Fuck Inspiration Porn

[Andara Bledin]

I was convinced that I was a cripple, that I was a burden, that they would all be better off without me. It was so self-ingrained that it was automatic.

The fact that you've been there and that inspiration porn did nothing to start you on the road to recovery makes it so much more baffling that you're insisting that everybody should benefit from its existence and need nothing more.

^-.-^

[siead_lietrathua]

because most inspiration porn is comparative. it's not a friend saying "you can do it", it's a friend saying "why can't you do that?". which can be vastly different sentences.

we aren't talking about all those examples you posted. we are talking about a very specific thing. image memes that compare people to others with similar or different disabilities and saying because YOU can't do THAT you're not good enough yet.
we shouldn't be comparing anyone to anyone. we can compare ourselves if we want, but that doesn't give us the right to shove comparative images in another person's face and tell them to appreciate it.

sidenote: comparing people to a competive runner and telling them they have to be like that does nothing to inspire people who don't give a shit about competing.

[crashhelmet]

A poster is not a person. When I was at my most desperate, when I had the proverbial gun to my own head, a poster would have done nothing more than maybe persuade me to finally push the razor blade a little deeper and end it all. After all, the poster said that I'm weak, right? My friend saved me. She talked me down and got me help. She knew that she couldn't carry my burden but she could carry me until I could do it myself. And while I'm not completely healed, I'm better. My daily triumphs are making it out of the house and not having a panic attack, getting out of bed and being productive. I don't need some fucker with a poster and a smarmy grin saying "what's your problem? why can't you be like this guy?" because that guy is not me. So, you know what, fuck them and fuck anyone who says that I'm weak because I can't bounce back and be "normal".

No. You said that you were weak. You looked at a poster that showed you a possibility and said I can't do that.

And that's the problem here. People look at a picture of someone like Dennis Byrd with some inspirational message and either convince themselves they're even more worthless because they can't do that or go on the defensive and say "Fuck You! You don't know my pain! You don't know what I have to deal with! You don't know how hard it is!"

Instead, find how it can apply to you. As yourself "what do I have to do to be able to accomplish my goals?" If it doesn't apply to you at all, then ignore it. Don't let it bother you.

Yeah, yeah. I know. Easier said than done, right? I don't know YOUR pain. I don't know what YOU have to deal with. Neither do doctors. Neither do your friends.

[crashhelmet]

The fact that you've been there and that inspiration porn did nothing to start you on the road to recovery makes it so much more baffling that you're insisting that everybody should benefit from its existence and need nothing more.

^-.-^

Again...

I REFUSED TO SEE THE MESSAGES IN THE INSPIRATIONAL PORN AROUND ME

I had quit. I didn't look at it and say "Fuck you! You don't know what I'm going through!" I saw words that had no bearing or application to my situation.

But you're right. It did absolutely nothing to start me on my road to recovery. It did EVERYTHING to fuel me once I was on it though.

[crashhelmet]

1 is the kind brought on by circumstance. becoming ill, losing a loved one, bullying, etc. that type tends to be more temporary, and can be overcome with time.
2 is the type brought on by abuse. not just someone telling a person the things you listed, but drilling it into their head from a young enough age that it forms as part of their personality. that type of depression is not easy to deal with, and typically required therapy, and maybe medication. years of recovery at best, if ever.
3 is the type of depression caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. it's how you were wired at birth. that type is impossible to fully recover from as it's physically part of you, but it can be aided with meds.

1 & 2 are both curable by forward progress but can be crippling for those who quit.

3? There is no reputable scientific evidence the justifies that claim. It's a myth promoted by pharmaceutical companies and the doctors in their pockets.

The New England Journal of Medicine states

This review of major depressive disorder is a comprehensive account of the genetic, biochemical, and neurophysiological changes that have been implicated in the disorder. No single mechanism can account for all the clinical variations in this condition. The monoamine oxidase theory can explain many of the actions of antidepressants, but genetic factors, stress, and psychosocial factors also play a part in depression.

[Andara Bledin]

The self-righteousness in this thread is getting sickening. It's the same dismissive and denigrating attitude you get from people who, despite struggling with their issue for years, finally overcame it and now belittles anyone else who still struggles. You see this a lot with former smokers and people who used to be overweight. And it's no less offensive when the problem is depression.

I'll stick my addressing of the last post to the last point. You're wrong, and the misinformation you're spreading is dangerous.

Here is some information from people who aren't spreading anti-pharmaceutical propaganda:

Depression information at NIH.GOV

Notable quote:
"Research indicates that depressive illnesses are disorders of the brain."

Causes of Depression at NHS.UK

Notable quote:
"Head injuries are also an often under-recognised cause of depression. A severe head injury can trigger mood swings and emotional problems."

Not even doctors know all the facts, but they agree that there is almost certainly a physiological component to depression, along with the more obvious environmental and psychological factors.

^-.-^

[crashhelmet]

The self-righteousness in this thread is getting sickening. It's the same dismissive and denigrating attitude you get from people who, despite struggling with their issue for years, finally overcame it and now belittles anyone else who still struggles. You see this a lot with former smokers and people who used to be overweight. And it's no less offensive when the problem is depression.

I'll stick my addressing of the last post to the last point. You're wrong, and the misinformation you're spreading is dangerous.

Here is some information from people who aren't spreading anti-pharmaceutical propaganda:

Depression information at NIH.GOV

Notable quote:
"Research indicates that depressive illnesses are disorders of the brain."

From your first link:

Longstanding theories about depression suggest that important neurotransmitters—chemicals that brain cells use to communicate—are out of balance in depression. But it has been difficult to prove this.

Causes of Depression at NHS.UK

Notable quote:
"Head injuries are also an often under-recognised cause of depression. A severe head injury can trigger mood swings and emotional problems."

