No amount of “journaling,” “yoga,” “going for a walk” makes it better.
Chemicals (caffeine, sugar, alcohol, drugs, etc)- only makes you feel good for a very short bit, then you come back down to reality. And life sucks again.
I guess the better question is- “What Makes it Better?” rather than “What Makes it Feel Better?”
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I dont think there’s a one-size-fits-all answer to that. People are different, and live different lives.
For me though, what helps is setting goals and taking concrete actions in the way of achieving those goals. I have daily goals and bigger goals. I find that I feel better about myself when I’m working on something. That’s just me, though.
Well I guess I know what my answer is. I need someone in this world to care about me. As of rn, no one gives a damn. It’s a cold world when no one cares, when you life doesn’t matter. Also, lack of money and ill health are my top 3 issues, though lack of money contributes to the poor health and lack of friendships so it’s all intertwined.
well first I’d argue on the chemical point. With modern stuff, you technically don’t ever have to come down, granted that requires the cooperation of a doctor. I haven’t been raw/sober/whatever you call not on anything in eight years. I’m pulling towards it, but I’d guess I’m at least six months away.
I’m a big fan of coffee and nicotine vape. I could never have been a chain smoker, but there are days I have that much nicotine in me.
another chemical solution; pain, specifically from exertion. Yesterday for the first time in a few years I did a full set of resistance exercise; pushups, pullups, weighted sqauts. I can still feel the pain from it, but there’s a thing about pain; your body releases natural equivelents of morphine (endorphins being one) to numb the pain. therefor, constant low level pain, like post exercise, amounts to a decent buzz.
Yes, I suspect all athletes are on some level junkies for that buzz. The thing is that like anything else, deminishing returns, so I had to detox for a long time to get back to today where I can enjoy the feeling of being drained.
that concludes the body hacking section of my tricks
finding complex things to work on helps me. I’m certain I’ve talked about Space Engineers on here before, but it’s my current fix for solving difficult problems. Previous games to do it for me include Satisfactory, The Forest, Sons of the Forest, Dyson Sphere Program and Timberborn. I’ve found I can get between 1-6 hours of good play before it stops feeling good.
The real hallmark of a good game is the type I end up thinking about when I’m not playing it. Using space engineers as an example, I was days at designing defenses for my base which I just tested last night. And ooooh it was glorious, they shredded the attacking ship. Next I’m designing a ship for interstellar travel which has to have on-board defenses. I’m hundreds of in game hours from being done, it’s a beautiful thing.
and sometimes I make progress around the house, cleaning, cooking, gardening. Just enough to make me feel less like a lazy person.
i don’t really want to have to be doped up on chemicals in order to FEEL good. once upon a time, i was able to feel good and happy things on my own, like a normal person. before being chronically sick, before life heaped a ton of shit on me.
There’s an app called bumble. It’s mostly used for dating, but they have a setting for making friends, too. While not ideal, it’s a potential place to start if you’re looking for friends.
thanks. i’m at a point where i’m too angry and bitter at the world for the shit that’s been done to me, so i don’t think i can make friends atm :/ ppl can sense things like loneliness, depression, anger, etc.
idk, maybe i ought to try again but it’s SO exhausting. i go through cycles of “trying” and then going “fuck it, i’m just going to wallow in my depression” phase. i’m currently in the latter phase…
so part of it is the effort involved and the likelihood of it panning out. I’ve tried SO hard in the past to make friendships/connections (this was before i became so angry and bitter) and no matter how hard i tried, ALL the tons of effort was in vain. So now I don’t even try anymore.
Like in my case, bc I am chronically ill, no one wants to be my friend. This is the case for nearly ALL the chronically ill ppl I’ve met. it’s like the world thinks we’ve got the bubonic plague and ppl avoid us. we are cast off bc ppl assume chronically ill ppl are worthless bc we don’t work and therefore contribute to society. i’m too tired to battle ppl’s judgements.
There’s dozens and dozens and dozens of times where I’ve met ppl who I seem to get on well in the beginning (when I’ve tried in the past), but as soon as they find out I’m not working, or that I’m sick, or I evade questions about job stuff, ppl don’t want to talk to you anymore.
Yes, I also know that if I don’t try, then I’m guaranteed to not have any friends or relationships. I’m just so tired of trying and not getting any results, so the thought of expending all that time and energy to try yet again and again feels like a waste.
i just feel so hopeless. what needs to happen is for me to improve my health, which then lets me have the energy to go out, meet ppl, do things, make money, which then leads me to have friendships and relationships. but the kicker is that i have to get healthy first. and i can’t get that if i am poor with no money and stuck in a crap apt / crap environment. it’s a catch 22. i need money to get healthy and i need health to make money. and i need health and money to make friends and have relationships. 🙁
I mean, for me and a lot of my friends, what put us on the path to dealing with depression was uh… realizing we were trans? But ymmv, lmao.