#what ARE people (generally. but I mean like. individuals. how does general-your individual brain work) capable and incapable of

[elainemorisi]

a) if you would like to indulge in probably overblown panic about world events, do I have the spot on the internet for you

b) are people like, actually commonly incapable of seeing somebody say something they (observer) believes, to a somewhat informed degree, to be probably just catastrophizing and like... dismissing it?

[weemietime]

There isn't a whole lot of content on Tumblr about schizoid personality disorder so I thought I would make a little informational post. SZPD is a cluster A personality disorder, of the odd/eccentric cluster alongside schizotypal and paranoid. It is on the schizophrenia spectrum, and comprises the negative rather than positive symptoms of schizophrenia.

This primarily means we have avolition, catatonia, flat/blunted affect (demeanor), limited interoception (emotional sensations), lack of bonds to others including primary family members, and indifference to the opinions of others.

Whilst this isn't a diagnostic criteria, many of us are also asexual and aromantic, meaning we don't want to have sex with other humans (but usually do masturbate) and have no interest in romantic companionship.

My most disabling symptom is avolition, because I have comorbid ADHD. This means when I don't have my medication (dextromethorphan 120mg) I just sit there and zone out and can't even hold a conversation or move my body, nor even do things like feed myself. It is genuinely crippling and I am unemployed because of this, even though my meds help, they don't cure me and I need a lot of time alone.

Schizoid is something of an "anti-human" disorder, because we fail to form basic social bonds with others including primary caregivers. As a child I got diagnosed with inhibited RAD because I could not tolerate human contact. This differs from autism because autistic people generally want to socialize, they just lack the skills. I don't want to socialize and it takes tremendous effort for me to do so.

To even make this post I had to wait for my meds to click in as I was just sitting there mindlessly beforehand. While we have low internal sensations of emotions like caring, love, happiness, trust, sadness, etc. we aren't typically antisocial/dissocial and don't have a pattern of exploiting others or dishonesty. This requires too much effort.

There is a schizoid version of narcissism but it is separate to narcissistic personality disorder. NPD is characterized by a very fragile ego. You can't contradict or disagree with NPD because they are unable to regulate the emotions caused by conflict. Conversely, SZPD does not care about the opinions of others at all and places little value on them.

Our sense of superiority is legitimate, meaning we just do genuinely believe we are smarter than other people. So your mileage may vary on how insufferable you find that. I recognize this trait in myself and work to actively challenge it since it is illogical for me to think I am more special than anyone else. But, my ego is very stable, so criticism doesn't bother me the way it would in NPD.

Interoception means the sensations you feel inside your body. We lack this, so even stuff like hunger and tiredness don't impact us until we are very hungry or extremely exhausted. I don't have the feeling you would to look at a family member and get a sense of love or trust. I have a logical sense of obligation that I developed through choosing what I value based on reason. I describe this as care, and I place importance on my friendships, but there is no emotional component to this, it is all cognitive.

Tangentially: I'm somewhat of an optimistic nihilist, believing that there is no grand purpose to existence. Yes, even as a religious person. I don't think G-d ultimately has a purpose either, as an agent of the universe. (I don't believe G-d created the universe.) We have a human nervous system, so we base our rubric for morality on suffering and decide what is meaningful both collectively and individually.

I don't believe in true freedom of will (but I do believe we have agency), because we know that Bereitschaftspotential or reaction potentials occur in the brain up to two seconds before we become conscious of a volitional desire. Our consciousness occurs because of quantum synchronicity in the brain, so our free will is in a bit of an in-between state rather than fully determined or fully free.

So, we are not born deciding "I'm going to be an abuser," that happens because of brain abnormalities. It's no different than the forces of creation and destruction at work like a virus infecting a host cell. I don't place much importance on concepts of self-hood, I view myself as the electrical and chemical processes that occur in my brain, which happen without my choosing, that I can influence and impact through my own agency.

Anyway, these are just some basic schizoid meanderings for you all and I hope that this was informative or interesting in some way. Peace.

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

When discussing or analyzing Dazai, one thing I hope you will keep in mind when reading anything I write about him is that from my perspective, he is always, always both.

What do I mean by this? Well, I find there tends to be a general split among people who hold the opinion that "he's a manipulator and will always be manipulative" and "he's doing his best to be good and helpful and live up to Oda's last wishes for him", of which, neither is completely right - because he is both. But even among the people who hold to this dual-nature interpretation, I find that his individual actions and motivations still tend to be thought of in a dichotomous manner - is it manipulative, or genuine?

Again, I think it's always both.

Dazai has a very pragmatic view on a lot of things - he is always looking for the usefulness of things and people so that the situation turns out in his favour. He's incredibly adept at this, and his prediction and placement and careful reveals are all manipulation tactics to get his allies and enemies doing exactly what he needs them to. I don't think anyone can contest this since we see it over and over in the series.

But that's not all there is to it. He's not solely manipulative and he does, to some extent, sympathize with others - I think there are several instances of this in the series, but I want to stress that this has been apparent since Chapter 1!

For context, Dazai is recalling what Atsushi said to him a few minutes earlier, but it's very interesting that it should be this specific part of the conversation. He could've flashed back to the part where Atsushi said he had nowhere to go; no money, no food - he is about to trick him into joining, after all, and this is the key piece he uses to basically force Atsushi into the Agency. But instead it's Atsushi's self-deprecation that catches his attention, and it really does, because even during the conversation, he turns to look at him after he says this with an odd expression.

You could say that this makes Atsushi easier to manipulate, if that's your angle, but that can't be solely it, because in the later conversation with Hirotsu, we know Dazai was planning to bring Atsushi into the Agency and set him up as one half of the new Double Black the moment he met him. The panel shown there is the riverbank, set much earlier in the day than this scene. He was already planning to pair him with Akutagawa since he figured out he was the tiger, so what's with this reaction?

Well. Sometimes the simplest explanation is the best.

He manipulated Atsushi into joining with the intention of utilizing him in his future plans. He also helped him and gave him a place to belong, and importantly, he likes this kid! It's both.

I think much of it might be that his brain just kinda works way too fast - he's such a natural at crafting these elaborate plots and seeing how things connect and gathering useful people like resources that it's practically automatic - though this is not a great means when you're trying to be a kinder person. There's an omake, I believe, that has him saying "I like using my head for justice", i.e. using these underhanded means to act for the better. Not great, but those are the kind of gifts he has. He's way more suited to exploitation, but is choosing to use these tactics to save people now, which is quite reminiscent of what he tells Kyouka. Kyouka's talents lie in killing people - when what you're good at isn't who you want to be, what do you do? Well, I expect you use what you have, even if it's not ideal.

Now, about the current situation with Sigma - I think he definitely likes him, and is intrigued by him and his situation. We did get a little thought bubble where the guy amusedly compares him to Atsushi, and you can't tell me he doesn't care about Atsushi (listen to the onsen drama cd, or read 55 Minutes if you somehow don't believe me). But also, it's undeniable that Sigma is in a very vulnerable position of being homeless and having had no one be genuinely kind to him before. His trust is very easy to earn, and with the latest chapter, Dazai has now saved his life multiple times. There is, as always, a practical purpose he needs him for. And I have to be somewhat amused because Dazai is quite literally telling Sigma everything he ever wanted and needed to hear. It's a brilliant means of quickly endearing himself to Sigma - but I don't think that's all it is.

