Spyke

Replies

news

Comment on

Schools are trying to get more students therapy. Not all parents are on board

Personally, I feel like it would be great to normalize therapeutic supports to such an extent that we can let go of the idea they represent something being "wrong" with anybody. We have collectively developed this bizarre sense that we shouldn't need each other, that you should have to face your challenges on your own.

If you are personally in the position where therapy is accessible to you, I encourage you to go for it - even if there is "nothing wrong with you" (lol) - and then recommend it to others, talk about how it helps you grow and learn, etc. The mental health world is still fraught with challenging, dangerous stigmas and the best way to improve that is to show others that it's the stigmas that are dangerous, not the supports.

news

Comment on

Schools are trying to get more students therapy. Not all parents are on board

Reply in thread

Thank you for being such a wonderful parent, listening to your daughter, and taking all of these proactive steps to help build her back up. I agree this is not therapy and it's devastating to hear that the school thought this was appropriate. Placing her in group therapy with the offenders implies she was somehow responsible for being a victim. As a former child and daughter who struggled to be heard, especially at 13, I really appreciate you for hearing her now and doing something about it now. This makes such a difference.

Comment on

Has anyone else always been the "crazy one" for their whole life? How have you been able to deal with this? Both mentally and your actions in the real world.

I have struggled hard with this throughout my whole life — and probably always will to an extent lol. But what has brought the most meaningful change for me has been learning to accept my challenging emotions as part of who I am.

It surprised me to realize a great deal of the chaos I was always kicking up was largely due to my own resistance towards experiencing my emotions. I found DBT extremely helpful as well, offering me tools for being present with my emotions — as well as techniques for determining the actual reason for the emotion.

One of the most useful things I heard was “every behaviour meets a need”. So regardless of where it’s coming from or why, it’s still a valid need and you will address it one way or another. The more tools I have, the more choice I have, and the more choice I have makes all of it so much easier (and even fun) to manage.

Comment on

What's your favorite documentary?

I enjoy documentaries where the footage comes from people who are shooting without a very good reason to be doing so. Top picks are likely:

  • Exit Through the Gift Shop
  • Grizzly Man

Very different reasons I liked these. And liked is maybe the wrong word for Grizzly Man.

Would love to suggestions of similar if anybody in this thread has favs.

Comment on

How to get away from doomerism in my media feeds?

Echoing solarpunk! Along those same lines is “hopepunk”. I like to think of my media consumption in a similar way to my diet and consider how much I need from different areas to stay balanced. It is hard to fully escape the doomerism narratives but seeking out generative, hopeful narratives has made a difference in how much I find myself disrupted by them. Also poetry can be a great way to explore the heavier subjects and often where I head when I get overwhelmed.

Comment on

YSK - many “crisis pregnancy centers” in the US are religious organizations pretending to provide healthcare

Reply in thread

In my experience, AA is very open about the “higher power” thing and every meeting I have ever been to has also emphasized the flexibility and variety of what that even means to a person. But I would argue there’s absolutely a reason why it’s said that you need to hit your personal rock bottom first. Recovery is a wild experience and you do only reach it when you are so out of ideas as to how to make your own bullshit work anymore. I’m sober today although not through attending AA. But - in retrospect - the whole thing does make logical sense to me and my process looked a lot like the progression of the 12 steps. While I still have criticisms and skepticisms of AA, I wouldn’t consider it to be anywhere in the vicinity of anti-abortion “pregnancy centre” type deceptions.

adhd

Comment on

Does anyone else hate the weekends?

I found DBT tremendously helpful for learning how to navigate unstructured territory without becoming agitated by it. I have noticed my frustration tends to build up because I resist feeling uncomfortable, not because I am actually just uncomfortable. It’s counterintuitive and takes practice but it’s been eye opening how much something as deceptively simple as “accept discomfort” actually helps.

news

Comment on

Schools are trying to get more students therapy. Not all parents are on board

Reply in thread

We are definitely struggling against an unhealthy culture that makes this extraordinarily challenging. I think there is a misunderstanding where we think accepting greater support will decrease our personal autonomy and risk us being too reliant on others. However moving towards healthy interdependence should - and can - be an experience that actually frees the individual to experience more opportunity, greater stability, enhanced relationships, etc.