tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post8692111982648428818..comments2024-03-20T03:33:22.357-07:00Comments on Skeptophilia: The cost of personal courageGordon Bonnethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06003472005971594466noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post-69788117037257772442021-07-29T13:28:48.864-07:002021-07-29T13:28:48.864-07:00I am in awe that you are with us, and grateful tha...I am in awe that you are with us, and grateful that you remain to put words to the struggles you’ve endured. May you feel the virtual hugs I am sending your way.DennisW_San Diegohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10717120972125806638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post-46194429607313820492021-07-29T10:57:00.425-07:002021-07-29T10:57:00.425-07:00Gordon, I could not possibly agree with you any mo...Gordon, I could not possibly agree with you any more. Thank you. <br /><br />Even putting aside the longer term question of mental health, I think it's still completely unfair to criticize Biles or her decision. <br /><br />Remember Chuck Knobauch or Rick Ankiel, baseball players who had "the yips" and lost their ability to throw to first or find the strike zone? Think of a novelist with writer's block or a salesperson who just doesn't feel like they have "it" that day. <br /><br />Now put that in the context of a sport where if you don't feel 100% confident of where you are in the air, you've got a pretty good chance of ending up with a really bad injury. Simone did what was best for both her short-term and long-term health, what gave her team the better chance to medal (and they did), and very bravely spoke out about mental health in sports.<br /><br />Anyone willing to flip through the air between bars like that is brave, but I think she's even braver today.Brianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02814804554194390618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post-44265128146140254532021-07-29T07:12:17.029-07:002021-07-29T07:12:17.029-07:00Holy Shit Gordon. I guess if you can use the F wo...Holy Shit Gordon. I guess if you can use the F word I can use the S word. Words. Your powerful words. Like you I have also suffered all my life with mental and emotional issues -- first those of my father who nearly killed me throwing me across the room and knocking me out when I was barely a toddler, again, and again, and again. Then my mother's mental illness came into play when she determined that practicing how she was going to kill us and then herself in a murder-suicide thing would help us to get away from my father without fearing the exit. This was the start of 74 years of hell. My own genetic predisposition for depression was *enhanced* by circumstances which provided an additional layer of Complex PTSD (CPTSD), and an eventual co-morbid diagnosis of dysthymia. Like you, I had two suicidal ideations in my younger life - one at about 18 and one in my late 30s. I did go through with it, but as you can tell, was unsuccessful. Yesterday I learned of a different name they're using now for dysthymia -- High Functioning Depression https://www.psycom.net/high-functioning-depression/?fbclid=IwAR3B0uq6bXY3fT8fadkN3Yj8SqeJbpHIqEeUf5DA5wIA1K8LlreamObT_Fc. Also like you, I've had a lifetime of the same shallow, hollow, ridiculous comments meant to shame me into going beyond what is reasonable to endure so that they felt better. Even some who think they know because, "I had thus and such happen to me and I'm fine." Oh how I love that one. I haven't had the words or the courage to use them to defend myself, but your openness over the years has helped me to have the bare beginnings of a voice. And with your permission, I say to all of them, "You ignorant, pompous -----! Shut the fuck up! Get a damn clue! And may you somehow walk in my shoes and REALLY get it!" I left out the deleted expletive because I can't think of one bad enough. So bad that it has no redeeming qualities. "Bastard" comes to mind, but that's really more on their parents. "Ass hole" could work, but even an asshole is an important part of our bodies without which we wouldn't survive. So whatever they are, every place they are, here's a single digit salute from me. And may you rot in the hell I live in. (I'm not brave enough to sign my real name, but you've read enough of my writing that I think you'll know it's me, thanking you AGAIN!)oldmtngalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06505533068514617529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post-76822658971439168772021-07-29T06:49:13.035-07:002021-07-29T06:49:13.035-07:00Thank you, friend.
Thank you, friend.<br />Lauryn B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05164154212254772052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post-434165425880444502021-07-29T04:20:39.714-07:002021-07-29T04:20:39.714-07:00Thank you for writing about mental health and ackn...Thank you for writing about mental health and acknowledging your own struggles. I think this is something we should all be making more of an effort to do, and I have failed miserably in this area. Even though I know better, I think I've convinced myself that nobody wants to hear about anybody else's problems. This has been one factor that has prevented me from addressing my own issues. Clearly, more people talking about this stuff can help to break down the stigma that persists and that some of us have unfortunately internalized. Maybe I'll even be able to do so one of these days.Jackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09485781130885424400noreply@blogger.com