Edit:
Fuck. I don’t want to downplay your suffering if you’re American, Arab or Ukrainian, an oppressed minority and/or female (I’m neither) but sometimes I feel like empathy is taking a toll on me. It’s a huge weight to add to my mental problems. Thanks for the advice, I’m trying to get my parents on board with the “winding down” on the project while I try to get my mind off things and establish a schedule by trying to work in a help call center (I would have preferred manual labor but they are the only company hiring around that is large and evil enough I don’t mind them losing money through my incompetence in the presumably short time I last).
Original comment content below.
I’m European but after doomscrolling on Lemmy, watching Last Week Tonight etc. I can’t keep my calm over the US election, which is not helping my existing depression and suspected ADHD. The only good thing I did today was not eat much (I’m overweight) and 15 minutes of gardening. I can’t keep todo lists because I’m really depressed over not having completing any meaningful item for weeks, and not even my long-abandoned passion projects spark joy anymore.
I’m afraid things will go very wrong for my mental state if Trump wins. I have two psychologists and a psychiatrist but I’m only meeting them next week. Please help me get my mind off this and maybe even get something done.
It wont be. Sadly the entire world would be a better place if everyone white man in the US died the day before yesterday. And I say this as a white guy.
The rest of Lemmy has had a meeting and decided that you no longer need to save the world. It was wrong of us to put that burden on you. Stop, rest save yourself first. We would love for you to volunteer to help when you are better.
Your garden looks wonderful 😊
You haven’t seen my garden and it’s quite barren now that the vegetation period has ended for everything outside greenhouses.
Anyway, you deserve a pic so here is one from earlier this year.
(My phone is from 2013 and full of dust)
That’s a good size garden!
My grandma used to have one like that and my best childhood memories are picking vegetables with her and then we’d cook them for dinner
I never got into gardening except the last couple years and it’s very rewarding in the spring when you start seeing things sprout
Trump isn’t worth this. No one is. Get off the internet and go outside or focus on a hobby. Stop doomscrolling.
I have a semestral project to work on and I’ve been failing to get anything done for weeks. I’m unemployable until I get better meds or something. Instead of staring at a screen fruitlessly all day, I guess I should just accept this failure and embrace your suggestion. Thank you very much.
Trump isn’t worth this
He’s a symptom of a greater problem. If a criminal incoherent populist can challenge a future-oriented centrist with decent moral standing except for one or two issues, even by popular vote, I don’t see much hope for 21st century democracy becoming what it could be globally.
Don’t call it a failure. It’s a struggle. A challenge you need to overcome. Be kinder to yourself.
I wish I could tell you something that will magically make a Trump presidency seem not so bad. I genuinely do. But at the end of the day you need to keep 2 things in mind.
- He’s not president. He may never be again.
- Life moves on regardless of what the US election outcome is. Life will move on. Will it be harder for some people who are affected by his policies? Absolutely, but life does move on. You have the good benefit of living in Europe. The majority of his disastrous policies are domestic and concern Americans.
Take life one day at a time. There’s no benefit with overwhelming yourself with what-ifs to this extent.
Do a week of digital detox. Seriously, drop it all. No Lemmy, YT, RSS, not even the weather; drop all digital media.
I’m physically disabled and been through stretches like this. I’ve read all of Dune and most of Asimov’s fiction in these stretches. Books are good. Independent thought and perspective is rejuvenating and can break the spiral. Scrolling is addiction, as is most digital media. Sometimes you need to detox for self care.
