“I won’t let my pain turn my heart into something ugly. I will show you that surviving can be beautiful.”
— Unknown
nobody talks about how ptsd feels like genuinely embarrassing and humiliating sometimes
like you’ve been through however much shit and then years later you’re crying in your kitchen cause you got triggered by something super mundane you see every day like.. dishes, and you can’t explain why because the connection to trauma is vague and weird and contextual and so you’re just like why is this who I am…
“You might think that you don’t matter in this world, but because of you someone has a favourite mug to drink their tea out of each morning that you bought them. Someone hears a song on the radio and it reminds them of you.Someone has lengthen their way to home just to walk on your street. Someone has read a book you recommended to them and gotten lost in it’s pages searching for a message, thinking you left it with that book. Someone’s remembered a joke you told them and smiled to themselves on the bus. Never think you don’t have an impact.Your fingerprints can’t be wiped away from the little marks of kindness that you’ve left behind.”
— Unknown
Boggle’s ideas are not always terribly sophisticated. But I’ll back this one.
“Sometimes all you can do is lie in bed and hope to fall asleep before you fall apart.”
— William C. Hannan
intersustainability
image description: an appropriately simple drawing of three plants in earth-tones pots, each with a white sign/sticker showing in symbols how it should be treated (sunlight, water, temperature). black text above reads "every plant has their own requirements in order to grow..." underneath the plants are the words "and so do people."
one thing non-dissociative individuals can not understand and is hard to explain, is the feeling of another part/alter becoming aware of something or conscious when they weren’t a moment ago. like, how can i fully explain the experience of being awake for two hours before feeling a separate part “wake up” themselves? how i can be sitting in class for an hour before another part becomes aware of where we are? what words can i use to explain what it’s like to to witness and experience something at the same time? i don’t think there’s any way to fully encapsulate what that’s like, to be interrupted by the sudden presence of others and their thoughts. It’s your world being in first, second and third person, all at once.
“There are some people you simply cannot afford to emotionally invest in.”
— Boss Chick
How to Start a Conversation when you have Nothing to Talk About
Starting a conversation to get to know someone or breaking an awkward silence can be very stressful. To start a conversation when you have nothing to talk about, use these guidelines.
1. Introduce yourself if necessary. If you don’t know the person, breaking the ice is very simple: look approachable, tell the new person your name, offer your hand to shake, and smile.
2. Comment on the location or occasion. Look around and see if there is anything worth pointing out. Examples of location or occasion comments include: “This is a gorgeous room!”, or “Great dog!”
3. Ask an open-ended question. Most people love to talk about themselves, and open questions can help with this. These require an explanation for an answer rather than just a simple yes or no. Open questions tend to begin with who, when, what, why, where, and how.
4. Keep the conversation going with small talk. This keeps the conversation light and simple, and helps to establish similarities.
5. Synchronize. Once the other person has started talking, follow his or her cues to keep the conversation going smoothly. Use active listening to reflect what they’re saying and, perhaps, feeling.
6. Helpful techniques and cues to convey your interest include: Say the other person’s name from time to time; give encouraging feedback (by nodding, saying “ah-ha”, “wow’, “oh” “That’s amazing!”, etc.); keep your body language open and welcoming; and make comfortable, genuine eye contact with the person.
7. Be aware of your internal monologue. When you suddenly feel that you’re not able to engage in conversation with someone else, it’s likely that you’re saying negative things to yourself. For example, you may be worrying that you’re boring, not good enough, too unimportant, intruding, wasting their time, and so on. Try to keep in mind that everyone has these self-doubts from time to time.
8. Respond thoughtfully to someone who remains awkward or uncomfortable. If he or she appears withdrawn and uninterested, don’t persist for too long. Try a bit more, and then make the decision to move on and talk to somebody else. Also, be careful not to ask too many questions as they may feel shy discussing themselves.
“The way you treat yourself is the standard you set for others.”
— Unknown
“Loving yourself changes the way you love others.”
— Rebel Thriver
“I’m learning to love myself. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”
— Unknown