#bachelor's Degree in Mental Health

[sihspune1]

PROGRAMME OUTCOMES

This programme will create empathetic, compassionate individuals who will be able to-

Achieve a comprehensive understanding of mental health and mental illness

Screen for early identification of symptoms, intervene in crisis situations and make timely referrals to specific mental health professionals

Apply clinical skills in assessing individuals with mental health problems across diverse communities, age groups and cultures

Liaise with mental health professionals for continuity of care and rehabilitation of individuals with chronic mental illnesses

Conduct ethical practice in all settings where they are employed and work in the legal framework pertaining to mental health

Identify gaps in knowledge and conduct empirical research which will contribute to the field of mental health

Predict the impact of global advancements on mental health and modify their practice accordingly

Design programmes to raise awareness about mental health issues to improve overall well being

Apply positive psychology attributes to create a thriving, resilient community through their active participation

Implement communication and counselling skills to psychoeducate and support individuals and families

[amarpatil1]

Mental health programme in India | BA Psychology courses in India

B.Sc. (Hons.) Mental Health

OBJECTIVE

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted our emotional wellbeing. Moreover, it has been a catalyst for raising awareness about mental health. Challenges arise in meeting the need for mental health services due to the social stigma, insufficient number of mental health professionals (MHPs), and a disjointed health care system. This has created a dire need for trained and dynamic professionals who are passionate about psychology and health care.

There are numerous certificate courses and diploma programmes that train students only in certain aspects of mental health and psychology. However, our B.Sc in Mental Health programme has a robust and holistic curriculum which helps students of any stream imbibe skills along with in-depth knowledge of mental health. This gives them the required educational qualifications to be workforce ready.

Mental health disorders are usually viewed as an individual issue - this programme focuses on busting that myth by adopting a multi-disciplinary approach to mental health. It equips students to gain a thorough understanding of how life experiences, community, culture, law, the economic and political climate, environmental concerns, physical and mental health systems contribute to an individual's experience of mental health and mental illness across an individual's lifespan. Thereby, highlighting the need to integrate these factors in the management of mental illness.

What differentiates this degree from existing ones such as a B.A. or B.Sc. in Psychology, Psychology Honours, Applied Psychology and others is the focus on building core competencies and skills. These include empathy, communication, negotiation, collaboration with different stakeholders, psychoeducation and drafting integrated management plans. Students will also be trained in mental health advocacy, awareness, and destigmatization. This allows students to choose upon graduation, whether they would like to join the workforce in different roles or continue their study in varied specialties of mental health around the world.

DURATION

4 Years Full Time

RESERVATION OF SEATS

As per University norms

SELECTION PROCESS

Based on marks in XII Std. Science / Equivalent Examination followed Entrance test shortlisting & Personal interview and written ability test.

MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION: ENGLISH

PATTERN OF PROGRAMME

Semester

[savage-rhi]

Magentaahh!

[shawnaisalt]

https://gofund.me/a616e1d9

Anything and everything helps! Even a $1! Or sharing around your networks/on social media! Every $1 I make as well will be going towards this cause so I’ll be making payments from my own money as well and I’ll take it down once I reach my goal! 🙂 On holidays and my birthday etc… if you’re thinking of getting me a gift~please donate here instead!

[faeriefully]

There’s something cathartic about realizing that you genuinely can just skip class in college

[oc-cinematic-universe]

i figured out the funniest possible deathspeaker timeline. timeline where dara is the same age as and grew up with joe and lily. dara starts transitioning at the age of 8 years old after she admits her massive crush on joe and he tells her he's not really interested in boys which makes her realize she isn't one actually. deciding to be a girl does not change joe's mind because he is 8 and so so demiromantic and doesn't know it yet, but lily sure is interested. cut to 10 years later lily and dara have been on again off again for 10 years with drama the likes of which you've never seen because they can't fucking stand each other. joe is also there realizing he needs better friends

[diaryofahumanbeing]

When I met my first love.