Not even doctors know all the facts, but they agree that there is almost certainly a physiological component to depression, along with the more obvious environmental and psychological factors.

^-.-^

I see absolutely nothing in your second like that supports the Chemical Imbalance Theory.

[ngc_7331]

This is the kind of sickening attitude that drives people away from help and towards either hiding from the world or taking a permanent departure from it. Think of it this way: being depressed is like being in a pitch black room looking for a door without a flashlight. Those posters are like someone yelling from the outside of that door "what's your problem? why can't you figure out how to get out?" while someone like my friend is like someone opening the door, reaching out a hand and saying "you have a problem, I accept that and let's see what we can do to make it better." If you can't see the difference, I feel bad for you.

And to help put the "it's the ebil drug companies telling people that they have a medical issue instead of telling them that they're losers" argument to rest:

http://www.health.harvard.edu/newswe...depression.htm

Researchers are exploring possible links between sluggish production of new neurons in the hippocampus and low moods. An interesting fact about antidepressants supports this theory. These medications immediately boost the concentration of chemical messengers in the brain (neurotransmitters). Yet people typically don’t begin to feel better for several weeks or longer. Experts have long wondered why, if depression were primarily the result of low levels of neurotransmitters, people don’t feel better as soon as levels of neurotransmitters increase.

The answer may be that mood only improves as nerves grow and form new connections, a process that takes weeks. In fact, animal studies have shown that antidepressants do spur the growth and enhanced branching of nerve cells in the hippocampus. So, the theory holds, the real value of these medications may be in generating new neurons (a process called neurogenesis), strengthening nerve cell connections, and improving the exchange of information between nerve circuits. If that’s the case, medications could be developed that specifically promote neurogenesis, with the hope that patients would see quicker results than with current treatments.

In the meantime, animal research lends credence to the theory. A 2003 study in Science found that when neurogenesis is blocked in mice, the benefits of antidepressants seem to disappear. After receiving antidepressants for four weeks, mice exhibited less anxious or depressed behavior (they became bolder about retrieving food from a brightly lit place). These treated mice had 60% more dividing cells in the hippocampus. However, when researchers impeded new cell growth by dousing the hippocampus with x-rays, drug treatment failed to reduce anxious behavior in the mice. While more work needs to be done to determine the role of neurogenesis in depression, this is an interesting avenue of research.

[siead_lietrathua]

It's the same dismissive and denigrating attitude you get from people who, despite struggling with their issue for years, finally overcame it and now belittles anyone else who still struggles. You see this a lot with former smokers and people who used to be overweight. And it's no less offensive when the problem is depression.

agreed, very much. it's the sense of "i did it, why can't you?"

Crash helmet, i GET that you struggled. i GET that these things helped you once you were started on recovery. but you also agreed that when you weren't in recovery, they meant nothing to you. is it that hard to understand that that's exactly what we are saying? punching motivational images on people who are not in the place to recover will not always help them, and can often hurt them.

and genetic history to any mental illness, depression or otherwise, can mean that their natural being is "wired that way". since brain chemistry controls mood, the idea that a genetic condition that effects mood is a product of brain chemistry... makes common sense.

[Ginger Tea]

What's the difference between a friend saying "You can do it" and a picture saying the same thing? It's still the same exact message.

Going on a limb here and asking whats the difference between someone telling you to go fuck yourself and a poster of someone with the slogan?

if someone irl, told me to go fuck myself I have real world clues to guage how to take it, if someone sends me a jpg with a smiling Mr T telling me to do likewise, hell it's just some joke poster.

Someone wishing you and all your loved ones harm in the form of a LoL cat just isn't as nasty as actually saying it, so I see the same in the reverse good intention messages.

[crashhelmet]

Going on a limb here and asking whats the difference between someone telling you to go fuck yourself and a poster of someone with the slogan?

if someone irl, told me to go fuck myself I have real world clues to guage how to take it, if someone sends me a jpg with a smiling Mr T telling me to do likewise, hell it's just some joke poster.

Someone wishing you and all your loved ones harm in the form of a LoL cat just isn't as nasty as actually saying it, so I see the same in the reverse good intention messages.

It's all in how you as an individual interpret it. If I insult you while having a smile on my face, does it make it mean any less than if I have a scowl?

[Andara Bledin]

It's all in how you as an individual interpret it. If I insult you while having a smile on my face, does it make it mean any less than if I have a scowl?

It makes it different.

I cannot fathom why you keep attempting to attribute false equivalency to things that are not equal.

^-.-^

[crashhelmet]

It makes it different.

I cannot fathom why you keep attempting to attribute false equivalency to things that are not equal.

^-.-^

I cannot fathom how you keep failing to understand that everything you interpret is up to you and how you interpret it.

Isn't that the whole basis of the Optimist vs Pessimist debate?

People have said in this very thread that they have interpreted their friends attempts at help as being pity and it made them feel worse.

It all comes down to how you decide to interpret it.

[BlaqueKatt]

Weak minded people accept what other people tell them. You're weak. You're a fuck up. You're a failure. You're a waste of resources. You're an embarrassment. You'd be nothing without me. You'll never find someone else that loves you. You'll never find someone else that puts up with you. This is your fault.

Some people hear these things so much that they convince themselves that they must be true. They quit instead of fight. This is how abusers maintain control.

and of course you're saying how we're weak minded is somehow helpful or inspirational and not like anyone else that says it?

[Andara Bledin]

I cannot fathom how you keep failing to understand that everything you interpret is up to you and how you interpret it.

The fact that people are inconsistent in how they interpret the same thing nor the fact that people will sometimes react to one thing in the same way as another thing does not make those things equal in any way, shape, or form.

That's the very definition of false equivalence.

^-.-^