#delta note: might delete/remake this post further down the road

[deltalunaris]

On Why I’m Leaving Re.ddit For The Foreseeable Future (+ Twi.tter & Tu.mblr-related Announcement)

(TW: mental health-related discussion, anti-survivor sentiment & bigotry, abuse & trauma mentions. Website names are altered to prevent bots & bad actors. Long Post, TL;DR at the bottom.)

Yep, nope. Not doing this Re.ddit thing anymore. I’ll report blatant ToS violations (ex. death threats, bigotry, obvious scams, ban evaders especially), and I’ll be suspended instead of the offender because of “report abuse”.

[ID: A message from the admins, stating that the account has been temporarily banned for three days for report abuse. The name of the sub where they claim the abuse happened is censored to prevent community brigading.]

To top it all off, I haven’t reported ANY posts since my first suspension (which, as you’ll see, was entirely wrong & I was immediately forgiven after I sent an appeal). Just yesterday, I got suspended again, and the “link to where the abuse occurred” is a 404. Not a [deleted] & [removed], a straight up 404.

[ID: A screenshot of a re.ddit webpage depicting a bright red banner stating “Your account has been suspended from Re[.]ddit for 2 days. Click here for more info.” The page itself displays a 404, stating: “Sorry, there doesn't seem to be anything here.”]

Censored the sub’s name out of extreme caution (i.e brigading), and also because it’s not their fault to begin with. After my first suspension, I talked to the mods of two mental health-related subs (one is shown above, the other below), and those who spoke to me stated that it’s an admin decision, not their own.

Apparently, when you report, most options listed go to the sub’s mods AND the admins (except options such as “this breaks [sub’s] rules”). So even if the mods say you were in the right (which was the case with my first suspension, hence why it was immediately reversed), the admins can decide against that and suspend you anyway.

It’s why I only ‘report’ posts to the mod team directly, as they have invited me to.

Otherwise, I have not used the actual report button out of genuine worry that this will happen again. Which is did, obviously.

(Apologies for the different format between screenshots. While trying to see if the 404 above showed up on desktop as well, I discovered that I can only access my re.ddit inbox via my 3rd party mobile app (preferred posting method), which is GENUINELY bizarre. Trust me, I looked, tried to type in the inbox URL itself, nothing. I just get guided back to "This account has been suspended.” That means that, if I were just a desktop user, I literally wouldn’t have any idea as to what caused the suspension like I do on mobile.)

(IMPORTANT EDIT: Now that I’m un-suspended, I finally can access my inbox through the previously tried methods. As such, I have updated all images to be in desktop format for consistency’s sake + the important addition of my side of the discussion I had with a mod. Genuinely unsure of if this was a bug or not.)

[ID: A mobile screenshot showing an inbox and three messages. The first one at the very bottom is from the re.ddit admins, stating that the user has been banned for three days by their team for “report abuse.” The second one immediately after is a suspension review, stating that the appeal request was reviewed and the suspension lifted. The third is a user message stating: “No problem, happy to help! Though I'd like to apologize if I did the reporting process wrong, as I ended up getting temporarily suspended for 'report abuse' (thankfully I appealed & was near-immediately forgiven). I must have misclicked the wrong option, as that definitely was not in my intention, but I apologize nonetheless. However, this is the second time this has happened when reporting an evident rule/ToS break in r/ [redacted] . I definitely remember selecting the appropriate option that time (inciting violence), and I was still given an admin warning despite the offender's post being taken down. I hope this isn't a larger, administrative-related issue, as that means people will be more hesitant to report, which complicates subreddit moderation even further. Would you happen to know what's going on in that regard? If not, no worries, I'll just continue reporting problematic accounts via modmail if that's okay. Safer for the both of us, as well as other users, that way. Cheers, thank you for the good work you do, and apologies once again. - Delta”. In response is a moderator message, stating the following: “Hi, I'm sorry that's happening to you! Unfortunately, I don't know very much about how re[.]ddit handles reports like that. I know that when you hit the report button, most of the options listed go to reddit admins as well as show up in our mod queue. The option that definitely does not get sent to reddit admins is "this breaks r/ [redacted] 's rules". I know it's not a perfect solution, since re[.]ddit should take action against people who are violating the ToS. But if you just want to report stuff to us, that's a good option. You can select "custom response" if you want to add more information. Just remember that reports are anonymous and we can't respond to you if you go that route. Otherwise, modmail works too.”]

So, with this all having been said, I think I’m done with Re.ddit for now.

I’ve come to a point in my recovery where, as much as I recognize the importance of being involved in a community of survivors, I refuse to tolerate blatant administrator abuse in order to do so.

It’s one thing if I misunderstood/misconstrued something, and made a false report. I’m autistic + severely dissociative, so it could happen. In turn, I do what I can to rectify my mistakes and apologize. It’s just the right thing to do, and I’m not afraid of taking accountability & responsibility.

However, as in the (thankfully working) example above, I am reporting BLATANT sub/ToS violations. This one involved a ban evader (with multiple alts) who was posting highly triggering content that involved sadistic themes, death wishes, and the putting down of other survivors in general:

[ID: A subre.ddit post with the title “Anyone ever happy that other people have trauma and that other people have to face shitty things?”. It has been removed and locked by the subre.ddit moderators, with the stickied mod comment stating: “This has been removed for violating Rule #1. This is not the appropriate place for this kind of rant. The focus of this community is peer to peer support.”]