When I first encountered Psychology, it seemed like a weird and odd subject. Whenever I went to a subject I liked like Biology or Music, there was Psychology nearby, whenever I met a new subject like Artificial Intelligence or Mathematics, there was Psychology. Eventually I started to learn more about Psychology and I was surprised. There was alot Psychology and I had in common, from the history of human development across generations to how humans react and learn about the world. Psychology introduced me to other subjects like Anthropology, Ethnomusicology, Statistics, Forensics and some of its family members like Cyberpsychology, Forensic Psychology, Developmental Psychology and Evolutionary Psychology. Psychology had a finger in almost every subject and we had alot in common. I was surprised I would ever like a subject this much since I usually filled my time with certain subjects that acted more Black or White, right or wrong or set clear standards, but Psychology saw the grey in subjects, the spectrum of possibilities and didn't have a properly defined limit. Psychology even helped me talk and like humans, even though I am quite misanthropic and introverted. Then one day I travelled to the UK and I thought that was the end between me and Psychology. I got settled, explored the area and reconnected with family members. On occasion, I'd miss Psychology and our days in high school. After a year though, I bumped into Psychology in college and we reconnected. We spoke again and I had a renewed strength I didn't know I had. I think that's when I realised, I fell in love with Psychology. I loved their interests, I love how it was curious about the world, I love how it always tries learn new things, I even fell in love with its mistakes and history, always trying to be better. Psychology had stolen and kept my heart safe, so I began to pursue Psychology. I first began to pursue Psychology in college while I had taken the basic equivalent education for this new contry, then I began pursuing Psychology to University, after a year of working in Starbucks I finally pursued Psychology in university until I got my degree. In university though, Psychology introduced me to wonderful people and opportunities, the one person Psychology introduced me to was one of the few people I had ever crushed on, so far I had only fallen in love with subjects, this was the first person in a while I had fallen for, and although we used the same pronouns, we shared a student flat, we spend loads of time together and I even held their hand, it wasn't meant to be. Psychology told me it was okay to pursue more than one love if it was honest and true, after all Psychology also taught me about healthy boundaries, healthy relationships and polyamory, but I was not ready. I then I heard a devastating news, even though me and my crush were compatible, they told me they were heteroromantic. I was devastated, but I couldn't be angry at them, they didn't do anything wrong. They were just being their amazing and wonderful self and I fell hard, they had nothing to be guilty or sad for. I had to be a good friend to them, we kept talking and being good friends, we hung out, we vented to each other, we had some fun and Psychology was there to comfort me in my loneliness. Even though I was furious, and jealous and annoyed and frustrated, I was happy I met this person, and I don't regret Psychology introducing me to them. After a while, I got my degree, the results weren't as high as I liked but Psychology reminded me that I could still do a masters and that we could still be together and help people. Psychology now is introducing me to Counselling and the three of us are planning on helping people as much as we can, they will also help me through with getting my masters in the future but right now I want to get acquainted with Counselling, help people, save some money and maybe live a little more. I may have not found my happy ending but Psychology reminded me that it isn't the end and I can't wait to see what adventures we get into.

[mmmkayla]

Getting so close, yall 🤙🏻🎓

[sihspune1]

Mental health programme in India | BA Psychology courses in India

The B.Sc. (Hons.) Mental Health is a 4-year full-time program at Symbiosis Institute for Health Sciences. The institute offers a robust and holistic curriculum to train students in behaviour, emotions, and psychology. The programme adopts a multi-disciplinary approach highlighting the need to integrate various factors to manage mental illnesses and acquire in-depth knowledge in psychology and behavioural sciences. The programme focuses on building core competencies and skills, such as empathy, communication, negotiation, collaboration, psychoeducation, and drafting integrated management plans for passion-driven students willing to pursue a degree with application of psychology in Mental Health. Students with a knack in applied psychology will also be trained in Mental Health advocacy, awareness, and destigmatization.

Key Program Takeaways:

Comprehensive understanding and multi-disciplinary approach to Mental Health.

Focus on building core competencies and skills through a robust and holistic curriculum in Mental Health and Psychology after 12th.

Apply clinical skills and in-depth knowledge of Mental Health, Psychology and behavioural sciences in assessing individuals.

Design awareness programmes regarding Mental Health issues to improve overall well-being with skill based honour degree in Mental Health from SIHS.

Implement communication and counselling skills to psychoeducation and support individuals and families.