Look. The most honest moments we get in this series from Dazai are, interestingly for an expert manipulator, when people are at their most vulnerable. In spite of every pointlessly cruel act he inflicted on Akutagawa, his first meeting with him was open and transparent; much like the orphanage director, it seems he thought this treatment would make him strong and adaptable (he's wrong but that's not the point of this). He cuts Kyouka off in irritation and says "don't give me that" when she implies that she would fail the entrance exam. He tells Atsushi it's normal to cry after losing a father figure and to feel however you feel, even if that person caused you nothing but incredible pain and cannot be forgiven. He refuses to entertain Sigma's assumptions that Dazai sees himself as a superior being to him.

Selective honesty can also be utilized to great effect; Mori does this, and undoubtedly it serves this purpose for Dazai too. But I want to stress that I do sincerely believe this is all still honesty from him. Manipulation, or genuine?

Both. It's both.

[thejournallo]

Hypnosis: what is it and how it works?

Some weeks ago, I received a question about hypnosis and how it works, and this activated my curiosity, so I did go deep into my research, and, to be honest, it did help me with my fear of beginning to hypnotize.

Hypnosis is like entering a special, relaxed state of mind where you're very focused and open to suggestions. Imagine being so absorbed in a good book or movie that you tune out everything else around you—hypnosis is a bit like that.

People use hypnosis for all sorts of reasons. Some want to quit smoking, manage stress, or overcome fears. Others might use it to help with pain or improve their confidence. And yes, sometimes it's used for fun in stage shows, making people do amusing things while they're in this special state.

how does it work?

Hypnosis entails a state of complete attention on something, better acceptance of what is being told and deep relaxation. It is usually caused by verbal suggestions and imagery by the hypnotists. Some important things about hypnosis are:

State of Mind: During hypnosis individuals are generally very relaxed but still have their minds sharply focused on the suggestions given by the hypnotist.

Suggestibility: Increased suggestibility is one characteristic feature of hypnosis which means that people under hypnosis can accept and act on suggestions from the hypnotist.

Purpose and Use: Therapeutically, Hypnotherapy is used in helping people to quit harmful habits, reduce pain, anxiety or manage psychological issues such as phobias or trauma. It may also be used for purposes of entertainment like stage shows.

Experience: People describe the Feelings like being detached from one’s surrounding, heightened imagination or altered perception can be experienced by some while others will only go through an inward feeling while still perceiving things normally as they are aware of what happens and their actions remain within control.

Trance: Entering into a trance-like state has often been referred to as hypnosis which is a condition marked with greater concentration on things being said, relaxation coupled with increased response to suggestion. This type could however vary in depth, from light to deep trance.

Misconceptions: Many people think hypnosis is like being asleep or losing control, but that's not true. When you're hypnotized, you're actually very aware and focused, not unconscious. You don't lose your willpower or get controlled by the hypnotist. You won't do anything that goes against your morals or beliefs.

In essence, hypnosis is a really intriguing state of mind. Imagine being so relaxed and focused that you become more open to suggestions. This can be incredibly helpful for things like breaking bad habits, managing pain, reducing stress, or tackling fears. Therapists use it to help people make positive changes in their lives.

Hypnosis can also be just plain fun. You've probably seen those stage shows where people do silly things while hypnotized. It's entertaining, but it's also a great example of how our minds can be influenced in a trance-like state.

So, while hypnosis might seem mysterious, it's just another way our amazing brains can work, whether it's for therapy, self-improvement, or a bit of entertainment.

if you are intrested in more intresting way to manifest don't forget to check my masterlist! I hope you have a blessed day or night!

-xoxo the journallo

[not-terezi-pyrope]

Ok. It's pretty clear you are more welcoming of AI, and it does have enough merits to not be given a knee jerk reaction outright.

And how the current anti-ai stealing programs could be misused.

But isn't so much of the models built on stolen art? That is one of the big thing keeping me from freely enjoying it.

The stolen art is a thing that needs to be addressed.

Though i agree that the ways that such addressing are being done in are not ideal. Counterproductive even.

I could make a quip here and be like "stolen art??? But the art is all still there, and it looks fine to me!" And that would be a salient point about the silliness of digital theft as a concept, but I know that wouldn't actually address your point because what you're actually talking about is art appropriation by generative AI models.

But the thing is that generative AI models don't really do that, either. They train on publicly posted images and derive a sort of metadata - more specifically, they build a feature space mapping out different visual concepts together with text that refers to them. This is then used at the generative stage in order to produce new images based on the denoising predictions of that abstract feature model. No output is created that hasn't gone through that multi-stage level of abstraction from the training data, and none of the original training images are directly used at all.

Due to various flaws in the process, you can sometimes get a model to output images extremely similar to particular training images, and it is also possible to get a model to pastiche a particular artist's work or style, but this is something that humans can also do and is a problem with the individual image that has been created, rather than the process in general.

Training an AI model is pretty clearly fair use, because you're not even really re-using the training images - you're deriving metadata that describes them, and using them to build new images. This is far more comparable to the process by which human artists learn concepts than the weird sort of "theft collage" that people seem to be convinced is going on. In many cases, the much larger training corpus of generative AI models means that an output will be far more abstracted from any identifiable source data (source data in fact is usually not identifiable) than a human being drawing from a reference, something we all agree is perfectly fine!

The only difference is that the AI process is happening in a computer with tangible data, and is therefore quantifiable. This seems to convince people that it is in some way more ontologically derivative than any other artistic process, because computers are assumed to be copying whereas the human brain can impart its own mystical juju of originality.

I'm a materialist and think this is very silly. The valid concerns around AI are to do with how society is unprepared for increased automation, but that's an entirely different conversation from the art theft one, and the latter actively distracts from the former. The complete refusal from some people to even engage with AI's existence out of disgust also makes it harder to solve the real problem around its implementation.

This sucks, because for a lot of people it's not really about copyright or intellectual property anyway. It's about that automation threat, and a sort of human condition anxiety about being supplanted and replaced by automation. That's a whole mess of emotions and genuine labour concerns that we need to work through and break down and resolve, but reactionary egg-throwing at all things related to machine learning is counterproductive to that, as is reading out legal mantras paraphrasing megacorps looking to expand copyright law to over shit like "art style".

I've spoken about this more elsewhere if you look at my blog's AI tag.

