moncheriejav

[chilli-talks-a-lot]

How Prevent Gifted Kid Burnout From a Gifted Silly whose Fire is still Blazing with Rage

1. EVERYTHING IS STUPID.

School is stupid, parents with unrealistically high expectations of you are stupid, teachers who overwork you are stupid.

You don't need their approval. You don't need to impress authority to have worth.

You don't need to be perfect, especially not in a broken system.

Test scores aren't a measure of intelligence. You are smart, even if the material was difficult to grasp.

You're not "wasting your potential" if you decide to pursue a career you love. Create art, write music, perform, you're contributing to the beauty of the world. There's more value in that than most people see.

You're not "wasting your potential" if you're an adult who isn't busting their butt in college or a fancy job. The economy is fucked right now, and being an adult is hard. You're doing your best.

And sometimes, you can't be at your best all the time, but you're trying, and that's all that matters.

2. Don't let school ruin a passion for learning.

Just learn. Learn and love learning. Learn without school holding you down. Find your passions, and run after them. Pursue knowledge because it's fucking fun.

Research something you care about for fun, challenge yourself to learn how to complete that math problem, learn, not because you feel like you have to, but because you want to.

Never let school make you lose a love for learning.

3. They explain it more effectively than I can lol

I made a video game metaphor but, when I was finding the video that made me realize this I read another video game metaphor that explained it better, "So basically, as a gifted kid, I skipped the tutorial because it felt too easy. Then the actual game threw curveballs at me" (adorablehoe, 2nd top comment).

HealthyGamerGG's entire channel has great information

[heardatmedschool]

“Psychiatry: the course where all students leave with a diagnosis, and it’s not just Medical Student Syndrome this time.”

[thegradblues]

Mischief Managed

To those who get the title reference, we are instant friends. For those who do not, bloody hell— I’m gonna need you to be a little nerdier. Yesterday I cried in class. You read that right. Tears were a’rolling down my face in front of my peers. To be fair, it was during meditation so most of us had our eyes closed but still. I freaking cried in class. Instead of a regular lesson, the professor…

[missfortune-xyz]

i am a failure.

i made this short film to submit as my final project on my foundation year. to avoid beating around the bush - it was really rough and did not go the way i wanted in the slightest. regardless, i was able to pull this together and i hope it's something that maybe someone out there might be able to resonate with. enjoy <3

i had 8 official weeks to complete this project, with a 3-week easter break tucked between weeks 3 and 4. the project was entirely my own - i wrote the brief, i chose the concept, i was able to take this project in any direction i wanted. this was so foreign in comparison to the projects i had completed throughout the year prior to this final one; our briefs were set and our stimuli were given, not chosen.

yet somehow, this was the hardest.

looking back, i think working with a completely set agenda is almost easier in many ways (especially in the graded context of school/college/uni. at least with a set brief, one's creativity is offered the boundaries of restraint - yes, it can be too precise and limiting at times, but when done right it offers focus that the creative mind can often lack.

i originally wrote my brief about how self prophecy, failure, and superstition can link together. i started off by looking at jungian psychology, and superstition/luck across various cultures and histories and felt energised - i had a list of planned references and ideas for research/experiments and was ready to go through with what should've been my best project of the year. my final grade and subsequent university admissions depended on this after all.

i lost track around week 3 and failed to get back on track until week 7.

i nearly forfeited a whole year of hard work.

my impostor syndrome decided to kick it up a notch from just-about-bearable to extra-spicy in merely a fortnight. whether i cracked under the pressure of our looming final submission, or whether the concept just didn't click is beyond me, but just like an episode of hot ones, the temperature increased and i couldn't stand the heat.

to put it bluntly, i floundered for weeks. not just the 4 official weeks that sat between Week Three and Week Seven, but the almost two months that included the easter break. i jumped from idea to idea with no real inspiration, no focus, and no confidence.

i categorise myself as an a-list overthinker. if a thought can be thought then i've thunk it. catastrophising might as well be my profession at this point. i ended up chasing and overthinking every idea and piece of feedback i got, to the point that my own ideas took a backseat in the project.

