Mark Fisher has a lot of really interesting things to say about socially induced mental illness that I think is relevant, particularly when considering pressure to derive personal identity and worth from your economic contribution: https://theoccupiedtimes.org/?p=12841
Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
201–210 of 271 posts
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#202Everyone should go to therapy. I don't think I've ever met a person who doesn't need to talk things out, from time to time, with a semi-objective, third party. Most of us were raised by imperfect people trying their best who still made a lot of mistakes. Even people who had really prepared parents probably experienced things which might have left us with some unresolved issues. Go see a therapist. Its not a big deal.
When someone says, that everyone should go to therapy, my first question is: who pays the therapist? If everyone goes to one, then an insurance to cover the costs does not really make sense anymore.
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#203Seven ayahuasca ceremonies and two bufo ceremonies over the course of 2 years changed my life. I experienced a paradigm shift and healed a lot of repressed trauma, let go of a lot of internal drama. I feel I got to the root of the issue and built a solid foundation upon mindfulness and compassion. Every day I work to train my mind to be one-pointed while keeping my heart open towards all, even those who wish me harm.…
I've had this same positive life transformation from ~30 psilocybin experiences over the last 15 years, combined with meditation and lots of other spiritual / psychological work, which culminated with a "heroic" mushroom experience that caused transformation for me this year.
Anybody who has limited experience with psychedelics can greatly benefit from just learning about them, this two part video gives you all you need to know really before exploring the options to have an experience yourself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TazyFTavMyA
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#204Earlier quoted context omitted.
Great comment and kudos to you, but a couple thoughts on the following: “Eliminate things from your life that don’t bring you joy and happiness.” I see this sentiment a lot in the techie self-help sphere, along with corrolaries like “ruthlessly eliminate negative people”. While I understand the motivation and agree it is true up to a point, it can also lead to a shallow and avoidant approach to life if you get carrie…
Re: Ruthlessly eliminate negative people I'm undoubtedly the most negative person in my life.
> I'm undoubtedly the most negative person in my life.
This can change, it takes work.
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#205I deleted all my tweets. Killed the app. Killed the Reddit app. Killed Instagram. Killed Facebook. I need to reactivate FB and do a dump of my data, but I’m dreading that. I just want the photos. I’m finding solace in boredom and using that as a catalyst for change. I’ve been reading more, already finished three books in the last few weeks. I’m on a mission to pour rocket fuel on my personal consulting business. I’m…
> deleted all my tweets. Killed the app. Killed the Reddit app. Killed Instagram. Killed Facebook. I agree with the bulk of your comment, but I couldn't help but notice... If the solution is to not use all these apps, apps that are being developed by those very same anxious workers, what does it say about silicon valley's sunny optimism that they are changing the world for the better? Does anyone else feel it's parad…
> what does it say about silicon valley's sunny optimism that they are changing the world for the better?
It's cover for their employees to make the world a worse place, while collecting massive checks, and not feel bad for it.
I don't think it's working anymore.
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#206Earlier quoted context omitted.
Welcome to freedom my friend. The only social apps I’ve kept are Snapchat for family and Reddit for gaming stuff. It’s been really eye opening to me how much better I feel after deleting my Facebook and Twitter accounts.
Twitter is particularly bad. I genuinely cannot find a single positive thing about it. It just feels like a big huge bitch-fest of one complaint and antagonist after another. Doesn’t matter the agenda, it’s pure negative energy. I’m so glad to have dismissed it.
I guess it depends on who you follow, what you mute, and who you block.
The most negative energy I get now is people begging for money, because they don't have enough and need some more. The classy ones try to sell something other than a sob story.
Maybe I should mute "Ko-Fi", "GoFundMe", and "Patreon".
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#207Earlier quoted context omitted.
Threat model? I don’t expect that anyone is out to get “me” specifically. As I said, if I apply to a job that requires me to disclose my interactions with mental health professionals, I do see a non zero risk of being denied that position on that basis. Furthermore, I want to ensure the economic viability of my family. So regarding genetic testing, you have to answer questions asking whether you have pre existing con…
How often do you consider possibilities that have never happened to anyone in human history, and try to account for them?
I’ll raise your snarky comment with a link: https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/primer/dtcgenetictesting/dtcinsuranc...
Long story short this is a real issue and not something that “has never happened to anyone in human history”.
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#208I deleted all my tweets. Killed the app. Killed the Reddit app. Killed Instagram. Killed Facebook. I need to reactivate FB and do a dump of my data, but I’m dreading that. I just want the photos. I’m finding solace in boredom and using that as a catalyst for change. I’ve been reading more, already finished three books in the last few weeks. I’m on a mission to pour rocket fuel on my personal consulting business. I’m…
The value of boredom cannot be overstated. The "always on" culture that has become prevalent in the past decade has, in my opinion, contributed greatly rising angst/anxiety/stress. We don't give our brains any time to rest anymore. Most people start and end the day by injecting thousands of images, words, and ideas into their thoughts via screens with no time to process and "clear the queue" so to speak. I've start i…
That's a great idea, I have been thinking about doing this as well, I need to just do it.
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#209Earlier quoted context omitted.
Agreed, it is still largely a question of optics and prejudice. People associate therapy with psychiatry and that anyone going is "crazy". I've long argued that we should come up with a better term. I prefer stress counselor instead of therapist. It allows more natural discussion with others too. "I see a stress counselor and we just talk about how to be less stressed at work and home" is a very easy and non-clinical…
I disagree with coining a different term to make it more socially acceptable. Therapist being generic is useful for keeping mental health issues under a single blanket and preventing other people from easily figuring out what you're going there for. This is similar to how going to a doctor could range from doing your yearly check up to following up on a possibly fatal issue. The real solution is the one we've already…
I agree and disagree. Full blown major depression or panic disorder or what have you should absolutely be treated like physical health issues. But, there are many of us who are perfectly functional and decently happy who could still use counseling. We who keep screwing up relationships, failing to follow through on projects, allowing ourselves to be doormats or stressed out cliches, the "healthy screwed up".
Crappy upbringings and suboptimal mental habits do not always come with psychiatric disorders. And such people often don't live their best lives because they forego therapy on the grounds of "I'm not that bad, others have it much worse, I don't want to be self involved and drain resources. Also I don't want a diagnosis just to get therapy." But something like counseling has been provided by elders or religious authorities for millennia across various cultures. It's strange that now, that form of counseling is provided mostly by medical professionals to a big chunk of the Western middle class. But it's absolutely better than nothing.
Re: Anxious tech workers are going to therapy
#210If your job is making you unhappy, therapy will just be a band-aid. The solution is to quit and find something better to do.
Perhaps, but therapy might also provide a motivational boost to take that action. I suspect that depressed and anxious people tend to have difficulty finding the path forward.