[probablyasocialecologist]

Some people, in defense of generative A.I., will claim that A.I. builds from influences the same as human beings do.  This is, to me, the first indication that I’m talking to somebody who either does not understand how A.I. works, how human creativity works, or most likely both.  Something that needs to be clearly understood is that A.I. has no intelligence.  It does not “think”.  It is a predictive text program that simulates human expression by ingesting unfathomable amounts of data and trying to replicate that data.  It does not know and can not know what meaning its outputs have.  Further, it has no desire and no emotion to motivate action or decisions.  It simply runs a program and assembles pixels or words to match what seems most like other correct pixels and words in its vast data set.  It aggregates.  It produces averages. Humans, obviously, do not create like this.  Humans have intentions and purpose to what we do.  These intentions are sometimes deep, sometimes shallow, sometime clear, and sometimes nebulous.  But we always have emotion and thought connected to what we make.  What we create is guided by intent colliding with discovery, and these two states feed each other.  And the influence that we draw from existing work is not an analysis of pixels, but an emotional response to how that work makes us feel.  Even in analytical study of form or anatomy, our brains do not operate like computer programs.  While committing information to memory, we also interpret and seek to understand and this affects how that information is later able to be used.  Because we are each an individual, infinitely complex being, our different physiological, environmental, and cultural variations bring us to infinite different endpoints.  Like it or not, we all see the world slightly differently and our creative expressions reflect this. It has become standard to describe A.I. as a tool.  I argue that this framing is incorrect.  It does not aid in the completion of a task.  It completes the task for you.  A.I. is a service.  You cede control and decisions to an A.I. in the way you might to an independent contractor hired to do a job that you do not want to or are unable to do.  This is important to how using A.I. in a creative workflow will influence your end result.  You are, at best, taking on a collaborator.  And this collaborator happens to be a mindless average aggregate of data. To some, the prospect of collaborating with the sum average of all artists is apparently an attractive prospect.  Maybe you feel you are below average in some areas and the A.I. will therefore raise the quality of those areas.  But every percent that you hand over to the A.I. is a percent less of your unique voice, perspective, and intention.  And for folks who use A.I. generations wholesale, that comes out to a 100% loss of anything personal or unique that they might bring.

[andromedastarrs]

Hey i have a request what would be the type of partner for miguel o’hara ? Thanks if you write this

Miguel O'Hara's Type (S/O) - SFW Headcanons

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Hey Anon!! You're my very first Anon lol this is so very exciting for me, I hope you enjoy my headcanons for Mr.O'Hara's type!!🤞💙❤️

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Miguel doesn't date people for the way they look - so if you're hoping for him to look your way because you're conventionally attractive you're outta luck.

What I mean by this is that he's definitely more of the type to look at someone's actions/inner beauty.

I think Miguel likes individuals that are independent, financially and whatnot. I don't picture him as the type to enjoy babying (I mean this as in taking care of everything for them lol) his partner. However that does NOT mean that he doesn't enjoy getting them gifts and helping them out when they need it.

I think he'd want his partner to be patient. It's no secret that he can be explosive when angry and can sort of act like there's a switch in his head when it comes to his emotions, so having someone that is naturally patient is something that he would definitely look for.

I think he'd look for someone who has different interests/hobbies than him. I feel like he gets bored easily, so having an S/O that has interests he knows little about would peak his curiosity and would sorta act like brain food?? Does that make sense?

In general he would look for someone who is the tender opposite of him, tender meaning that you'd have to be different enough to be interesting but not too different to where you guys have clashing opinions on absolute everything.

Miguel is noooooooot into excessive public PDA, so he'd look for someone who shares that same opinion as him. He doesn't mind hand holding, making each other laugh in public, etc, but he will absolutely never do anything raunchy in public-

Doesn't like pessimistic people.

He'd look for someone who puts effort into their hygiene and general public appearance. AGAIN he is not into people just for their looks, but he IS into people who care about how they present themselves. Does that make sense?? Like he doesn't care if you're Goth, Emo, Coquette, "Basic", etc - he'd be into any aesthetic as long as his partner smells nice and has a cohesive look. (I tried my best to explain but hopefully you get the pic.)

Definitely not into lazy people or people who lack life goals- he wants someone who has a reason to keep going at it in life. Also... don't make him your reason to keep going, he wants you to be independent of him, remember?

I think he'd like people who are into skincare because I headcanon that he's into that 😭🙌. No this does NOT mean he is only looking for someone with clear skin, people can have good skincare routines and still have acne, etc.

He'd look for someone who accepts his past obviously. Also I say this because I think that his backstory is something that's gonna have him traumatized till the end, meaning that idk how he'd feel about kids with his S/O...is it just me that thinks he wouldn't be into it? I think he'd be too scared of losing either you or the possible kid, so instead he'd rather avoid having them again.

(On that note, if you are someone who wants kids I think he'd slowly, but genuinely consider it. He'd probably go to therapy to make sure he's in the right headspace as well.)

Is it a controversial headcanon to say that I don't think Miguel would look for a specific gender to date? I think he'd just genuinely look for a connection.

He'd look for someone who's an early bird like him, he wants to wake up around the same time as his S/O. However I don't think this applies to bedtime, since he has work to do and probably stays up late, he wouldn't wanna hurt his S/O's physical health.

Sorry guys I do not think Miguel likes pets, I think he likes his home tidy and clean. I think he'd lose a sense of control after everything that happened to him, and having a clean home gives him back some sense of control of his life. Maybe a few years into the relationship (after you've moved in) he'd be ok with pets but definitely not at the start.

Also, just because he doesn't want pets doesn't mean he isn't good with animals.

He'd look for someone who is a foodie, I think Miguel is one himself, so he'd look for someone that has the same eating habit of trying new foods. He'd also want this because I think he'd like making them try out recipes. :')

He'd look for someone who doesn't mind quiet days where the both of you barely talk but enjoy each other's presence.

It's no secret that Miguel has an erratic schedule, so he'd love to find someone with a very flexible schedule so that they could always make time for eachother. :')

Unless you are genuinely mature for your age (21+ acting/behaving 26+, don't be weird, thanks) I don't think he'd go for someone significantly younger than him. 🤞Also I think him being 27 makes sense but idek how old this man is because I can't find a certain answer anywhere.

He'd look for someone who can make him laugh. 🥹 He needs more happiness in his life.

On that note he definitely likes people that are optimistic and happy, people who just radiate warm energy. People that are genuinely kind.

Does not like people who try to purposely annoy him, sorry folks.

Also, yes he's handsome. But I headcanon that he wouldn't want someone who's just into him because of the way he looks. And he can always tell.

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[sophieinwonderland]

A More Comprehensive Look At Proxy Bypassing...

One of my posts recently talked about Proxying and Proxy Bypassing. This seems to have created some confusion about how Proxying and Proxy Bypassing actually work. And I'll confess, I'm not always the best at explaining things.

So before going on, I want to establish what these terms actually mean.

Proxying: This is the act of typing or writing for another headmate who isn't fronting.

Proxy Bypassing: Bypassing occurs when, while proxying, the nonfronter's words start flowing directly into the fingers faster than the fronter can process them.

To eliminate some of the confusion, I edited the title of the diagram from before to make it clear that this is mostly about the bypassing itself, not just proxying in general.

It is possible for systems to proxy without bypassing happening, which I don't think I was clear enough on when I made the diagram.

But it does USUALLY happen. Especially when writing long paragraphs.