things came together at the end of week 6. i found out that i had won a £250 grant that i could spend on my project in any way i wanted (i had sent in my application back in easter on impulse with no expectations to actually get it!). i got some feedback that finally clicked and prompted me to stick to my guns more. i took a stand, set a boundary, and went back to the beginning.

well, sort of.

i went back to some of the ideas i had looked at right at the beginning of the project, but decided to mix it with my own experiences on the project, as well as the best of what i had researched throughout the whole journey. i pulled together a script, shoot plan, and set piece in a single weekend and got to work.

i had a week to finalise the plan and shoot, and then one week to edit and get together everything i needed for submission. it was rough and took a helluva lot of late nights and overnighters, but it worked. filming wasn't without its issues either, but my energy was renewed and so was my focus. i edited visual, audio, and sound design and i was ready to go.

i didn't end up getting the grade i wanted, but that okay.

in all honesty, i don't think there was anything i really could've done to recover my grade in the way that i had wanted. upon reading the feedback from my assessment, i realised that things that went wrong were things i was never going to be able to fix. my floundering had consequences.

more than anything though, i'm glad i was able to pull it together. i'm not a fan of personal projects - i love when other people do them, but for me it doesn't tend to go well :(. to even be able to produce a coherent outcome is more than i had imagined i would accomplish. the film is rough - some of the dialogue is clunky, the audio is odd and the pace is too slow, but its okay. in a normal set you'd have people taking different roles in the production process, but i had to do pretty much all of this myself. it's a step in the learning process and this project is what it took for me to fully realise that.

if anyone read to the end of this thank you. i hope that the emotions you see in this are something that maybe you can relate to? let me know what you think :

[concerningwolves]

Social psychologist Devon Price, author of the eye-opening article (and subsequent book) Laziness Does not Exist, has recently released an essay that cut me to the quick: You Might Not Recover from Burnout. Ever. Price’s essay provides a comprehensive insight into the mechanics and personal cost of burnout at an individual level, and looks frankly at the reality that not everyone can recover from it. Although that sounds grim, it is a fact that I found surprisingly comforting. Not because I’m willing to “give in”, but because it helped me to realise something fundamental about my own experience with burnout: there is no point where recovery truly ends. Perhaps that sounds grim too, but to me there’s something freeing in realising that “recovery” isn’t a concrete location that I need to return to.

[…] burnout is a seismic shift in a person’s priorities, one that the body enacts by force  as a self-preservation tactic — and that some people are so transformed by the experience they can never piece their old life back together. […] all of this might be a good thing. In many ways, burnout is an attempt by the body to give us our freedom back — but it can only do so by taking away our ability to be exploited. — Devon Price [emphasis mine]

‘Burnout’ is described by Psychology Today as “a state of emotional, mental, and often physical exhaustion brought on by prolonged or repeated stress”. In other words, it is the mind and body’s response to reaching its limit – something which more and more people are experiencing. In 2023, the BBC reported that rates of burnout reported in the workplace are increasing. Beyond the context of the workplace and the need to earn money to survive, burnout can affect anyone, from a student to someone caring for a loved one to people volunteering within their community. There is also a specific form of burnout experienced by people with autism, referred to as “autistic burnout”. The National Autistic Society describes this as:

[…] a syndrome conceptualised as resulting from chronic life stress and a mismatch of expectations and abilities without adequate supports. It is characterised by pervasive, long-term (typically 3+ months) exhaustion, loss of function, and reduced tolerance to stimulus. — the National Autistic Society, ‘Understanding autistic burnout’

Learning about autistic burnout put quite a lot of things into perspective for me. For a long time, I believed that, prior to 2018, I had never experienced burnout or any kind of stress-related issues. But throughout most of time at school, I would have days when I felt Indefinably Unwell. The symptoms would be vague but persistent: exhaustion, headaches, a mild sore throat, aches and chills of the kind that signal the onset of a fever. Mostly though, what I felt was a crushing and inescapable knowledge that I could not cope with attending school that day. Everything was Just Too Much.

