes it is more genetic than environmental, and genetic variation is normal. Sometimes it is environmental, and the disorder is a normal response to environmental stressors but the responce persists after the stressors are removed.

If we think of mental illness as a tragedy, then those who struggle through it are heroic. But I am not your inspirational story. I am a normal person who had a normal response to environmental stressors. I am not heroic. I am not special. The "amazing" thing would be if I were able to shrug off what happened and be a fully functioning, independent member of society. But even that is not really amazing or awe inspiring. People do that every day, with or without help.

Do not characterize me as a hero. Do not create a caricature of me to fit your "inspirational" narrative about mental illness. Do not give me a participation award. Do not cheapen what it means to be a hero. See me as a person. A whole person, don't just see my struggle.

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Mindfulness

Often presented as a magic fix all, even in a discipline that declares that you should be highly suspicious of anything that presents as a "magic fix all".

Psychology struggles to be considered valid, and as one of "the sciences". If you decide to major in psychology you will be able to take multiple classes on how to tell bullshit articles from articles that are actually scientific, and peer reviewed. One of the more commonly repeated tips is to be at least wary of anything that presents as a "fix all". Ex. "Try this easy five step program to cure your insomnia and depression!" "Got anxiety? Depression? Insomnia? Narcolepsy? We've got you covered!" - shit like that. If it sounds too good/easy to be true it probably is.

Mindfulness is all the rage in psychology right now - other areas/places too, but that's not the point of this blog. Mindfulness based practices are being implemented to treat anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, personality disorders, and eating disorders. Now you may have noticed that this list covers pretty much every type of disorder you can have. I don't think mindfulness is being used to treat schizophrenic disorders, at least not yet. But it's also being used by therapists across the spectrum of disciplines: psychoanalytic, behavioral, cognitive, cognitive behavioral, etc. And in a wide variety of situations: clinical, one-on-one, group, in-patient, out-patient.

Hopefully by now you can see what I'm getting at. Mindfulness has hit psychology hard, and is being used as a "magic fix all".

Now I get it, regulated/deep breathing (both separate and together) can help lower the heart rate, increase oxygen flow throughout the body, and help increase the transportation of "calm" hormones throughout the body. All of these things help with anxiety, no matter the disorder that the anxiety is coupled with. Many disorders cause the person to kind of "loose track of themself", depression gets you too caught up in what ifs and lack of energy, paranoia gets you too caught up in what they think, eating disorders cause body dysmorphia. Mindfulness can help to get you back in tune with your own mind and body. You become aware of how crummy your butt feels after sitting down all day, your own thoughts and feelings, how hungry/full you are. It seems perfect.

But I feel like psychology has fallen in the same pit fall trap that we warn others about. It IS too good to be true. But it can work, for some people, if done properly.

Western society is too different from where Buddism was developed for Buddist ideas to be adopted piece meal, or whole sale, by the broader society. But, mindfulness doesn't have to come from Buddhism, or Taoism. It can come from Stoicism - a Greek philosophy. Ancient Greek culture may not have much in common with modern western cultures, but it is one of the base cultures that modern ones grew out of. Besides, at least the Ancient Greeks were individualist, not collectivist.

But there's still a fundamental probelm. Mindfulness, as it is taught today, is so far removed from the base philosophy that I could not tell you if it's Buddhist or Stoic. That's a big freaking problem. Both philosophies (yes, Buddhism is more philosophy than religion) use mindfulness, but both have a lot to teach before you get there. There's a lot of discipline, and foundational work that you're supposed to learn, and be able to practice before you learn mindfulness as it is described by psychology today. But therapists seem intent on trying to find shortcuts, and make it as fast and simple as possible.

This isn't just about proper historical/philosophical context. Short cutting this process is not without harm. The studies that should have been done, with large numbers of participants and across a variety of groups, to determine the true effectiveness of mindfulness have not been done. So I can't even say for certain what the risk is. But go ahead, Google "the (hidden) cost of mindfulness" or "risks of mindfulness" or "the dark side of mindfulness". I don't want to simply link what I've already found, because then it'll look like I'm skewing the results. I want anyone who actually reads this to do their own research. I know what I've experienced (having practiced mindfulness since I was little, knowing for certain that it only does so much, and struggling to get some form of help that doesn't revolve around mindfulness), I know that my voice isn't the only one asking for caution, but I want people to DO the research and make up their own mind, as opposed to being sheep following the sheppard - no matter who that sheppard is.

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Oh btw Yzma is a golden example of a likeable non sympathetic villain. The audience knows she is totally evil and pretty much un redeemable but the writers and character designers did such an excellent job of making her so likeable and visually appealing A fucking plus

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post-fight no-knead breadmaking.

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Halloween Asks

Bat: If you could transform into any kind of animal, what animal would you be?

Black Cat: Are you superstitious? If so, what are you superstitious about?

Broomstick: If you could travel anywhere in the world where would it be?

Candy Corn: What food disgusts you the most?

Cauldron: What is your favorite thing to cook?

Cobwebs: One place you would never want to get lost in in the dark?

Coffin: Are you claustrophobic?

Demon: What is your worst flaw?

