Something good on television last night.

[Sybellia]

Watching television last night, I came across one of those church preachers. He went on about how people are always depressed.

I thought it was pretty intresting and maybe you guys would like to hear.

He used plenty of analogies for it. He compared good thoughts and bad thoughts as File A and File B. Saying people tend to look at File B(bad thoughts) more than File A(good thoughts) and dwell on File B. The more they dwelled on, the more they would become depressed over it. He said, to put a lock on File B (or something like that) and always look at File A.

He also used good and bad thoughts as Television Channles. It's so easy to change the channel. So when a bad thought would come, "change the channel" then it's gone and done with. If you land on another channel that is a bad memory, just change the channel.

The more you dwell on bad thoughts/bad memories, the more you recite them. Making them more of a bad memory. So, in short. Think of all the good versus thinking of all the bad.

[Neith]

I didn't see this, TV over here is awful >_>

However, I've had experiences recently, where this kind of advice really helps, thinking negatively only drags you into a downward spiral.

Thanks for this insight, I'll try and remember this kind of advice for the future...

[rena-ko]

hm, but life is not just sunshine. one shouldnt close one's eyes towards the bad things. its all a matter of balance, really..

and tv yesterday evening was mildly entertaining. we had votes here and no party got enough percentage to be in charge and now they have the trouble of two equal big and two equal small parties. initially each small party is partner of one bigger, but to be in charge one big party would need both smaller. or to settle a cooperation with the other big party.
to sum it up, all this mess turned out into some sort of highclass kindergarten. politians acting like snotty brats hiding their personal attacks behind fancy words.
it was also interesting to watch behind their masks since this result caught pretty much everyone offguard.

[Sybellia]

On 2005-09-19 12:13, rena-ko wrote:
hm, but life is not just sunshine. one shouldnt close one's eyes towards the bad things. its all a matter of balance, really..



Yes, bad things teach us lessons but some of those bad things make us depressed due to the fact we dwell on them. The more you dwell on them, the more you become depressed about it. That's what the preacher was trying to say. He was trying to say move on. How is being sad and depressed going to help you?




and tv yesterday evening was mildly entertaining. we had votes here and no party got enough percentage to be in charge and now they have the trouble of two equal big and two equal small parties. initially each small party is partner of one bigger, but to be in charge one big party would need both smaller. or to settle a cooperation with the other big party.
to sum it up, all this mess turned out into some sort of highclass kindergarten. politians acting like snotty brats hiding their personal attacks behind fancy words.
it was also interesting to watch behind their masks since this result caught pretty much everyone offguard.



This is not part of the subject I brought up. According to the forum rules you are not suppose to go off topic from a post.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Sybellia on 2005-09-19 12:27 ]</font>

[roygbiv]

I think the analogy is simplistic and not terribly useful.

Depression becomes a problem when people can't move on from the bad. Some people can't simply "Get over it." The problem is that when you are in such a depressed state, you don't really have the energy to "switch the channel" that is sort of the definition of being depressed, at least from my perspective.

It is usually better for someone to talk about there problems, with either a friend, or heaven forbid a shrink. Not doing anything or hoping things will magically improve is usually not the solution.

On another note, you should realize that the way the topic was written it sounds like you are simply sharing what you saw on TV last night, and thus inviting others to do the same, which rena-ko did.

[Sybellia]

On 2005-09-19 12:42, roygbiv wrote:
I think the analogy is simplistic and not terribly useful.

Depression becomes a problem when people can't move on from the bad. Some people can't simply "Get over it." The problem is that when you are in such a depressed state, you don't really have the energy to "switch the channel" that is sort of the definition of being depressed, at least from my perspective.

It is usually better for someone to talk about there problems, with either a friend, or heaven forbid a shrink. Not doing anything or hoping things will magically improve is usually not the solution.



Yes, I do see what you mean. It is always good to talk to someone about your problems.

Some problems that cause depression sometimes are little things. Some people seem to dwell on it and cause them to be depressed, when they can simply "change the channel"

On the other hand, yes, I do agree with what you are saying. Some things can be too big to simply push to the side and is best to talk to someone about.




On another note, you should realize that the way the topic was written it sounds like you are simply sharing what you saw on TV last night, and thus inviting others to do the same, which rena-ko did.



I'm Stating what I saw on televison the other night, yes. But if I had wanted to know what others saw on television last night than I would have stated that in my post or title. For example: "Share what you saw on television last night." or in the post "What did you see on television last night?" I had neither of those in my post.

