bigc wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2024 9:39 am I'm glad you're feeling better, hex. I'm paying close mind to your posts, and am thinking about you.

Looking out at the state of the world and thinking 'this is all so fucked' is very much the appropriate perspective much of the time these days. Looking at ourselves and thinking 'I should be doing better' is the chorus of self-loathing. Life is fucking HARD, especially when lived fully, and we are all way too judgmental about how we internalize that fact.

PASTA wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2024 3:24 pm Feelings are impermanent, they change in intensity and flavour. WE don't always sense that when stuck in the trap of Identifying with every feeling. (easier said than done) Try and allow the feelings to pass.

bigc wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2024 3:50 pm

PASTA wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2024 3:24 pm Feelings are impermanent, they change in intensity and flavour. WE don't always sense that when stuck in the trap of Identifying with every feeling. (easier said than done) Try and allow the feelings to pass.

I think this is the actual purpose of 'muddle through, it will get better'. It's not that the circumstances will suddenly change, or that the world will get its head out of its ass in an instant - it's more that if you can manage to endure the worst of it, you'll almost certainly have a day where things just don't feel as bad, and your perspective on the rough parts will change in some way that provides some useful insight.

I also think it's worth making an effort to disengage from the external goings-on to find what is essential to you as the source of your perception, and find what makes that person curious. Learn where that curiosity is internally generated and not thrust upon you by culture, politics, entertainment, or whatever the fuck it is that's being rammed down our throats at any given moment. Maybe it's reading, music, anime, nature, swimming, poker, baseball - whatever. Just try to find that feeling and follow it.

And maybe rejoice in not being 'normal' instead of wondering why you're not 'normal'. Normal sucks. It's just a lot easier. I often wish I was motivated by the shit that our culture uses as motivation - I'd feel a lot cozier in our society, and I'd get a lot more edification from external sources.

PASTA wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2024 4:28 pm This has proven very true for me. Thank you for stating it in words. I have difficulty expressing it coherently at times. However, whatever "normal" is is not an option for me, and I've accepted and embraced that long ago.