Liaise with Mental Health professionals and offer students exponential opportunities in the care of patients & rehabilitation of the chronically mentally ill.

Students from any stream can pursue a career in Human Resource or Community Mental Health with B.Sc. (Hons.) Mental Health

Intake: 40 students

Duration: 4 Years Full Time

Eligibility: Passed Standard XII (10+2) from any stream or equivalent examination from any recognised Board with a minimum of 50% marks or equivalent grade (45% Marks or equivalent grade for Scheduled Caste / Scheduled Tribes). This programme is open to students from all streams - Arts, Science, and Commerce

[quickartsblog]

[andhumanslovedstories]

My hospital is offering to pay for my masters degree in either nursing or education, which is interesting and something I’m pondering. Of those two, probably education. I’m not interesting in nursing research, and I have NO desire to become a nurse practitioner. There’s never been a time when I thought to myself, “boy I wish I had to know MORE about pharmacology.” My chief loves in nursing are 1) talking with patient, 2) successful symptom management, and 3) it’s impossible for me to do my job at home. I clock into my shift and then baby? Ooh baby, I clock the fuck out.

Education is interesting to me, I genuinely love teaching, I think there’s nothing cooler or more satisfying when you figure out the right way to explain something so that someone really gets it. Unfortunately my mother whom I love dearly and respect highly is a nurse educator who loves the exact same parts of nursing as me and loves teaching for the exact same reasons. I’m not sure I’m ready to literally become my mother.

(For real, this morning mom and I were chatting, me about my presentations on conversational tools to de-escalate and connect with patients in mental health crises, and Mom about her project to prevent and treat delirium through nursing interventions, and we were like “jesus christ we are basically devoting ourselves to the exact same passion project on opposite sides of the country. After Mom made this observation, we cackled, in the exact same identical way.)

What I actually need to do is to convince my hospital to pay entirely for my masters in creative writing, which is the masters I’m actually interested in pursuing, which is also the masters that I need least to advance my career or skills. It just. Seems fun. Its always seemed fun. I got my first bachelors in History and English with a concentration in creative writing, and that’s always seemed like more real of a degree to me than my bachelors in nursing. I’m a liberal arts girlie forced into a STEM world. Anyway, I do refuse to pay for grad school, so that’s gonna be a big factor. I’ll tell the people in charge of the hospital education budget that if they pay for an MFA, I’ll write the best fuckin unit newsletters anyone has ever seen.

[tallerthantale]

Neil and Amanda's Fake Therapist

I originally gathered information relating to Neil's fake therapist in a bit of a messy hyperfocus flurry that included some initial errors, followed by various erratic updates, so I wanted to put the main points together into one coherent place. Some of what I'm putting together here was found by others on the subreddit post.

I once again find myself skirting the edges of my typical rules for myself about analyzing public figures, so disclaimer: this is personal opinion, I'm not scientifically or clinically evaluating anyone based off public appearances / statements, I am commenting on what personal impression I am getting off things, and leaving most speculation about internal states out.

Man does this guy make it hard to stick to that though.

The person I'm talking about here is the supposed 'therapist' that Scarlett interacted with while Neil was (allegedly) pressuring her to say the allegations weren't true. His behavior there (with a paper trail according to Tortoise), and what I was able to gather from Amanda Palmer's podcast made it clear to me that he was not operating within the acceptable behaviour of a therapist, so I decided to see if I could prompt a review of his license. All indications at this time are that he does not have one. But it gets worse.

He claims to be a minister, but like the therapist claim cites no qualifications or organizations in his website's bio. This combination of therapist who isn't a therapist and minister who isn't a minister potentially creates a legal nightmare scenario. I am not a lawyer, this is not legal advice, but I'm going to give you my best estimate of the situation, which has involved looking up the law and reading some cases.

As long as he isn't claiming to be a mental health professional, he may be protected in calling himself a nonspecific 'therapist.' He can probably argue it as some kind of spiritual therapy. But because he isn't actually a mental health care provider, he is not subject to mandatory reporting. Generally therapists have a legal obligation to proactively report when someone is a danger to themselves or others. He does not have that requirement. He isn't bound by professional ethics, since he is not a member of any organizations and has no licenses. Moreover, it seems to be the case in New Mexico that if a person reasonably believes you to be a minister, that kicks in clergy-penitent privilege whether or not you actually are a minister.

