Is it just me, or is everyone else crazy?

When I was a teenager, I was absolutely convinced that I was crazy, that everyone else knew, or had something that I didn't (mind you I was incredibly depressed from the age of 12-21). But now that I am older, I am convinced that quite the opposite is true. Not everybody, but a fair majority of people I fear are totally insane, ignorant, or just plain deluded. To read the newspaper, and especially to turn on the television is to witness with shock and horror the reality of the "realities" that surround me. I fear that this shock and horror will eventually take its toll on my sanity and will wither it completely away. So the question is, for those few who pride themselves in actively seeking consciousness, how do you manage to do so without landing in the loony bin?

 

note: please excuse the irony, I assure you it wasn't intended.

You let go of those people and things in your life that drive you crazy or make you think you are crazy. You then seek out people and things that bring peace and happiness into your life

sometimes i seek consciousness, sometimes unconsciousness.

 

here, pick one:

 

if you think you might be going crazy then you're probably not. insane people always think they're lucid.

 

everybody is crazy. some just hide the fact better than others.

SB, you guys are the ones who live in LA where the crazies all hang out

I personally think everyone is crazy to some extent. Everyone gets messed up by their parents, one way or another.

Unquestionably there is evil, pain, delusion, greed, selfishness, and deception in this world.

 

There is also courage, unflinching honesty, integrity, kindness, and compassion in this world.

 

Finally, there is a vast middle ground of ignorance - much of it deliberate, some of it not.

 

I am afraid I have no easy answers for you why there is such a distinct separation of good, evil, and apathy and/or cluelessness in this world. All I can suggest is to try and resist the urge to "give up" and conclude there is no hope. Because you can make a difference, first off by educating yourself as much as possible on important issues so that you can raise awareness in others.

 

I won't deny you won't experience some real depression as you struggle through these thoughts and figure out what you can do and how to contribute to positive change. You will, and there will be times - many, many times - where it will feel hopeless. But if you look back at history, many causes that seemed insurmountable were eventually won simply because people would not shut up about it.

 

You feel like you're in the minority, and for now, perhaps you are. So, I'll leave you with several quotes to always keep in mind:

 

Marian Wright Edelman:

We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.

 

Uta Hagen:

We must overcome the notion that we must be regular... it robs you of the chance to be extraordinary and leads you to the mediocre.

 

Mahatma Gandhi:

You must be the change you wish to see in the world.

 

And my personal favorite...

 

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever does.

very very well said scout!

Thanks, Annie.

To avoid another trip to the bin, I seek beauty, try to be a good boyscout to others and don't watch TV news. I edit my internal dialog to change self-defeating trends, avoid consumerism and consumption where possible and visit my mother for a regular dose of guilt.

 

Oh...and Wellbutrin.

Hey Scout I've got an extra bedroom available, would you like to move in?

 

Free of charge of course!

 

Please?

Hey Scout I've got an extra bedroom available, would you like to move in?

 

Free of charge of course!

 

Please?

 

Sounds good! We'll start our own commune for sweeping revolutionary change! Seriously, I'm always just a click away...PM me any time if you have some particular questions or thoughts about what you're experiencing.

TRQ,

 

everyone is living their own dream... and sometimes they try to pull us in to their world of chaos and mayhem. Be true to yourself, learn to bend with the wind, and you will come out strong and unharmed. Awareness is key, self awareness, knowing when certain beliefs may no longer apply, and adopting new beliefs in order to get by.This world we live in is too dynamic to survive with static beliefs.

Not everybody, but a fair majority of people I fear are totally insane, ignorant, or just plain deluded. To read the newspaper, and especially to turn on the television is to witness with shock and horror the reality of the "realities" that surround me.

 

At last count there were over 6,000,000,000 people in the world. Less than 0.004% are ever mentioned in mass media for any reason. Less again for being or doing "crazy" things.

 

By far, the vast majority of people in the world live their lives fairly routinely in their own little spheres of influence. Don't be too influenced by what attracts the attention of media. It is always best to try and put things into perspective.

At last count there were over 6,000,000,000 people in the world. Less than 0.004% are ever mentioned in mass media for any reason. Less again for being or doing "crazy" things.

 

By far, the vast majority of people in the world live their lives fairly routinely in their own little spheres of influence. Don't be too influenced by what attracts the attention of media. It is always best to try and put things into perspective.

 

yeah... seriously. Like you don't need to go to Namibia to give birth to a baby. now that is just crazy!

I always believed I was crazy.

 

They Said I Was Autistic.

 

Then they conceded that I was... Crazy.

 

So you may actually really be crazy. Although in truth, just different rather than crazy. You sound rational and sane to me.

In my early teens I also somehow believed that I was crazy. I am too dynamic to spend much time with most people.

 

I concur that it would be good to share a house with Scout.

 

I share your feelings about all that * dumped on us be the media. It often seems hazzardous to mental health.

 

It helped me that I have no TV for 11+ years, it's also wonderful to spend the time saved on something real.

 

My suggestion is to cut back on information overexposure and engage in real activities.

 

Carolineq posted this elsewhere: One feels better by N-U-R-S-E approach coupled with change that evolves through introspection.

 

N = Nutrition (eating right, appropriate quantity)

 

U = Understanding (who you are, what you want, drawbacks, skills, ect)

 

R = Rest (getting rest regularly with plenty of REM sleep)

 

S = Spirituality (doesn't mean you have to worship anything, just reflect and focus on being bigger than you are, able to overcome, more like affirmations and meditation for me)

 

E = EXERCISE (the most important in my humble)

Scout that sounds great I love what you said.

 

Red Queen there is no way you are crazy. It is normal for us to have depressed times. It is part of being human in a crazy world.