[rena-ko]

yo, chill out. noone stole your precious topic.

to be on topic, i'd generally take anything someone that promotes religions says with a handful salt. they babble saturized theories just to sell their product over (and to give their puny life a meaning).

[Sybellia]

On 2005-09-19 13:02, rena-ko wrote:
yo, chill out. noone stole your precious topic.



I'm only stating what the forum rules tell us what to do and what not to do. Everyone should follow the rules. This include moderators. I'm sorry if you made a mistake. Just do not let it happen again.




to be on topic, i'd generally take anything someone that promotes religions says with a handful salt. they babble saturized theories just to sell their product over (and to give their puny life a meaning).



Yes, this is also true. Some "preachers" seem to like to throw in their ideas and can confuse the real meaning of what it was originally trying to say. Also, some try and add the fact they want money for their own personel game. Sadly it works sometimes.

[Blue-Hawk]

Ah yes. Yet another reason TV sucks. Televised evangelism.

[silvermax]

last night i watched a new Family guy... that took my mind off of file B

[Daikarin]

On 2005-09-19 12:13, rena-ko wrote:
hm, but life is not just sunshine. one shouldnt close one's eyes towards the bad things. its all a matter of balance, really..


One's thoughts are like food. You only eat junk food if you want. There's no balance in dwelling upon bad stuff to other reason than to learn an important lesson.

[Orange_Coconut]

That's not really how it works, in my opinion. I mean, if people were able to be happy all the time then we wouldn't have people who are depressed. Depression isn't something that people want as a part of their life, at least not in the cases I've known.

Don't get me wrong, it would be extraordinary if we were all able to have good thoughts outweigh the bad ones. There are some people who crave attention, which sometimes leads them to do things like cut themselves or make themselves throw up. In a way, that's a form of depression as well, it comes in many different forms.

But not all people who cut themselves or make themselves throw up or starve themselves do it just to get attention. Some people truly worry about things and feel like they're taking away pain by focusing it in another form, or that they're able to look better by not eating as much.

I am not trying to say eating disorders or hurting oneself is a good thing.. But think about it this way:

This kid thinks that there is something majorly wrong with him/her, he/she wants to look better, or "better". They feel like they're too fat, they feel like they need to lose weight and maybe, just maybe they'll safely be able to talk to other people without being so self-conscious.

Months have passed, this person has lost a lot of weight and at first feels proud of it. They get to their friends/a crowd of people only to be criticized about how thin they are, that they're not healthy. Well, it may be true that they are not doing the best in terms of nutrition, but that's not what their goal was. They wanted to be accepted while not being so self-conscious, but after hearing the comments made about how sickly they look... They become self-conscious and feel like a freak. So now they felt bad about how they looked before, as well as how they look now.

They don't want to go back to being what they think of as overweight (even if it really isn't), and they begin to feel like they won't ever fit in. They tirelessly watch what they eat, when they eat, where they eat. They no longer can eat around people and they no longer can be around anyone for long periods of time without worrying about what might be said.

Anyways, that's a rather depressing explanation of what I've personally been through. I say that so people don't accuse me of saying things without knowing what I'm talking about, it's just not as simply put as people make it out to be. I felt like I was overweight, it's more of a self-respect kind of thing. I don't make fun of people who are overweight, people live how they live and are happy how they live. But I am harsh on myself, I have different expectations of myself because I feel like I am not good enough.

It's been 4 years, I have been seeing a psychologist and I have been to different nutritionists. I have recently been participating in a psychological study because of past problems as well.

This is why I say that it would be rather convenient to be happy whenever you want to be. I sure as hell want to get rid of all my appointments, all the nagging and worrying about family members and friends, I want to be done with it all. There are chemical imbalances in some people, and they can be fixed by medication sometimes.

I can't speak for everyone when I say these things, I only say them based on personal experiences and opinions. I did not mean to thread-jack if I did, but I felt that in order to fully explain my perspective that background was needed. I know that this is only one aspect of depression, but it is the only kind that I could relate to and explain in a way that I knew.

It's only an opinion, I didn't mean to insult if I did. If so, I really am sorry. I personally don't believe in what that priest had to say, but that doesn't mean others shouldn't. I just wanted to state how I felt on the subject.

[geewj]

Take it all in, good and bad, and don't dwell on either. That's what I think.