The origin concept of clergy-penitent privilege is that the law cannot force a priest to reveal what was said to them in confession. The First Amendment means all religions get it equally and it doesn't have to be part of a specific Catholic ritual. In New Mexico, it covers anything that was not said publicly or intended to be passed on regardless of the surrounding context. That means anything said to or by this guy that is not said in public or explicitly intended to be forwarded cannot be used by the legal system for any purpose, no matter how documented or incriminating it is to the client or to him personally. There is no mechanism to remove that privilege form him for being misused because it is derived from his representation of himself as a minister, not his actual status.

According to his linkdin he received a Bachelors degree in creative writing from the University of Rochester, in New York. He then got a Masters degree in Divinity in Organizations from Harvard Divinity School, 1982-1985. These are the only points of education claimed anywhere we have seen. He lists no psychology or mental health qualification anywhere, and is most known as an author. His bookselling success might be due to a claimed promotional appearance on Oprah.

His personal webpage has a long 'client list' or list of 'collaborators' who have hosted speaking engagements. This list was last updated in 2012. The events on his calendar page have no year. I think I recall seeing a section of his website that was only accessible to those who were 'fully committed,' or something like that, but it doesn't seem to be there now. It's possible I'm misremembering, it's possible it got taken down when the reddit thread got popular, I don't have the right skillset to check. He won an award from the Institute of Noetic Sciences, which looks to be engaging in pseudo scientific spirituality in a manner similar to Scientology.

From what I can gather from the video's I've watched, the advice he 'preaches' is a mish mash of bits and pieces of metaphors and perspectives from a variety of religions and philosophies that he probably didn't fully understand. (My speculation.) There are pieces of genuine insight that are lifted from others and that can give the impression he knows what he is talking about to vulnerable people even if he doesn't really understand them himself. He doesn't seem to have any genuine religious beliefs or connections to any religious congregation or organizations. It is unclear if he is or is not technically ordained, but that is something anyone can just do online, and he doesn't even claim it.

Particularly noticeable in his talks are traces of Jungian psychoanalysis (which is the nonsense Jordan Peterson seems to have got caught up in, and it has antisemitic and fascist origins) some Buddhist resilience concepts that have been misused by westerners a lot, and Christian (I think) concepts about universal love and togetherness. They end up mashed together into a message that I believe will influence most victims who hear it to blame themselves and remain in toxic situations, while making perpetrators feel better about continuing to perpetrate. Not saying that was the goal, but if a person had that goal, this patchwork philosophy is what you would put together to achieve it. I'm not going to be specific because I don't want to be like, putting out a guide for people on how to do this.

Amanda says she met the guy before she had a child, but after she was married. That is somewhere between 2011 and 2015. Amanda says she met him at something resembling a TED conference, where all sorts of people got together to do various (rich people nonsense.) She had a mental breakdown in a horse paddock, and the fake therapist was the guy with the horse, teaching about horse whispering.

"And since then, he’s been my therapist, and he’s also become a true friend, to me, and to my family, and to many other people in my life that he’s taken on, and helped out, in some of their darkest hours of need, and he is my emergency phone call. And in a way, he sort of picked up where Anthony, my old mentor, left off, and I don’t find it a coincidence that Wayne walked into my life right around the time Anthony walked out. "

This is not what a therapist does, this is cult leader behaviour. This is pure speculation on my part, but I wonder if Neil might have known him first and orchestrated their meeting. He is an author with connections to an organization similar to Scientology. It might actually not be a coincidence. Again, pure speculation.

Amanda describes seeking advice from him whenever she was having trouble with Neil, and that talking to him would make her feel like everything was fine again. "Even just to have someone to talk to, to remind me what I’m struggling with, what’s going on, what is home, why does this feel so disorienting, what am I doing? And I can say right now, when I shifted my internal feeling within myself, within my relationship with Neil, around where I was, my feeling in my own house transformed. Because I went, oh, right, none of this fucking matters."

