If You Are Depressed There Is Always Help

Trust yourself. Ask for help. Don’t give up!

Saturday Night For The Freethinker Christopher Hitchens

“THE VALUE OF HETERODOXY”

‘It matters not what you think,’ Hitchens wrote, ‘but how you think.’ Many assume Hitchens was such a pugnacious debater and polemicist because he was temperamentally inclined toward rhetorical combat. As Amis put it: ‘He likes the battle, the argument, the smell of cordite.’ This is true, but another source of Hitchens’s ferocity in print and on the stage was the fact that his positions were natural extensions of his core principles. It is easier to hold and defend a controversial position when you have internally coherent reasons for doing so.

What you think – or at least what you purport to think – tends to matter more than how you think these days. The best path toward a lucrative career as a political or cultural commentator is the development of a brand that serves a particular set of information consumers. There are plenty of fiery pundits and Twitter warriors out there today, but how many reliably outrage and alienate their own ‘side’? How many are willing to publish an article or a podcast that will result in a loss of followers and prestige within the group?

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A Healthcare Woman Shares Her Battle With Depression Part 2

Nora Super is a healthcare practitioner who has decided to share her longtime battle with depression. I applaud her for being open about this mental health problem affecting millions of people worldwide. This is how it began:

“I had my first episode of major depressive disorder in 2005 at the age of forty-one. I had been under a tremendous amount of stress, having just gone through a divorce. I was also going to grad school while simultaneously working full-time and raising two young daughters. I wasn’t sleeping well and had been feeling increasingly anxious and sad. Then Hurricane Katrina hit. Although I had lived in the Washington, D.C., area for more than twenty years, New Orleans is my hometown—I still have relatives who live there and great affection for the city and its unique culture.”

“I was devastated to see people suffering in squalid conditions in the Louisiana Superdome. I could not fathom why we could not get water and food to people in an American city when we could airdrop necessities in war-torn countries across the globe. I felt as if my city had been abandoned. I couldn’t think straight. My thoughts went round and round in a spiral. I had less and less energy and was unable to concentrate on my work. Eventually, I couldn’t get out of bed in the morning, and it took a tremendous amount of energy just to take a shower. My distorted mind convinced me that my family would be better off if I were dead, and I came up with detailed plans for how I would end my life. Over the course of six months, I was hospitalized five times”.

“I tried a variety of antidepressants, gradually increasing the potency of the drugs. I saw a therapist and psychiatrist regularly. I participated in cognitive behavioral group therapy. Still, I sank further into depression. Finally, a physician friend recommended electroconvulsive therapy or ECT. This therapy had gotten a bad rap over the years, especially in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which portrayed it as a punitive, painful treatment. Mental health professionals told me stories about how, in the past, ECT often had been given to patients in psychiatric wards without their consent, without anesthesia, and with severe adverse effects. But others told me that it was now safe and extremely effective.”

“I was reluctant. However, as I had been unable to work for more than six months and knew that my family was deeply worried about me, I decided to give it a try. It ended up saving my life.”

“My ECT was performed as an outpatient procedure, as is generally the case. The actual procedure took about five minutes. I received general anesthesia and muscle relaxers, and electrodes were placed on my scalp. Low-intensity electrical impulses were then emitted to create a brief, controlled seizure that affected the neurons and chemicals in my brain. Treatments are generally given three times a week until the symptoms are in remission, and they may be spaced out over months as maintenance therapy.”

“It was as if my brain was jump-started. It made me feel better almost immediately, and I felt nearly recovered by the fourth treatment.”

“ECT is one of the most effective treatments for severe depression. Yet this is the first time I’ve publicly admitted that I’ve received the treatment because of the stigma associated with it. Mental illness is stigmatized in general, and ECT is so stigmatized that many people are afraid to even mention the treatment that helped them get better. Why are those of us who’ve received it so reluctant to talk about it? No one is ashamed of receiving chemotherapy or immunotherapy. Yet in addition to the negative media impressions about ECT, mental health professionals still portray it as a “last resort” for those with “treatment-resistant” depression. I am left feeling as if it’s my fault that I need it—and ashamed for being suicidal—when I should be shouting to the world about the benefits, for me, of this treatment.”

Sunsets To Take Your Breathaway And A Poem

Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea,

But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.

Twilight and evening bell
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;

For though from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crost the bar.

Alfred Lord Tennyson

Back To Blogging After A Well Deserved Resting Time

I hope you all are well. I definitely rested and my mind and body are solid and ready to return to my daily activities.

Sweet Dog Protects Baby

One dog that often appears at the top of people’s canine wishlists is the Bichon Frise – they are one of the UK’s most popular small dogs and have a range of positive attributes that make them a great family pet.

Words To Cheer You Up Today

Life can be hard sometimes, no doubt about it. But we have ourselves to go through the worst difficult times, we just need to have self pride, self love, confidence in ourselves. Trust that we have a brain with a healthy Medical Media Prefrontal Cortex that will deal successfully with any distress or sense of loneliness. Make it strong, make it happen!

Exotic and Rare Trees Around the World Part 1

Tropic Breeze Balloon Tree grows in the rainforests of Sumatra, Indonesia, and Malaysian Borneo in Sabah and Sarawak.

Kaleidoscopic Rainbow Eucalyptus, Hawaii’s trees

Hawaii, Maui, Hana, Rainbow eucalyptus tree trunk

This is a native of the Socotra archipelago which has a unique appearance like an upright umbrella. Its dark red sap gives its name a dragon blood tree.

More Than Sportsmanship A Virtue

Kenyan runner Abel Mutai was a few meters from the finish line, but got confused by the signals and stopped, thinking he had finished the race.

The Spanish runner, Ivan Fernandez, was right behind him and, realizing what was happening in front of him, began shouting for the Kenyan to keep running.

Motai did not know Spanish and did not understand.

Fernandez pushed Mutai to victory.

One reporter asked Evan, “Why did you do this?” Evan replied, “My dream is that one day we can have the kind of community life that pushes ourselves and others to win as well.”

“But why did you let the Kenyan win?” the reporter insisted. Evan replied, “I didn’t let him win, he would win. It was his race.”

The reporter insisted and asked again: “But you could have won!”

Evan looked at him and replied, “But what is the merit of my victory? What is the honor of this medal? What will my mother think?”

Values ​​are passed on from generation to generation.

What values ​​do we teach our children and to what extent do they inspire others to earn them?

Most of us take advantage of people’s weaknesses rather than helping to strengthen them.

Angelart Star A Blog To Inspire Happiness In Your Heart

“The beautiful picture of angels makes you happy.”

Angelart Star

☆☆☆ Tanka ☆☆☆

Rose garden in heavenly light
Little bird sings for glorious floral angel
Brilliant petals dream immortal peace
Gentle wind knows secret hope of universe
Gorgeous beautiful love from everlasting graceful spirit