Some have also asked how this is different from possession. And the difference, to me, lies in the fact that possession is more voluntary movement whereas proxy bypassing is largely involuntary and happens unconsciously. People don't choose to Bypass and often may not even realize it happened until after the fact.

So... what's actually going on here?

Because the above is an explanation for what it is, but not actually why it happens.

Well for that, we need to talk about some basic psychology and neurology.

The Cerebrum and Cerebellum

To start, let's take this very basic diagram of the brain from the Cleveland Clinic. Later, we're going to draw all over it in a way definitely not approved by the Cleveland Clinic.

The Cerebrum is the biggest part of your brain. This is the part of your brain that deals with higher thinking, consciousness, emotions, autobiographical memories, etc. There is a lot going on here. But as plurals, just know that if your headmates are anywhere in the brain, it's going to be in the Cerebrum.

Meanwhile the Cerebellum is more for carrying out more automatic processes, balance, motor control etc.

Do you ever notice how when you walk, you aren't consciously thinking about putting one foot in front of the other? How you aren't consciously thinking about how to maintain balance and not fall over? You just sort of point the body in the direction you want it to go, decide the speed you want to walk, and then it kind of just handles all those other details on its own without you having to think about it.

One way to imagine this might be that the Cerebrum contains more conscious programs like headmates... while the Cerebellum contains nonconscious ones. Commands of where to walk and how fast are sent from headmates in the Cerebrum to the Cerebellum which then actually dictates the movement.

(Note: This is a huge, HUGE oversimplification about these brain structures. But it's a necessary one for what I'm trying to explain here.)

We might conceptualize this relationship like this:

Headmate 1 sends what they want to happen to the Walking Program which then sends it to the through your nerves to have the actions carried out.

As you might guess, typing similarly is ran by processes in the Cerebellum, as are basically all motor skills. That's why it often feels a little automatic when you're typing, and why you don't need to think of where every individual letter is on the keyboard as you type.

So just as there's a walking program, there's also a typing program.

Now, when Proxying without Bypassing, Headmate 2 sends information to Headmate 1 who sends it to the Typing Program in the Cerebellum.

But as you can see, this is inefficient. It's an incredibly inefficient way for the brain to work.

So what does it do instead?

Well, my theory is that the Typing program essentially starts listening to Headmate 2 directly, if it already knows that it's going to be typing what Headmate 2 is saying. There's no logical reason to keep Headmate 1 involved in the process with Headmate 1 just acting as a middleman.

Hence, the signal bypasses the fronter and goes straight into the typing program.

Headmate 1 has not actually left front even if they may be a bit dissociated. But this automatic program is now taking instructions from a different headmate.

And unless Headmate 2 can already possess limbs, they may still not be able to do anything else with the hands except type. Because they're still not actually possessing. They're just sending information to the typing program which is what's actually sending it to the fingers.

Conclusion

I hope this explains a bit better how proxying and proxy bypassing work.

Thanks everyone who asked about proxying and proxy bypassing, because I tend to forget that just because something is making sense in my head, it won't to everyone else's and I need to get better at explaining these concepts in ways people can understand. Hopefully this was a bit more successful.

And thanks to the Cleveland Clinic for giving me such a nice brain to draw all over! 😜

[therabine]

We've got some new cover art and as someone who works in digital media and deals with AI content on daily basis this new cover for Troy Saga set off an alarm in my brain. Naturally I sank into an analyzing spiral, because that's just how my brain works.

"Looks like an AI art with repaints on top" I thought to myself, but to be sure I've checked it with different AI recognizing software (remember kids, if you use AI to generate your art, other AI can reverse engineer the process and identify it!). But so can a human eye most of the time. Pay attention to the combination of these identificators:

- weird blur

- different lines of horizon in one image

- bonkers anatomy/construction errors

- high contrast

- a lot of nonsense happening in the background

The results of AI checkup on the new Troy cover art were mixed

"Okay, let's check out the original Troy Saga cover, I like this one"

Yep, it has no out of place blur, the wooden horse's anatomy doesn't weird me out, the backgrounds look nice, deliberately painted with attention and care, I can make sense of the individual strokes. Good to know that my eyes are still good for something.

"Just to be sure, let's check out the Cyclop's Saga"

Okay, now it's proper weird. Maybe the Hive is off caliber? Wait five minutes, let me make a quick AI Thunder Saga cover art.

Nope, still works. What about other covers?

Fascinating! To be honest Circe Saga cover art doesn't look like Ai to me (all three animals are drawn with nice proportions and the lion is probably drawn with the help of Symmetry tool in Procreate, AI is surprisingly shitty at doing perfect symmetry).

Maybe it's the style of the artist that's confusing to the AI detector? Zwist seems to be particularly fond of whirlwind designs in all of her artwork (bad AI art often does weird stripes and whirlwinds, especially when you're trying to generate something which doesn't have a lot of references for it in the dataset that AI is trained on). Let's run Hive on her original artwork with a lot of whirlwinds and a wonky tree.

...okay. Now that is weird.

Look, I'm not saying that Zwist is a bad artist or something, using Ai isn't against the law and she clearly can paint better than I do. She is talented, go show love to her original artworks that are not Epic related. Hell, I can't even prove with 100% certainty that AI was used at all. Just because I don't like the new Troy cover art doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy it too.

But the whole situation is fascinating to me. A lot of people on insta ask if the new Troy cover is AI, only to be shut down by fans who scream "no, that's just her artsyle and X confirmed that it's not AI, you are just haters".

YOU ARE NOW IN THE UPDATED PART OF THE POST

Special thanks to the people who shared the link to the new Troy Saga cover art speedpaint for erasing my doubts and providing a respectful conversation in the comments.

Watched through the speedpaint a few times, trying to figure why the end image became unsettling enough for a lot of people (myself included) to assume it's AI.

My guess is that Zwist has developed for herself an intricate decorative style, but isn't very familiar with so called 'academic' art.

Why do I think that? Well, I wanted to see how artists of the past depicted the wooden horse, and do you know what image you see when you type up 'Trojan horse' into Google? That's right, it's the giant prop from the movie Troy (2004). And you know, no shame here, using references to draw something you've never seen before is good, I'm just shocked I didn't recognize this design sooner it's very cool. What I really like about it is that it really looks like it's been made rather fast from the scraps of the broken down ships and yet it still resembles an actual horse. Look at the cute pointy ears! Look at the mouth of it! This gorgeous posture!

What's even better, it still exists somewhere in Turkey (well maybe not the actual prop, but the full size replica of it), so there's a ton of photos from different points of view. My best guess is that Zweist used this one as a reference for the new Troy Saga cover:

And here's a problem - this is a very complex structure to draw. Not only that, but Zweist also uses two light sources - moonlight from above and the light of the fire below, which means that we have two different sets of shadows emerging from these light sources.

Unlike all other covers that are very decorative in nature, this one is attempted to be very realistic, almost cinematic in its use of lighting. With all that extra complication it's easy to set yourself up for failure and get too much in the details while losing the larger shapes.