In June 2019 Amanda Palmer has the Portland, OR incident where she tells her fans they need to forgive their r@#ists.

In 2019 the fake therapist did a series of webcasts with The Santa Fe Center for Spiritual Healing over a few months. At times he is titled "Rvrd", and at times he is titled "Dr." there is no reason to believe he is either. In the first one, the host reads a bio she found online, that she says he asked her not to read (she appears to think he was being humble.) This version of the bio claims that he was a Senior Scholar at the Fetzer Institute. When he comes on after she read it, he makes odd comments about whoever might be watching the video online and appears very shaken. The Fetzer Institute has no mention of him on their website. That connection is not listed in his current bio.

In his last video for the Santa Fe Center he claims to be working on an upcoming project in D.C. with a co-facilitator who was famous for brokering a truce between the crips and bloods. He also comes across like he has been asked to stop working with the center and is being super passive aggressive about it. (My speculation.)

His appearance on Amanda Palmer's podcast is recorded in July 2019, about a month after the last Santa Fe Center webcast, in upstate New York. In the descriptor she says it was recorded after a week long retreat with him she set up for 60 of her Patrion supporters. There is a nearly two year gap between the recording and posting, which is not explained. She describes him as a minister, therapist, leadership mentor, and her personal therapist. In the episode itself, she also describes him as her and Neil's relationship therapist. In the description she promotes his books and his website, and says he is still readily contactable there, but to be patient right now because he is mid move. (The description was posted when the podcast was posted, in 2021. As mentioned earlier, there are features of his website that have not been updated since 2012.)

The fake therapist tweeted about Neil being a 'dear friend' in late 2020. He has under 100 followers, not really what you would expect for a best selling author / therapist / minister / community leader / mentor / horse whisper. While I make references to cult leader behaviour, a genuine cult leader would probably have a larger following. But somehow I don't think he lacks for money. I expect there is a market for pseudo-therapists you can freely talk to about the crimes you are actively committing. You can even involve him in the crime, and it still privileged.

The events of Scarlett's allegations date to 2022, about a year after Amanda posted the podcast episode. Sometime in March is when Neil manipulates Scarlett into saying the allegations are false with what is essentially a su!c!de threat, then asks her to repeat her assurances that it was consensual to the fake therapist. Amanda had recently received a scorching message from one of Scarlett's friends about what was done to her. It seems like Neil is doing this to win a fight with Amanda in their "relationship therapy." Scarlett gets a message from the fake therapist.

Tortoise describes it as him "saying he'd be happy to speak to her in complete confidence because he had heard that she found herself in his words 'in the midst of relationships, stories and narratives, not alas necessarily of your own making. Sadly, this is not a surprise. Two creative dynamic people can easily draw others into their orbit unaware of how powerfully the magnetic pull of their influences can have on others.'"

My perception of this message is that it plants the suggestion to Scarlett that her friends are brainwashing her to think she was r@ped by pulling her into 'narratives not of her own making.' I could see how people might interpret the later lines regarding magnetic pull as being about accidental power dynamics abuse, but I read it more as him saying Scarlett's friends are opportunistic manipulators looking to make a name for themselves by taking down a famous person.

Either way, there are a considerable number of things happening there that an actual therapist would not ever do, for a variety of very good reasons. Tortoise's attempt to call him to ask for comment was thwarted by the fact that his phone has been specifically programed not to accept voicemails. Not like, the voicemail box was full or something, he went out of his way to do that. Which means Tortoise can't quite claim that he didn't respond to requests to comment, because they couldn't leave a message. Other organizations probably run into similar difficulties establishing evidence that they have contacted him. It's not a smoking gun, but I don't like it.

A year later Amanda Palmer makes her post on the Russel Brand allegations, where she argues the solution to serial predatory behaviour is to try to get them to stop doing "stupid shit" by trying to heal their lacking and fear with love and compassion and forgiveness, because that the ONLY cause / motivation for abusive behavior. And some unarticulated hope for non-specific accountability vibes.

This post looks to me like the perspective of a person who has been continuously exploited, and manipulated into thinking it is their personal responsibility to heal people who have no interest in being healed. It reads to me like a person who has been justifying staying in a toxic situation to themself so long it has warped their entire worldview. It reads to me like the inevitable end result of this fake therapists preaching.