[Solstis]

On 2005-09-20 08:06, Prof_Frink wrote:
Take it all in, good and bad, and don't dwell on either. That's what I think.



Word.

Ignoring things outright seems silly.

Yeah Orange, trying to conform sucks, eh?

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Solstis on 2005-09-20 08:18 ]</font>

[Sybellia]

On 2005-09-20 05:22, Orange_Coconut wrote:


I can't speak for everyone when I say these things, I only say them based on personal experiences and opinions. I did not mean to thread-jack if I did, but I felt that in order to fully explain my perspective that background was needed. I know that this is only one aspect of depression, but it is the only kind that I could relate to and explain in a way that I knew.


You did not thread-jack. What you said was beutifly said. Thank you for sharing your opinion and personel experiences.




It's only an opinion, I didn't mean to insult if I did. If so, I really am sorry. I personally don't believe in what that priest had to say, but that doesn't mean others shouldn't. I just wanted to state how I felt on the subject.



To be honest, an opinion is an opinion. No one can change your opinion. They can only state theirs and you compare it to your own.

[Fyrin]

Is Depression like a mental disease? I always wondered about that.

[REJ-]

On 2005-09-20 14:01, Fyrin wrote:
Is Depression like a mental disease? I always wondered about that.



I've been depressed before, it's like having so much bad that the good is drowned out, and that when there is some good, anything that can ruin it does. I had someone that helped me though. She helped pull me out of the depression I was in. I still get mildy depressed sometimes, but it's easier to deal with when you have others to support you.

[opaopajr]

On 2005-09-20 14:01, Fyrin wrote:
Is Depression like a mental disease? I always wondered about that.



yes, it is clinically defined as mental disease. but then the usage of the term disease in medicine doesn't correspond to all the connotations the average person associate with it. so a lot of the stereotypes a layman may hold are not even registered mentally to medical professionals.

anyhoo, i guess the advice can be useful -- at very rare times. but neurotically fixating on "the good" is bad, too(watch how he defines good; i don't trust televangelists at all, and try not to stand next to them in cloudy days either). if you've noticed something really fascinating, those who are the most forcefully, tyrannically cheerful are also the most amoral, destructive hypocrites.

all those bad thoughts, stuffed down deep inside and not critically analyzed and come to acceptance, start oozing out of their every action. these people start to become dangerously disconnected from reality, saying one thing, doing another, and believing what they did was something else entirely different. they'll kill you to keep their dysfunctional, warped world view; letting any of "the bad" in will shatter their false world and make them come face to face with the utter evil they've become.

this preacher is playing with fire. there's a point to stop beating yourself up over something, which is half what he said. it's entirely another thing to lock yourself into a delusional mental framework to "stay safe" from the "bad." hmm, locking away file B and only working from file A -- talk about dangerous mental editing. be careful, this guy's selling mental conditioning. great for making puppets and slaves.

[Fyrin]

On 2005-09-21 12:52, opaopajr wrote:


On 2005-09-20 14:01, Fyrin wrote:
Is Depression like a mental disease? I always wondered about that.



yes, it is clinically defined as mental disease. but then the usage of the term disease in medicine doesn't correspond to all the connotations the average person associate with it. so a lot of the stereotypes a layman may hold are not even registered mentally to medical professionals.

anyhoo, i guess the advice can be useful -- at very rare times. but neurotically fixating on "the good" is bad, too(watch how he defines good; i don't trust televangelists at all, and try not to stand next to them in cloudy days either). if you've noticed something really fascinating, those who are the most forcefully, tyrannically cheerful are also the most amoral, destructive hypocrites.

all those bad thoughts, stuffed down deep inside and not critically analyzed and come to acceptance, start oozing out of their every action. these people start to become dangerously disconnected from reality, saying one thing, doing another, and believing what they did was something else entirely different. they'll kill you to keep their dysfunctional, warped world view; letting any of "the bad" in will shatter their false world and make them come face to face with the utter evil they've become.

this preacher is playing with fire. there's a point to stop beating yourself up over something, which is half what he said. it's entirely another thing to lock yourself into a delusional mental framework to "stay safe" from the "bad." hmm, locking away file B and only working from file A -- talk about dangerous mental editing. be careful, this guy's selling mental conditioning. great for making puppets and slaves.



I understand now.

[Daikarin]

On 2005-09-20 14:01, Fyrin wrote:
Is Depression like a mental disease? I always wondered about that.



I'm not sure about that, but it IS psychic, like many diseases out there like cancer.