Unfortunately in her simplification of the original reference Zweist completely neglects all the intricate shapes and planes that make up the wooden horse. She forgets that wood cannot bend in circles like that, or that unpolished wood is a low-reflective surface (which means that even the lightest spot lit up by the firelight will be darker than the light on the sand/marble/metal coming from the same light source). It seems like she doesn't analyze the shape of it at all, so we lose the majestic posture and the shape of the horse head.

Just for the fun of it I used 1,5 hours of my time to photobash the reference photo into the original Zweist background. It's very rough (I literally painted everything using nothing but a standard Photoshop round brush and a computer mouse), but I think it gets my point across.

I'm too tired to redo the background and this post is already ridiculously long. But I think that it suffers from the same problems - lack of research and care. Those are just some random shapes taking up space. I get that it's supposedly a burning Troy we see around, but does it look like anything to you? I mean really? Again, it's just a shapeless mess. And all of that could be avoided with a bit of extra research and analysis. There's more to the ancient ruins that the same set of columns over and over.

So, what is can we learn from it? What is the conclusion?

Zwist is a talented young artist, but painting "realistically" isn't her strongest suit. You may like her style, or you may not, but I think there is a difference between "doing it your way" and "trying to succeed and failing". She may try to learn from this situation in two ways: 1) work around her stronger sides making the next covers with simpler designs and less intricate lighting or 2) practice the more realistic style and get better at it.

I don't know the exact reasons why the AI recognizing software flagged some of her work as AI generated. But I think that if it's not just your audience who starts to wonder if you used AI, but you somehow manage to confuse the very program that detects AI, then you've got a problem with your art.

If we want to beat AI companies in their game and stay relevant as professional artists we can no longer produce mindless art. We can no longer afford to produce sloppy work. As sad as it is, within next 10 years there is going to be a large shift in understanding and producing art as we know it. If the art we create can be easily replicated by AI or will look like it's been made with AI, then no one would bother to commission art from you. We have to adapt, to find new ways of exploring our creativity, perhaps even to create a new visual language of expressing ourselves.

In the end of a day human art always beats AI art. You know why? Because AI is not really Artificial Intelligence. It's just a very complex algorithm that is good at recognizing patterns. That's all it is. It doesn't have a conscience, it has no context for the human experience, it cannot think, and most importantly - it cannot invent.

So I want to end this post on the hopeful note - the art will survive. The artists will survive. And if we can learn anything from this situation is that kindness and open dialog is the vest way to deal with confusion. Once again I want to thank everyone who was kind enough to comment on and engage with this post. It grew out of love for something that is deep and personal to me (Epic) to a larger discussion of the changes in the world of visual art (something I love and care for even more). Hope this update spawns more nuanced and respectful discussion on the topic!

[beanghostprincess]

Also what if when the Red Haired and Strawhat pirate crews finally meet. They meet in a populated area and celebrate meeting each other: Shanks and Luffy bond while Usopp and Yasopp are actually doing well together and bonding too. And Sanji (even tho being in a relationship) still fawns over the village girls every once in a while when he's there (not intensely but y'know). And Yasopp sees him and don't think anything of it until Usopp introduces him as his boyfriend. Which quickly pisses him off after seeing how he acts. Which results in Yasopp not liking him, bc well okay, makes sense, but then it leads to him saying he's not allowed to date his son as if he has any control over his life. Which leads to Yasopp and Sanji hating each other and arguing. But also Usopp hating both of them (Sanji for looking at other women still and Yasopp for dictating his life) and refusing to be around them for a while until Sanji and Yasopp realize they were jerks and apologize to him once he calms down.

This been on my head for a long while and I couldn't help but spill since you brought up Yasopp.

Let me kiss your brain. Please. Like. Come here right now and let me kiss your forehead. This is- This is so- Okay. I NEED A MOMENT. I need a moment. Let me breathe. Just a moment.

...

Okay, I'm done breathing. This is AMAZING. And now you have to deal with me talking about it!!!

I think Sanji and Yasopp would not get along because of what you just said. Sanji would still simp for girls everywhere (like, that's something that will never change. And it's not like he tries to sleep with them, he's loyal to Usopp. He's just very, uh, sexually attracted to them an insane amount. Usopp should have permission to bonk him with a hammer every time he does that tbh) and Yasopp would instantly think that he's not good for his son. Which is, you know, understandable, but who is he in Usopp's life to talk about his future? Or at least that's what Sanji would say, complaining about how he doesn't have any right to decide if he's good for his son, keeping in mind that he has never been around.

Yasopp left, but he still cares for his son and he wants to have a good relationship with him. Seeing Sanji like that makes him think about Shanks and Buggy's relationship and that's just not what he wants for Usopp (Shanks, baby, I love you but you're so not beating the cheater allegations). And Sanji... Sanji doesn't have a good relationship with father figures (obviously this is about Judge and not Zeff. Zeff, I love you) and men in general, so tbh I think he would already be a bit resentful towards Yasopp even before meeting him. He would try to hold back, of course, be friendly for Usopp's sake and all. But it doesn't work out.

I find this concept amazing because they care and love Usopp so much that they actually forget about what Usopp truly wants. Overprotective much?? I think they would end up bonding over that, too!!! Usopp would get angry at both of them first, though:

Usopp: What do you mean he's not good for me? You don't know him! Yasopp: But I'm sure he would love to know every girl around here, wouldn't he? If you know what I mean. He's going to end up breaking your heart, kiddo, I know people like him. For fuck's sake, Shanks is like him! Shanks: I'll have you know I am a very stable individual and your captain and a little bit of sexual freedom never hurt anyone! Yasopp: Tell that to your ex-boyfriend. Shanks: Ouch. Unnecessary. Usopp: You don't know him! And for starters, you don't even know me! He's wonderful and perfect for me and even if he weren't, you shouldn't have a say in my romantic life! If you wanted to act like a dad, you should've started years ago! Sanji: Thanks, mon trés- Usopp: And you. Don't you dare mon trésor me right now! My dad might not be allowed to say shit like this about you, but I am. I've gotten used to you flirting with every average-looking girl you see, but I'm sick and tired of you acting like a dog in heat with them. Especially when I'm around. It's- I thought I could just deal with it because I'm not a jealous person, but you need to get your shit together, Sanji. Both of you need to get your shit together. And if you excuse me, I'm going to have a drink with the others because I need a long, long break from you two. [...] Zoro: Now you've done it, curly. Told you you'd fuck this up someday. Sanji: I'm going to murder you. [...] Shanks: And you say I'm the bad father. Yasopp: You still are. Shanks: Maybe, good point there, but I'm not the only one. So that's a relief.

And then they would end up talking things out, of course, because Usopp is the most important person in their lives. I would like to see them bond over that, realizing that they both care about him a lot and that's why all of this happened. Sanji tells Yasopp that, even if he's pretty much obsessed with women, he would never be disloyal to Usopp. Usopp is the one for him. If he says he wants to get married to him one day, Yasopp is the only one who hears it. Sanji just needs to control his urges a lot, tbh. And Yasopp says that he knows he's not allowed to decide who his son should or shouldn't date, but he just wants to be a good father and enjoy the time they have together without some guy breaking Usopp's heart. He doesn't know how to be a dad, but he's willing to try for him.