I could grab the actual post via whatever Re.ddit post retrieval app is still around (RIP Ce.ddit), but I refuse to because it was really, REALLY bad. The title alone should give a very clear impression of that, ESPECIALLY when it was posted to a subre.ddit where highly vulnerable survivors go to find help and validation.

I also don’t want to give said ban evader anymore attention than I already have.

So, with all of this being said, here’s my final verdict:

As of 4/20/2023, I will be winding down my Re.ddit usage as a whole, and focusing on my Tu.mblr usage instead.

I MAY return at a later point, especially as I’m trying to expand my reach to service more future clientele via commissions. However, it will depend on if I get this suspension appealed as well. If not, I will permanently stop using my Re.ddit account as to avoid a full ban.

Why? Because I have written many resourceful posts for survivors (especially of severe NS/FL trauma like myself), and I would hate for all that to go down the drain. Many have publicly stated & privately DMed me expressing their gratitude for as much, which has emphasized to me the importance of my work.

I’m not doing this for karma. If anything, my re.ddit account was a massive outlet for all that I was dealing with, especially after escaping severe, life-threatening abuse. It’s the good, the bad, and the very, very ugly of my former abused life, some of which I still feel very traumatized and embarrassed over. I fight with myself on the daily to not outright delete said posts- even account- in general.

I just happened to write in ways that resonated with others, which is all that I’m striving to do. I don’t want anybody else to feel as horrifically lonely and ashamed as I did at the beginning of my recovery. May my creativity always express my truths, and validate the truths of others especially.

In similar news, I will likely not be returning to Twi.tter either.

I am only keeping my accounts where they are because of the mass username theft that started ever since the site went up in flames. A shame, but I feel confident in my decision. Especially when that site as a whole did severe damage to my recovery while I was using it. I became very bitter, frightened, and aggressive to (albeit very real) IRL threats that weren’t anywhere near me.

Thus, I made the critical decision to step away, for the sake of my recovery. I am very happy to announce that that was one of the best decisions I have made regarding social media usage. Unless there are significant changes for the better, I refuse to return to one of the biggest stressors in my recent history.

It didn’t matter how I curated my feed, but it did matter that I curated it out of my life (for now). I, and everyone who could be/is affected by my actions, are much, much better off.

Otherwise, hello Tu.mblr!

Ever since my first aesthetic account all those years ago, I always had a feeling that I’d make a definite comeback at some point. Over a decade later, the self-fulfilling prophecy has come true, but for reasons I’d least expect.

Since it’s exceptionally dated, I will revamp this blog as much as possible, so that it is befitting for a multimedia artist like myself. As aforementioned in past posts, I will still reblog the art of others here, but I’ll be making a more personal side-account for my mental health & survivorhood musings. I may cross-reblog from one to the other, depending on the post’s themes.

I continue to insist that this blog, as well as any other blogs of mine (unless posted otherwise), ARE 16+ AT VERY LEAST, 1.8+ RECOMMENDED. Due to the prevailing themes in my artwork, there will be discussion of tagged traumas, though no NS/FW or highly graphic details will be given here.  

For your own safety, please abide by ALL posted age warnings. I can, and already have, blocked those who interact with my accounts in ways that are inappropriate for their publicly stated/shown age.

I also reserve the right to block at will, ESPECIALLY if I suspect that an interacting user is a minor under 16.

Please respect my boundaries, and refrain from interacting/DMing/sending asks if you are under 16. Failure to avoid doing so will result in a PERMANENT BLOCK as soon as I notice.

Those who are above the age of 16, but under the age of 18, are on thin ice. I continue to reserve the right to block, including for the safety of the minor in question. Genuinely nothing personal, all about protection.

In addition, I do not give out my Discord to ANYBODY but verified clients & very, VERY close friends. Unless you are either of those, please respect my privacy. I do not administrate/moderate ANY ACTIVE SERVERS EITHER, and I have no plans at all to do so for the foreseeable future.

Do not ask me to make a server. Do not ask me to moderate any servers.

All this & more will be in my boundaries page once it goes online.

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Anyways, to those who did: Thank you for reading. I know this post will just be a speck in the sand, but it’s very important that I put all of this on the record.

More to come soon. Stay tuned.

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TL;DR: Re.ddit admins can & will suspend you over valid reports, even if subre.ddit moderators have EXPLICITLY mentioned that you were in the right.

As such, I will likely not return to using the site, even if my suspension appeal is successful. I have written many resources, especially for fellow survivors of severe NS/FL trauma, and do not want to risk their deletion. Many have expressed their gratitude for them, which is why I feel this particular sacrifice must be followed through.

In addition, I will not be returning to Twi.tter either, and will merely hold my usernames for security reasons. Said site caused significant damage to my recovery, and I- as well as those close to me- am sincerely better off not being in such a high-stress, high-toxicity environment.

Tu.mblr, on the other hand, will be my new home base. I will be revamping this blog into a dedicated art + art inspo blog, as well as making a more personal blog for trauma & recovery discussion. However, I continue to insist that my blogs are 16+ at LEAST, with the recommendation of 1.8+ due to severe trauma themes. No NS/FW or highly graphic details will be given, but there may be NS/FL warnings.

Stay tuned for more, including a boundaries page.

Thank you for reading.