I don't think that absolves her of what ever her role has been in facilitating access to victims, or actively promoting these views to her audience, but it is something to keep in mind.

There is a broad rage of possibilities for what is going on with this guy. The spectrum runs from deeply misguided fool to deliberately exploitative criminal. Either way it looks like he is charging people money for the service of turning them into the "this is fine" dog. This is not fine. This is not ok. Unfortunately it probably is legal.

[lonniemachin]

Laila reached out to me to help share her fundraiser. She is a 22-year-old Palestinian architecture student urgently raising money to evacuate Gaza and continue her education in Cairo. She has only raised €2,489 out of her €35,000 goal so far! Please donate, and if you can’t donate, please share!

From Laila’s GFM:

My name is Laila Auda. I’m writing to you while my heart is heavy, my tears are pouring down out of fear and despair. My only shimmer of hope to achieve my dream of being an Architect relies on you.

I’m 22-year-old dreamer and 178 days genocide survivor. I’ve endured unimaginable hardships including four major aggressions and countless military escalations. I’m still reluctant to believe that I’m reliving the 177th day of the fifth war in my prime years. Not only have these wars destroyed my dreams, but they have also deepened my trauma and depression.

In 2018, I was granted the opportunity of a lifetime through the ACCESS Micro scholarship Program funded by the US Department of State for 2 years English learning.

In 2020 I graduated from Arafat for gifted high school with honor degree 94.4%. And I was granted to a scholarship for 2 years in EL-UNRWA College pursuing my dream of being an Architect. In addition of finishing 3 external courses of software's used in architecture beside the college. I’ve put immense amount of pressure on my back to fulfill my dreams in my early twenties, having a message of being an inspiring soul of success. I was already in my small circle as three of my siblings want to be architects too! They see how I stay up all night making study models.

Now I’m a third-year architecture student completing my bachelor's degree in the Islamic University of Gaza (IUG). The dream of completing my bachelor's degree in my homeland became almost impossible after the IOF bombed all the buildings of my university and amidst the terrifying conditions we endure daily being stripped of every human right imaginable.

I’m sure you’re aware of the situation we have been living. My words are laconic, but my pain is profound and my mental health has been irreversibly damaged due the state of war. Switching from a person who’s addicted to learning to a person who is thinking of how can I escape death. My dream is completing my bachelor's degree in Cairo university, come back to my homeland and be an active architect in the rebuilding programs.

My target is to raise 35000€, which will be allocated as follows:

(1500$) university registration fees.

( 5000$ ) education fees per year (*4 years > 20000$) as I’ll lose 1 one more year with the courses equivalence due to the difference between the plans.

for life expenses as student for 4 years. ( 10000$ )

Add to that 2.9% GoFundMe would take and the fees on money transfer the bank would take.

The overall sum amount is approximately 35000€ considering the bank my cousin- who's launching this campaign- is engaged which operates in Belgian currency.

Your support could mean the difference between dreams realized and dreams shattered. Together we can make a difference. Together we can ensure that the voices of those trapped in conflict zones are heard, and their dreams are not forgotten.

I love studying and I dream of a life where I can breathe giving. I want to help people to rebuild their homes thinking with them of every detail. I want to see people’s happiness by creating spaces that lies warmth within their souls..

I’m truly grateful for your time, consideration, and support. Your generosity will make a lasting impact in my life, illuminate the path toward a brighter and more hopeful chapter.

Every contribution, no matter the size it will be a step forward achieving my dream

If you would like to confirm the validity of this campaign, you can message Laila on X

Username: Laila_EYO

With gratitude

Laila Auda

[sixleggedboar]

Hello everyone, since it's been very quiet on here I wanted to share an update for those who are wondering and the friends and mutuals I've been severly neglecting.

You'll find me oversharing under the cut but tldr, I am still in the middle of recovering from burnout, but it forced me to completely restructure my life to the degree that I am emotionally more stable and therefore feeling better than ever. So for anyone worrying, don't. I still have a long way to go, but I have the privilege of a good and reliable support net that caught me and offers me the resources I need to be able to build the life I need. I want to come back here, share more art in the future, but I will not force it.