So I think they end up getting along! Sanji cooks for both crews, of course, and Yasopp is delighted to taste his food. They spend the time laughing and talking about Usopp and Sanji won't stop explaining every adventure they've had together. Usopp, on the other hand, isn't as angry anymore (after talking to Nami about it) and watches from a distance how friendly they are now. This raises the question:

Usopp: God, are they going to be like that now? Nami: Is there an issue with that? Usopp: I don't know. Maybe? It's just weird. Robin: Maybe they start talking about all of your dirty secrets and embarrassing memories :) (<- Super friendly and not at all scary smile) Usopp: I want to die.

At some point, Sanji brings Usopp food and Yasopp comes along. They both apologize to him and, well, it's not as scary as Usopp thought. And they might be stupid and flawed, but they're still two of the people he loves the most.

Gonna have a whole breakdown over this now, thank you. I'm gonna think about this all day long. And tomorrow too. I'm sobbing. I have a lot of thoughts right now. Thinking about Sanji asking Yasopp for Usopp's hand because he's just classy like that and Yasopp accepting and Sanji like: "Okay, cool, because I was going to marry him anyway even if you said no. Glad I didn't have to kick your ass."

I'm gonna cherish this ask forever. Thank you. <3

[bettsfic]

Hi Betts,

Thanks for continuously posting helpful advice.

I just wanted to know— how does someone go about getting to the point in their writing where they are not so precious with words in hopes of taking off the pressure when drafting?(in reference to a previous post)

i remember a few years ago, there was this very well known and popular fanartist whose name i won't give because they're no longer on tumblr or even going by their handle anymore. they received an ask much like this one in which they said something to the effect of, they could spend hundreds of hours on a piece of art and be willing to throw it away, because (and this is from memory because i can't find the original post) there will always be more art.

i remember being aghast about that. how could you spend so much time working on something and just...not do anything with it? scrap it and start over? maybe even delete the file?

and more importantly, i remember wondering how an artist could even reach that point.

maybe everyone gets there in a different way, but for me it was the emergence of a bigger picture, that i don't write to be read or seen or understood, but so i can explore things that can't otherwise be explored, and live experiences that can't be lived. for me, the value is in the process, not the product. and, to the artist's point, there will always be more words.

more concretely, it was also spending an entire year working on a novel, only to realize that what i wanted it to be was not what fit in the market, and that to make it marketable i would've had to have made revisions that would've changed the thing i wanted it to be. so i realized publication isn't endgame; it's happenstance. a few things i write may be marketable, but probably only a fraction of them, and only if what i write overlaps with what is being sold. a venn diagram of "stories that will be published" and "stories that i enjoy writing" are often two circles about a mile apart. whether or not a story is marketable doesn't affect my personal opinion of it.

the same is true for fanfic. if i finish a fic, i post it for the sake of archiving it. i don't pay much attention to traffic (but i do read comments), and it's been a long time since i've written consistently in a popular fandom. in fact the last fic i posted only had one other fic in the ship tag. the point of writing fic, for me, is to get it out of my brain and onto a page, and if someone eventually comes upon it and enjoys it, great.

i'm definitely not at the point where i can just straight-up delete work, but i can write something for a very long time and be satisfied even if no one ever looks at it. it does bum me out when i care about something so much and nobody else does or will, but that's the nature of writing, and art in general. nobody cares as much as you do, and even if you write something that's wildly successful, read and loved by millions, award-winning, adapted to screen--still, all those people will have their individual, private relationship with the thing you wrote, will perceive it in their own unique way, and even if it changes their life, the story can never give them what it gave you.

i don't mean for that to be depressing or deterring. what i hope you take from it is that your feelings toward your work are more important than anyone else's feelings toward it, and not everything has to be seen and admired in order to be worthy enough to exist. sometimes you have to take the risk of being unseen to create your best work.

[script-a-world]

Submitted via Google Form:

I am not sure how to set limits in a fantasy world where there are numerous layers and dimensions where the idea is that people live in worlds within worlds within worlds.

The base layer is simply just that. Wilderness and everything else and everything untamed, no laws. No one stays there except the guardians/gods. It's nothing but portals. [IRL analogy: Space and portals go to Earth/Mars etc...]

I should mention that there are 2 types of portals btw. One is wjere a portal only connects to one spot and portals that connect to mutiple spots on the next layer.

These portals take you to a second layer. A continental world. There are dozens of continents (no actual planet to restrict anything) and anything on this layer is global plus more portals.

[IRL analogy: Earth and portals go to Asia, Europe, etc.]

And those portals goes to the 3rd layer of individual continents. Anything on this layer os continental. More portals give you individual countries. [IRL analogy: Asia and portals go to Russia, China, etc]

The 4th layer is countries. Anything here is nationwide. And more portals to country subdivisions. [IRL analogy: USA and portals go to California, Florida, etc...]

So you can see, it goes down so many layers. All the way down. Your home is even a portal on the street layer. Tiny independant shops are portals on the street layer.

It goes on.. depending how big your home is... that might be a portals layer itself connnecting 10+ rooms.

So basically it's such a massive undertaking that requires it to constantly be run and held at all times. Where is there room for magical failure? Is this too overboard or am I overthinking it? It seems like I definitely don't have limits here.. just utilising layer after layer after layer with no restriction.

Also this is mostly physical.. how about how this actually works and shapes as a society? With all these physical locations.. literal space is no issue? How about resources? Population? Since so many layers give no(?) limits that could be a number with 100 zeros.

Tex: Functionally your limits are whatever is the end of your patience/comfort level/skill level, or perhaps slightly before that point to give yourself some wiggle room. Are you building this world for the sake of a story, or to have a nice bauble to interact with? If for a story, which parts of this are most relevant to the plot, leaving the rest as auxiliary details? If for a source of amusement, what about this interests you the most? As it stands, this is a difficult bit of worldbuilding to follow - do you mean to have these worlds act gyroscopically to each other, in a nested sort of function? Is this meant to model some TTRPGs that have a similar set-up? Something else? If this is for an audience rather than solely your own amusement, then pertinent details need to be picked and stuck with to avoid overwhelming readers with so much context to take in.

Wootzel: We aren’t having an easy time understanding how this works. Here are some avenues to think about, and I hope they can help you come to your own conclusions. If you find yourself needing help with a specific aspect after brainstorming on your own some more, you’re welcome to ask again.

What does this look/feel like to actually interact with? Is going through a portal painless and pretty normal (sensory wise) or is it weird and feels like your brains are on sideways? Are the portals easily visible? If one is traveling from layer to layer, do you go from Home Layer to Street Layer and then walk down the street, or is it more metaphysical and harder to explain by real-world understanding?

You only mentioned magic towards the end and with no elaboration. WHO set these up? Do they require energy to keep open? What’s your magic system like? There are a million directions you could go with this (from the gods did it and must consciously maintain them, to humans spontaneously generate portals when they yawn), and this is basically a non-question. If you want to ask questions about minutiae of your magic system to sense-check it, first flesh out the magic system to us (but please be cognizant of how big your question is if you re-ask about this; we want to help, but we can only nudge you in the direction of some inspiration when it comes to something as made-up as a magic system).