Eerie: One thing that always creeps you out?

Fright: What is your biggest fear?

Ghost: If you could be reincarnated, would you come back as another human or an animal? If an animal, what kind?

Gravestone: Ideal way you'd like to die?

Haunted House: If you could be roommates with anyone of your choice, who would you pick?

Hocus Pocus: What is the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard?

Howel: Your favorite kind of dog?

Jack-o'-lantern: Do you have any scars? If so, how many?

Monster: What is your favorite scary movie to watch in the dark?

Mummy: Would you rather be buried or cremated when you die?

Potion: What is your favorite thing to drink? Alcoholic and non alcoholic?

Pumpkin: What is your favorite food around the holidays?

Scream: Easiest way to scare you?

Skeleton: Tell me one of your biggest secrets?

Spooky: What was your last nightmare about?

Trick or Treat: Tell me about the greatest prank you've ever pulled?

Vampire: Which one are you? Early bird or night owl?

Witch: If could have the power to cast any kind of spell, what kind of spell would you cast?

Zombie: What is one food you always overeat?

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reminder: liking a trans woman doesn’t make a man gay. kissing a trans woman doesn’t make a man gay. falling in love with a trans woman doesn’t make a man gay. having sex with a trans woman doesn’t make a man gay. even having sex with many trans women, or only trans women, doesn’t make a man gay. there is no conceivable sex act a man could engage in with a trans woman, no matter what her genital status, that would make him gay, or even bi.

only preferring men makes a man gay or bi

and trans women are women

it’s really just that simple

rinse & repeat

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undefined

YOU’RE PATHETIC

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Categories

It is necessary to recognize each individual, as individuals. Not to erase them into some bigger category. On a larger scale, such as attempting to affect laws, some categories are required. Women, black, indigenous, trans, LGB. These categories are necessary to define the laws. You can't just say citizens are entitled to marriage when certain people aren't being treated as citizens. You must distinguish who you are talking about, in order to make the point. If you just say: "Citizens are not being allowed to marry." Then people who are married will step and say that they got married, others will point to them and say "they got married". This derails the conversation, and you never even get to say that a certain group of citizens are not being allowed to get married. It may be tempting to say that such labels are " divisive " and that we "are all human", however that narrative is counterproductive. Because it erases the individuals, denies their unique experiences, and denies them access to resources they need. I am a female, disabled veteran. I can't just be a veteran, because that denies me access to valuable resources I need to help with the disability I face. I can't just be a female citizen, because that denies me access to healthcare and other resources that I get through the VA due to a lack of options. I can't just be human, because that denies the struggles I face as a woman, and it denies me access to help and support from people who understand those struggles. To simply call me human erases my being female, erases my military service, and erases my disability. To erase my disability is to compound any issues caused by it, because to pretend that I am just "human", makes me feel like I can't even talk about my disability safely, which prevents me from seeking help that could allow me to function at a job, or career. Being able to safely talk about experiences with people who can understand them is very important; rather those experiences are personal, like disability, or more shared, like ethnicity. Attempting to erase someone's ethnicity by calling them "human" is erasing them as an individual. That is not noble. What is noble is treating people fairly, without denying what makes them unique. It is fair to allow two people to celebrate their religious holidays, even though they are different religions. This nonsense of "we're all just human" would be more along the lines of "allowing" both of them to celebrate the same holiday from a third religion that neither of them practice.

Addendum: when framed this way (about gender and race or even veteran and disability) everyone seems to get it. But as soon as you want to start defining what the disability is some people suddenly say that labels are bad (label bottles not people). But it is important to define the disability. In detail if possible. If I am just disabled, then that lumps me in with people who don't have legs. I do have both legs. Someone with mobility issues has different needs than I do. Furthermore, if I can get that accurate diagnosis I am instantly part of a community of people who have similar experiences to me. I am no longer alone. This is due to the simple fact that if a doctor can give me a diagnosis, then other people have that diagnosis. If it were new then the doctor wouldn't be able to give me a diagnosis based on previous experience. I want my label. I want to not be alone. I want to know that my experiences are not wholely unique. I want to be able to tell someone "I have TBI and PTSD" and have them instantly understand certain things about me because they have one or both of those. I need that community.

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Trigger Warnings

So trigger warnings are actually important. My college instructors assigned a book for us to read. A memoir of a transgender woman. No big deal, I am the daughter of a trans woman. So I figured I knew what to expect; a lot of discrimination, some sex work, that type of stuff. Boy was I wrong! Chapter two details her experience of being raped by a teen boy when she was 8 or so. We, as students, got a trigger warning about this when we were expected to be half way through the book. "So some of you may have already had panic attacks, or even flash backs, but we want to give you a trigger warning about it so you can be prepared". That is not how those work. Just how important are trigger warnings? I had a break down from that book, nearly lost control of my car while driving, and had a flashback. If I had been warned about it and prepared for it, I would have had a panic attack. Not a flashback. So please provide trigger warnings. You don't know what other people have to deal with just to get through a day. #triggerwarnings #tw

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Hi

I'm still alive

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Good Old Dirt

What we do to the land, we do to ourselves.

-Wendell Berry

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