And right now it's just not the time.

Thank you to everyone who's still here, thank you for your support!

CW: mental health, depression, suicidal ideation, internalised ableism

I had been suicidal my whole life. Had never known a time where I wasn't. Couldn't understand how people wanted to live, how this wasn't normal. I couldn't see myself in the future no matter how hard I tried. But I kept going because this was my normal, I didn't know anything else, didn't know I needed help and a change that was a lot more fundamental than just talking to a person every week. I had no frame of reference to communicate my struggle that came with every day life because for all I knew this is just how everyone else feels.

This is just life.

And I am just not made for it.

Didn't help that whenever I tried to communicate that to a mental health professional I just got brushed off as dramatic, being told I am fine.

Because in the end it just works. I function.

I was one of the lucky ones who got diagnosed with ADHD as a kid, mum went to a specialist cause she has it herself and wanted to make sure I get tested so I don't have to go through the same struggles that come with staying undiagnosed as she did. Thing is, that diagnosis didn't really change much, I was still too academically gifted and non-obtrusive to be considered for medical treatment (and honestly seeing and hearing about stories were kids have been on the wrong dosage for years because no one knew better makes me think that maybe it was for the better) and my mum tried to teach me the skills to succeed in life despite that diagnosis, but she herself was alone and too deep in her own trauma to be able to provide the support I needed.

This lead to me cracking and dropping out of high school, trying other things, landing back in school, this time college, and cracking again, this time not managing to immediately get up again to keep going with something else.

Nothing seemed to work, so all I could do was to take a break.

A break that showed me for the first time, that no, chronically wanting to die is not normal, that I am capable of enjoying life, that I am capable of wanting to live and my first goal should be to figure out what I can do to crawl my way back into everyday life without losing that feeling, that knowledge. I learned the difference between just a really bad, but perfectly healthy, day and the excrutiating pain day to day living had caused me until that point.

And that break's been going on for over a year now, with me periodically trying to get back into school, trying to figure out what accommodations I need and how I can build a future for myself that is worth living.

I don't know if I'll finish my bachelor's, probably not, but if I drop out I'll need to find a viable alternative first. I don't think I'll ever be able to work full time, doubt I'll ever be able to fully support myself, but I know there is a future out there for me somewhere, one that is worth living to me and that is a hope I never had until recently. That is what I mean when I say I am doing better than ever, despite the fact that my functionality has effectively crumbled to dust and diagnostics say I am still depressed.

I am still struggling with the guilt that comes with relying on others for support, that comes with not being the perfect productive member of society I am expected to be, that comes with not being the perfect friend I want to be. I learned that I actually do want to work, something that if you had asked me a year ago, and if I felt save enough to be honest, I would have said no to. I just need to figure out what that looks like. I learned I can only focus on a handful of things, and that includes basic survival and individual people. I learned what I need to not feel lonely without being overwhelmed by social interactions and have incredible people in my life who make that possible.

I also met my amazing partner who is showing me how stable and unwavering love can be. Who gives me the security I need to say that whatever comes, we'll figure it out.

Oh and yeah, starting medical transition sure as hell helped a lot too.

I am currently trying to find my passions again, learn how to actually love creating art again, to learn how to learn and find enjoyment in just the act of it.

I'm in therapy and am trying out medications in the hopes to find some that work and don't make things worse.

All in all I'm going somewhere. I don't know where it will lead but I know that it will be worth it.

[hyakinthou-naos]

Hey, hope this is ok. I need some reassurance.

I've never felt a God's presence (except a vague warmth/peace when meditating about them sometimes I guess), much less talked directly to them (as in hearing them answer) and with so many people, esp on tiktok and here, talking like they have a private relationship with the Gods, a close friendship, even dating I just... I feel lesser I guess? Like so many people were chosen but not me and that must be a problem on my part. Like the Gods prefer everyone else over me. Like I'm not doing enough, even though I'm doing what I manage to do, given my limitations. I'm jealous of people who do communicate directly to the Gods. Part of me doubts them but part wants to believe them because it would be so shitty to lie about something like this and I don't want to believe these people are shitty. I don't believe non harmful hallucinations are all that common either, which would be the other explanation.