You want limits, and you mention that these portals need to be maintained. Figure out what it takes to maintain a portal, then extrapolate to figure out where the limits of this system are. OR, go backwards: decide where you’d like a limit, and then pare that down so that individual portals’ cost adds up to that limit.

It sounds like most of these portals are pretty static, by your description. Like the portals in a house--I’d assume those are just hanging out, otherwise it’d be impossible to live in such a house. Do more dynamic portals exist? Why are most portals just kinda hanging out instead of being opened when needed, if maintaining them costs something? Alternatively, what if going through a portal is the costly thing, not it existing?

I’d suggest looking for other media that might have vibes in common with what you’re suggesting, if you don’t already have some in your pocket (or in addition to ones you already know about). I can’t think of any that deal specifically with portals in any way similar to yours, but since it seems like existing in your world would be pretty weird compared to what we’re used to, it might help to check out some examples of what other authors have done with words where there are some strange ways of perceiving going on. The only ones I can think of off the top of my head are Awful Hospital and certain chapters of Gunnerkrigg Court (chapter 72, Perspective, especially--though it will only make so much sense if you’re not familiar with Gunnerkrigg). 

[the-witchs-cafe]

Hi there- I hope it's not too much to ask, but, if that's alright, do you have any advice on designing witches in general? Or if there's a certain philosophy you follow in regards to it?

It isn't at all, dearie! Thank you so, very much for asking in the first place!! I cannot emphasize how much this has warmed my heart ^^ /v v pos

My most important advice above all else...if you ask me, I say it's best to take all the time that you need- even if it took weeks, months, or even a year or two, it's best to allow your brain to cook at its leisure. In the meanwhile, I also recommend setting up a way you could archive any and all inspirations/ideas that come your way- whether we're talking about an inspiration board or even a discord server that only exists to compile information, just find a method that best suits yourself and stick with it.

Don't be afraid of going off the walls when designing the witch themselves, either; so long as a theme has been established and everything is sticking to it, you won't have a thing to worry about.

I mean, come on! Ophelia is dubbed as the Witch of Wudan, with a European name serving as a reference to Hamlet, possesses a candle for a head, and has powers over illusions. Candeloro, meanwhile, is a headless little toy known as the "witch of dress-up", whose labyrinth possesses a river of blood contrasting with the idyllic scenery of her labyrinth, and had taken all the measures she's managed to come up with in order to keep her familiars from leaving her alone.

To bring my own creations into the spotlight of shame, and ironically so when considering who he was, Sayf al-Muharib is the Gladiator Warlock who resembles a sheep-wolf hybrid with design elements invoking both the Golden Calf and a "wolf in sheep's clothing" (full credit goes to @gummybonebanes for the wolf part esp), is constantly burning/melting so that he could further imitate his hero, has an Arabic name that means "the warrior's sword" in spite of Gladiators being a mainly Roman thing and his weapon being a HALBERD, and the center of his labyrinth even looks like a soccer arena once you take a good look at it.

All these aspects may look like they make little to no sense for them to be put together, but, once you look at them a little closely and inspect the people they once were, it all begins to fall into place. Like working with individual cogs of a machine, just try to find the piece that keeps the design operational and working in the manner that befits what you had in mind. I also recommend looking at other media that possess story elements that happen to be similar to PMMM's witches for further inspiration as well, such as the Baal bosses from the Bravely series, or the abyss enemies and the concept of the samsara from Genshin Impact.

Finally, and I know this sounds corny as hell, but...don't stress about the design and the labyrinth too much, and try not to push yourself to write even when you're nervous or are dealing with other unrelated strifes. The reason why I regret how Bianchi and Liang-Hui turned out they way they did is because I was, for lack of better terms, not at all in the chillest of moods to write, and, boy, do I regret that now. Find the right mindset and mood you want the labyrinth to embody, try to capture that very emotion and sensation, and just go from there!

For example, the reason why Kealamauloa Kinimaka's labyrinth is the way it is and why I am so proud of it is because not only does every little detail symbolize an aspect of Hau's life, but it invokes a certain emotion; comfort and disconnection from the struggles around you, and, by letting go, you could even float high up to the skies. Sayf al-Muharib's, meanwhile, invokes the emotion of being watched at all angles; denied of freedom by the people surrounding you as you struggle to strive forwards through these suffocating hallways, with the withered statues of his older brother looking down on him- casting a reflection of the beast and failure he has become.

Remember, a labyrinth is the "mental headspace of a magi prior to witchification", as stated by the creators themselves; it can be interpreted as their own worldview and how they saw themselves in the story they're in, the magnitude of their life struggles in their eyes, or are just places that exist to keep the witch's wounds wide open at all costs- a cage forged from their own curses, locking them in this eternal hellish state. Don't be afraid to exaggerate aspects of their lives when it comes to labyrinths; make us plunge into the eyes of the magical people they once were and how they saw their problems! It is all about perspective here.

Best of luck and wishes, anon- and godspeed!

[kusakabesimp]

Ik you're a kusahigu shipper and that's fine, but whats your opinion on kusahime?(kusakabe x utahime)

Hi, Anon! TYSM for your question! ^_^

While KusaHigu does take up 1000% of my brain cells, I am always always, always willing to talk about all things Kusakabe!!

I want to talk about the importance of ships (in general) first and then dive into your question after that.

No ship is somehow 'better' than any other. We all have different ships and opinions, and even within the same ship, there's a wide range of viewpoints. Every ship is valid and deserves to be enjoyed without judgment!! Our connections to these ships are deeply personal, and when people criticize them, it hurts because it feels like a criticism of who we are as individuals. But there will always be a community of people who love your ship as much as you do. So if you can, try to connect with them; they can become some of your closest friends and, more importantly, offer support if you run into negativity. Regardless of the pairing, ships are a beautiful part of our fandom experience.

I'd also like to add that Kusakabe has several pairings outside of KusaHigu.  I mean -- HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN HOLY SHIT.

KusaHime is one of those pairings, and I do see some reasons why it might work, but it isn't necessarily my jam. Keep in mind these are just my personal opinions. That doesn't mean that these things could not be seen from a different angle or that the ship would not work.  

Let's start with what they have in common:

>> Click more to read on to KusaHime <<

Honor: They both have a strong sense of honor. Though Kusakabe sometimes tries to mask it under indifference, he's shown time and time again that he'll defend, even lay down his life for those he loves. Though Utahime is soft-spoken, she does what is morally right even when she has to make a tough call—and she's had to make a few. And despite not being well-versed in combat, she doesn't hesitate to defend her kids.

They love their kids: I think this is pretty clear with Kusakabe. He's saved his babies on multiple occasions and becomes Kusakabe-Dad to all the kids after Shibuya. As a Dad, he teaches them that love is the most important lesson. (This is more of my personal HC, but I could write literal pages on it.) It's canon that all Utahime's students adore her; Gege has emphasized this many times. She teaches them personal confidence but also the importance of teamwork, which is uncommon in jujutsu society, where sorcerers are expected to rely solely on their own abilities.

