[Noisebridge-discuss] [hackerspaces] Please reach out

[Jeff Tchang]

This is a great discussion. There was a thread (on hackernews) about
how in the startup community a lot of founders tend to hide any signs
of depression because it is somewhat expected that founders be super
happy and optimistic 24/7. In reality this is not always the case.

I don't claim to know how anyone else feels since it tends to be
unique. What I do feel though is that it needs to be brought up in a
more positive light.

Just the fact that there is an open discussion on these mailinglists
gives me hope that someone might read it someday and think "I'm not
really alone" and seek guidance/help.

-Jeff

On Fri, Nov 25, 2011 at 3:50 PM, Ryan Rawson <ryanobjc at gmail.com> wrote:
> Thanks Will, Sean.
>
> It's very insulting when people who obviously have never been
> depressed talk about how to overcome depression.  Its a complex
> subject, the problems is a combo of software and hardware, and
> everyone is a little different.  "Feeling depressed" is not the same
> as "being depressed".
>
> Having actually dated someone who was very depressed, it is VERY
> difficult to reach out to someone.  Things like "tell me whats wrong"
> - just does. not. work.  It is incredibly difficult to reach someone
> who you are VERY close with.  Depressed people push people away, and
> are usually very good with "keeping up appearances".
>
> I really love that hyperbole and a half article - it is normally very
> difficult for people to understand what depression _IS_ - its not "im
> feeling sad".
>
> -ryan
>
>
> On Fri, Nov 25, 2011 at 3:41 PM, Sean Bonner <sean at seanbonner.com> wrote:
>>
>> On Fri, Nov 25, 2011 at 5:57 AM, Mitch Altman <maltman23 at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> > Date: Thu, 24 Nov 2011 12:34:59 +0100
>>> > From: gmc at sonologic.nl
>>> > To: felix.sargent at gmail.com
>>> > CC: will.sargent at gmail.com; discuss at lists.hackerspaces.org;
>>> > noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
>>> > Subject: Re: [hackerspaces] [Noisebridge-discuss] Please reach out
>>> >
>>> > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
>>> > Hash: SHA1
>>> >
>>> > On Tue, Nov 22, 2011 at 01:47:13PM -0800, Felix Sargent wrote:
>>> > > On Tue, Nov 22, 2011 at 1:27 PM, Will Sargent
>>> > > <will.sargent at gmail.com>wrote:
>>> > > >
>>> > > > 1) Direct sunlight.
>>> > > > 2) 8 hours of sleep.
>>> > > > 3) Movement outside.
>>> > > > 4) Social interaction.
>>> > > > 5) Regular meals.
>>> > > > 6) Satisfying work.
>>> >
>>> > These are all very good suggestions, and doing the above will help you
>>> > feel
>>> > better overall.
>>> >
>>> > Yet, there is a chemical process at the heart of depression, the
>>> > serotonine
>>> > balance in the brain is a huge factor in this. I've been depressed ever
>>> > since I remembered, even while all of the above were part of my
>>> > upbringing
>>> > for the first decade and some of my life. If you are born with a small
>>> > defect in the production or re-uptake of serotonin, you can exercise all
>>> > you want: it won't fix the defect.
>>> >
>>> > SSRI medication can help with that in part (always in combination with
>>> > the
>>> > above as far as i'm concerned), even though many in the community are
>>> > very
>>> > eager to bash anti-depressants. It can be a life saver!
>>>
>>> Everyone is unique, and so everyone will have various results with various
>>> methods of dealing with depression.  If you're suffering from depression,
>>> and have time to explore, then it's way worth exploring all the methods that
>>> may work for you -- see what works, and do more of it.  If you are feeling
>>> suicidal, or feel that you do not have time to explore on your own, please
>>> know that you can seek help, either from friends or people in the geek
>>> community (if you can force yourself to do so, people *will* help), or from
>>> a professional (most places offer free services, including calling 911 in
>>> the US).
>>>
>>> Mitch.
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Discuss mailing list
>>> Discuss at lists.hackerspaces.org
>>> http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>>>
>>
>>
>> I wrote about some of my own experiences with this from when I was pretty
>> young a while ago here:
>> http://blog.seanbonner.com/2011/08/16/bits-dead/
>> I have to agree with Carlyn, hearing suggestions and advice from people who
>> haven't been in that place is horrible, as is any kind of "you should do
>> this" kind of statements. What has helped me, and what I *hope* has helped
>> people I've talked to is just relaying personal experiences. This is what
>> *I* was going through, and this is how *I* dealt with it, And maybe some of
>> that could be useful to *you* - Mitch is also right, every person is
>> different so anything that comes off as "here's the one size fits all
>> solution" is going to be wrong, but I think presenting similar situations
>> and letting people decide if any of it could be applied to their own
>> situations is a very good start..
>> -s
>> --
>> Sean Bonner
>> homebase | twitter | G+ | SAFECAST
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
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>> Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
>> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>>
>>
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