From what I understand you don't have this kind of direct communication either and I wanted to ask - how do you prevent yourself from feeling bad seeing all these people who (claim they) do?

I'm struggling here :( It's already hard for me to keep a consistent practice because of executive dysfunction and chronic illness and other stuff and this makes it harder. Feeling like I'll never be at everyone else's level of connection makes it harder.

Sorry for the vent-ish ask. You don't need to answer but I'm already glad if you read. Thank you.

Dear Anon,

Thank you for your ask, I am so sorry to hear that you are struggling. I want to tell you right off the bat that you are not lesser than any other worshipper - you are not less preferable to The Gods - and you should not feel any guilt around your spiritual/religious experiences. I would like to say the following to you, but also to the wider HelPol/Pagan community:

PLEASE Do Not Trust Spiritual Influencers on TikTok.

I cannot claim to know the legitimacy or the intentions/motivations behind every individuals actions regarding divine experiences, but I can say with confidence that most of the spiritual content on TikTok is dripping with lies and exaggerations.

Now, as someone with a mental health degree (I don't talk about my education often but I do have a bachelor's in Social Work and a minor in Psychology) I can also say with confidence that just because someone is lying doesn't mean they're necessarily a "bad person" but you don't have to be a "bad person" to have bad motivations.

Bad Motivations Can Include:

Lying for Financial Gain: This could be selling a product, selling a service, or trying to monetize on being an "influencer".

Lying for Attention: Many people do not have supportive friends, families, or communities - so as a maladaptive coping mechanism they will lie to get the attention they are lacking in their personal life.

Lying for Prestige: Some people don't feel important in their own lives, so they will lie so that other people will think that they are important.

Lying for Fun: In the age of the internet, the ability to make others believe something you know to be false can give someone an adrenaline or a dopamine rush. This is why "trolling" is still so popular.

And, not a "motivation", but still an explanation of why someone might "lie":

Mental Health Concerns: This could be a severe mental illness, a delusion, a hallucination, or conditioning from trauma.

People are weird and wonderful and diverse - and that diversity includes people who will lie (consciously or not) for a variety of reasons.

I speak about this openly as you mentioned, but I do not - nor have I ever - had any direct communication from any entity, deity, or spirit. Everything I know about my Gods (outside of myth, tradition, and history) I have learned through divination, ritual, and intuition.

Answering how I prevent myself from feeling bad when I see so many people "experiencing" something I can't - is a little bit complicated.

When I began my journey into paganism 11 years ago, TikTok didn't exist - Instagram was only 2 years old - and Tumblr had been around for a little under 5 years. My early knowledge came, mostly, from books. I wasn't comparing my experiences to those of others - because the only "others" I could compare myself to were limited to one high-school friend and the authors of the books I read. That kind of experience as a modern pagan doesn't really exist anymore because of how much the world has changed, but I wish it did. So, by the time I got to where I am now, the idea of comparing myself to others was so foreign. And as someone who grew up with the early internet - I learned very quickly that very little online is 100% real and truthful.

If you want to connect with your deities in an honest way that also feels real - you might enjoy trying one of the following (some of these might sound silly and/or childish - but if you truly want to grow as a pagan, you must throw away the idea that childish = bad):

Go outside at night and spin, put your arms out wide and spin and spin until you're dizzy (but not sick). Then lie down on the ground and close your eyes. That whirring sensation? That unreality of gravity? That is the Earth. That is Gaia. That is Demeter.

Listen to the rainfall on a stormy night. Sit somewhere you can hear the drops hitting the ground. Look and wait for a flash of lighting. The following thunder, that sound that you can feel in your bones that makes you jump, That is Zeus.

Write a letter to a friend, or to a loved one, or even to yourself in the future. Pay attention to how emotions become thoughts, thoughts become words, and words become writing. Communication - Language - Thought. That is Hermes.

I could go on- but at the end of the day, people are going to tell you that The Gods are "otherworldly"; but they're wrong. The Gods are of this world - The Gods are this world.

I hope that some of this has helped?

Eirene, peace and farewell,

- Aön