 

I have been researching the scandal behind pshchiatry and how there is no medical or scientific eviednce to prove anyone has a mental illness.

 

It is normal to get upset and we need to be aware of people who can mis diagnose us with false diseases that are made up to simply gain huge profit.

 

For those of us in this world who are extra special and beautiful people there are people who we must try to discern to avoid as they are not necessarily having our best interest at heart.

 

May you all be blessed and protected

I can totally relate! I thought I was crazy when I was about 16 til I was about 19. I even thought I was schizophrenic for awhile. I just knew everybody else had such a better grip on reality than I did. But now I'm 21 and I am more confident in my own mind, I guess you could say. I feel like I'm the only one that gets how ridiculous life is and that everybody else is confused. Honestly, I really feel like I am just more sensitive to the world around me. We live in an age of information overload and to a sensitive person it really can be TOO MUCH. But you make peace with it. You find things that make you happy and you try to not take it all so seriously or personally. And a side note: medication does help. I hate to admit it, but I have to take 400 mg of welbutrin everyday or else the world is a little too big and a little too scary. Hope all this helps...

Same story here with the depression and feeling "separated" through most of my life... I think the more you believe that the wackos are the normal ones (who'll tell you they are perfectly normal, and worse, have it affirmed by being surrounded by wackos just like them), the crazier you feel. Maybe it takes just a bit of egotism to keep yourself out of the nuthouse =P As long as you can still look at someone and say "This dude's f***in' NUTS!" you're probably fine

... I have been researching the scandal behind pshchiatry and how there is no medical or scientific eviednce to prove anyone has a mental illness. ...

You got a point, it's like the historical treatment of ulcers by antiacid instead of by removing the actual cause, a bacterium called heliobacter pylori (google). There are exceptions of course like those ulcers caused by cola drinks (I had my first age 17).

 

Depression is a mental pain caused by an imbalance between expectations and ability. To make it go away, one has to improve ones ability or reduce ones expectations.

 

Balance is it. About everything in life that is.

I have been researching the scandal behind pshchiatry and how there is no medical or scientific eviednce to prove anyone has a mental illness.

 

It is normal to get upset and we need to be aware of people who can mis diagnose us with false diseases that are made up to simply gain huge profit.

 

For those of us in this world who are extra special and beautiful people there are people who we must try to discern to avoid as they are not necessarily having our best interest at heart.

 

May you all be blessed and protected

 

I don't think you've ever seen a person with real mental illness!

 

My aunt is a psychiatrist, she has definitely some.... very crazy patients. patients who hear voices, who live in their own fantasy land, people who are not functional in society. There are mental diseases that go far beyond "a case of the blues."

 

Why is it so hard to believe? People have problems with every part of their body - their skin, heart, eyes, lungs, liver.... why is it hard to believe the mind can have an illness also?

Quote Posted by MI_Shell

... I have been researching the scandal behind pshchiatry and how there is no medical or scientific eviednce to prove anyone has a mental illness. ...

 

 

I can't actually find where you guys got this quote but MAN...

 

WHAT? Are you kidding?

... My aunt is a psychiatrist, she has definitely some.... very crazy patients. patients who hear voices, who live in their own fantasy land, people who are not functional in society. There are mental diseases that go far beyond "a case of the blues." ...

Fair enough, there a breakdowns of hardware too. Blood circulation problems, thrombosis, the odd tumor, some "wiring problems".

 

Mental illness does exist. Mental illness does tremendous damage to families and society. Whether mental illness is caused by hard or soft problems is to be determined case by case. And so far, I have only suggested to one poster to see a neurologist.

 

Our brain is very adaptible, and it is hard to tell the origins of mental illness. My first love and wife, an untreated rape victim age 8, who could not have children, eventually entered her own fantasy world. There was nothing what several psychiatrists could do as she simply would refuse to balance her expectations to her inability. I watched it for 9 years. Yes, watched and made it worse by my lack of understanding. I learned a lot since.

 

I am devastated by teens suffering from abusive and incompetent parents being given AD's. It will be interesting to see what happens when those kids produce kids.

 

Our brain is too complex, don't screw with it. Balance is it.

 

Lifelong balance of our expectations to our ability is perhaps the ultimate challenge we all face.

there is definitely a difference between situational and chemical depression. if someone is depressed because their spouse died and they lost their job, it is only natural they be depressed.

 

but some people have more of a "tendency" towards depression given their family history and genetics.

 

In certain cases, meds may help, some for longer periods of time than others. but I think in ALL cases, therapy should be employed, to help people deal with their situations and conquer them.

 

I was very interested in brain chemistry and was considering studying it for my PhD, but went into bacteria instead....

there is definitely a difference between situational and chemical depression. if someone is depressed because their spouse died and they lost their job, it is only natural they be depressed.

Pure chemical depression is a thought I am critical of as it is hard to pinpoint the cause.

but some people have more of a "tendency" towards depression given their family history and genetics.

Yes I fully accept that, I do have a tendency, my mom had, not sure my dad had (He passed when I was 14, he was depressed but it could have been my abusive mom), so why I tend to emotional extremes, why it takes me a concerted effort to balance my self and why my gf who put up with me during my worst times a few years ago did not get depressed, just pi$$ed at me.

In certain cases, meds may help, some for longer periods of time than others. but I think in ALL cases, therapy should be employed, to help people deal with their situations and conquer them.

IMHO proper therapy may consist of counseling or counseling + medications. Medications without counseling are unacceptable. I like to see more monitoring of progress though.

I was very interested in brain chemistry and was considering studying it for my PhD, but went into bacteria instead....

Much more research is needed in this area and people susceptible should be more taken care of.

 

But in the end, I feel that we all should focus more on balancing ourself and those more susceptible more so.

 

Well your choice, bacteria are perhaps slightly more predictable.