Here are my thoughts on the opposite side of their commonalities:  

They don't have a relationship outside of work: Kusakabe works for Tokyo Jujutsu Tech, and Utahime works for Kyoto Jujutsu Tech. They do know each other, but likely just on a professional level. Because of their age difference, they didn't overlap in Tokyo, so their relationship wouldn't be as close as the one Utahime has with Shoko, Mei Mei, and Gojo.

Maximum Uzumaki: The story behind this pairing often revolves around Kusakabe protecting her from Maximum Uzumaki. Miwa was the initial target for this spell, and Utahime stepped in front of her and Momo before Kusakabe could reach them. While Atsuya ultimately saved all three of them, he knew that Miwa was the main target before he rushed head-first across the battlefield. Rather than Kusakabe protecting Utahime, both teachers were focused on protecting the children.

Utahime's absence: We don't see Utahime for a while after the Pseudo-Geto fight. While she and Gakuganji show up during the Gojo vs. Sukuna fight to provide defensive support, she's missing during the scenes where the sorcerers are planning strategies for the battle. This doesn't mean she wasn't involved in some way, but given that she wasn't there, her absence implies that she didn't have time to spend with Kusakabe.

So, to answer the question in a shorter way, KusaHime isn't my jam (not because I'm a KusaHigu shipper), but I see how the pairing is very popular.

I hope that helps answer your question, Anon. Thank you so much again for the comment! It's always fun to explore all things Kusakabe.  

[tailoroffates]

Anxiety Brain Fog and Tips to Defeat it!

Hey-hi! I’m back again to chat about yet another aspect of anxiety!  Anxiety brain fog… Anxiety brain fog can happen when a person is feeling anxious and it causes difficulty thinking clearly/concentrating. It’s common to experience brain fog when dealing with stressful situations, or while an individual experiences high stress in general. So, why does anxiety cause brain fog? Well, it typically happens because anxiety takes up a lot of mental resources. This makes it so people need to use more energy while trying to focus on anything other than that anxiety, which is why it makes it so difficult to concentrate or think clearly.

Symptoms of anxiety brain fog include:

Fatigue

An inability to organize thoughts or activities performed

Feeling confused or “spaced out”

Being easily distracted

Forgetfulness, or a constant loss of your train of thought

Having difficulty finding the right words

Processing thoughts slower than usual

Forgetting about a task you need to complete

Needing more time to complete basic tasks

So basically, anxiety brain fog creates a forgetful mental state affected by your anxiety. The more anxious you get, the harder it becomes to focus. It usually happens when you go to do something that you know makes you anxious, and it makes preparing for that task much harder than it needs to be. There are other causes for anxiety brain fog, meaning things that can make it more likely to affect you. These are:

Neurological conditions, like head injuries or dementia.

Some chronic illnesses

Dehydration, hunger, or vitamin deficiencies

Drugs and alcohol

Certain medications, like chemotherapy or mood stabilizers.

So the gist of the situation is, if it isn’t anxiety induced then you should do your best to take good care of yourself and if that doesn’t help, seek out medical attention that could provide better answers for your condition. Now, since the brain fog is a symptom and not a medical diagnosis there is no treatment for it that I am aware of. Though, managing the anxiety or the conditions causing the brain fog may help. I’m no medical professional or therapist, but as a fellow struggler of anxious tendencies, I happen to have a few tips to help you along the way.

My tips: 1.  Make a checklist and actively run through it before heading out to ensure you don’t stray off track. 2. Try to prepare ahead of time, or leave the things you need near the door where you can see them. Sometimes visual cues can help to re-spark your memory and clear the fog enough to set you back on the right path. 3.  Work on methods to slow or calm your anxiety. Giving your brain less to focus on can help redirect your attention towards what you need, instead of what you’re afraid of or anxious about. The tips I mentioned above are my personal methods of clearing, or at the very least, working through my own anxiety brain fog. I hope this information helps you find your own path to victory VS the foggy brain feels <3 Unfortunately, that’s all I have for you today, but for those of you who have your own tips for working through anxiety brain fog, I’d love to hear about them and how they help you in the comments or tags! Sharing is caring!

[nattousan]

iirc u said you got a new job, what do you do for work now?

do you ever get anxious while working? fi so how do you cope/make the anxiety go away?

so because i have an art background and my sister recommended me, i'm a labtech at [CHAIN DENTURE MAKING STORE]! And, despite having no background in dentistry, they hired me because i have experience sculpting and making molds, as well as just having a generally amicable and teachable attitude. Its cool because a lot of the skills i developed making sculptures have translated very literally into my work making dentures! Which has allowed me a confidence that means that I actually don't experience any anxiety at work. It's like if you were a prolific smashbros player and nintendo suddenly asked you if you want to be a beta tester haha.

Also your timing is perfect anon bc while I don't personally have anxiety, my partner struggles heavily with it, to the point where they had to take medical leave from work. Idk if you already have a job or are looking but from observing them and my own experience, here's some general tips i can offer you:

- anxiety is a confidence killer, the endless fear and "what-ifs" can be paralyzing, seek out work that you know you can do good in, even if it's not your passion. I'll be honest i never thought about dentistry as a career but im using skills that i'm confident in and im allowing myself to ask questions when i don't know things bc thats what the trainers are there for.

- any sort of "i'm useless, i'm a burden, no one will hire me" self talk is literally your anxiety talking and is of the devil. don't listen to it. you gotta separate your anxious brain from your logical brain and assess uncritically what u bring to the table, are you good at organizing? can you work a spread sheet? do you find cleaning things soothing and satisfying? you gotta tailor your job search to your individual proclivities instead of applying to any random listing you see.

- if you already have a job thats giving you anxiety ask yourself two questions: what specifically about this job is giving me anxiety and can i do anything to avoid/correct it? maybe talk to a supervisor about your triggers and what youre feeling, if they're a good supervisor they'll try and work with you, if you get told to suck it up buttercup thats part of the job, welp, start looking for other places to work.

- PLEASE please PLEASE ask for help!!! at least in my partners case, they initially thought they had to go it alone and weather the job search process on their own but when i tell you there was a whole ass career center with COUNSELORS just waiting to help people find jobs, i'm not kidding! there are resources out there !! USE THEM!! YOU DESERVE TO BE HELPED!! check out your local community college or library to see if they have a career center! Mine does and it opened me up to several trade grants i didn't know about! THEY HAVE THE RESOURCES!! GO USE THEM!

- last and probably hardest for anxious people, you gotta find a way to stop giving a fuck about what people think of you! self confidence stems from within and when you're confident people can pick up on it and are more likely to trust you with things and hire you for things. Even if its a fake confidence! nothing has helped me more out in life is me just doing things because "eh, i got this, i'm sure it'll work out in the end" you gotta actively embrace failure as not a world ending event but a part of the process forward.

if you wanna send me another message about the specifics of your situation i'd be happy to tailor my advice but these are a few of the basics i guess. Like i said, I don't have anxiety but am very close to someone who does and hooboy i do not envy y'all. stay strong, soldier 🫡