Rest of this essay reflecting on burnout and my perspective on recovery is free to read on my author blog

(@heniareth you said you wanted to be tagged)

[official-linguistics-post]

I'm also a psych minor! What was your favorite psychology class? Personally i loved behavioral neuroscience

abnormal psychology (yes that was the real course name). on the first day the professor gave us a warning not to succumb to med student syndrome, aka diagnosing yourself with everything, and then it turned out that i should maybe have been more generous about diagnosing myself with abnormal psychologies.

i'm honestly sad that i didn't like my psycholinguistics class more, but the professor was... actually also my syntax prof.

[crippleprophet]

hey, i don't want to put you out or anything, i was just wondering if like off the top of your head if you knew any disability studies articles/books/whatever that center (or even just feature) tic/involuntary movement disorders?

so the answer to this was pretty much no but i spent a bit of time poking around and turned up this 2023 undergraduate honors thesis (link) by a student with tourette’s which seems like a solid starting point for going down the citation rabbit hole!

that piece is “The Embodied Performance of Tics and Tourette Syndrome in the Academic Environment” by Benjamin Allen; i’m only ~1/4th through rn but they argue for a continuum of ticcing + criticize the diagnostic system so i’m comfortable reccing it on that front! the (non-medical) tic-related works cited there are:

Buckser, Andrew. “Before Your Very Eyes: Illness, Agency, and the Management of Tourette Syndrome.” Medical Anthropology Quarterly, vol. 22, no. 2, 2008, pp. 167-192.

Buckser, Andrew. “The Empty Gesture: Tourette Syndrome and the Semantic Dimension of Illness.” Ethnology, vol. 45, no. 4, 2006, pp. 255- 24. https://www.jstor.org/stable/20456601.

Curtis-Wendlandt, Lisa. “Time and the Tic Disorder Triad.” Philosophy, Psychiatry, & Psychology, vol 27, no. 2, 2020, pp. 183-199.

Curtis-Wendlandt, Lisa, and Jack Reynolds. “Why Tourette syndrome research needs philosophical phenomenology.” Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences, vol. 20, no. 4, 2021, pp. 573-600.

Miller, James. “The Voice in Tourette Syndrome.” New Literary History, vol. 32 no. 3, 2001, pp. 519-536. Project MUSE, doi:10.1353/nlh.2001.0039.

Trubody, Ben. “Ticced off: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of The Experience of Tourette’s Syndrome.” Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis, vol. 25, no. 2, 2014.

i also searched a handful of disability studies journals for a variety of keywords (movement disorder, tic, tourette’s, involuntary movement, chorea, huntington’s) but didn’t turn up much unfortunately, so all but the first of this next list include someone with tics and/or involuntary movements rather than being about moving involuntarily.

haven’t read these so i can’t speak to the politics / quality (although i’ll make a post if i’m able to read more) but here’s what seemed potentially relevant! also if anything is paywalled please don’t give T&F your money lol, try SciHub or if you can’t find something i can ask around for somebody with institutional access!

Cultural Differences in Reactions to Tics and Tic Severity (2021)

Using virtual reality to implement disability studies’ advocacy principles: uncovering the perspectives of people with disability (2023)

I had every right to be there: discriminatory acts towards young people with disabilities on public transport (2020)

From comedy targets to comedy-makers: disability and comedy in live performance (2015)

From the Case Files: Reconstructing a history of involuntary sterilisation (2010)

i also want to mention “Movements of the Uncontrollable Body Part Two” by Bronwyn Valentine (2019), a creative writing piece about her experiences of embodiment + ableism with spina bifida that i first read pretty soon after it was published & went looking for after developing my movement disorder a year ago because it was so impactful. @fndportal also has some incredibly vital work.

also if you haven’t already read Rosemarie Garland-Thomson’s Staring: Why We Look, it’s not specifically about involuntary movements but definitely a core text for theorizing any visibilized disability.

i hope some of that is helpful!! if anybody checks any of these out i’d love to hear your thoughts/critiques! all the best to you & i hope these offer some resonance with + understanding of your experiences 💓💓

[octuscle]

Hey there! I work as a therapist and a few of us were starting to think of the clinical applications of chronivac. We were wondering if you wanted to work together to develop some presets that our clients could use to de-stress and take a break from their stressful lives. I know we have one stressed out university student who could benefit from something like this.

At Chronivac, we are always interested in collaborating with research institutions. After all, Chronivac is not used just to have fun. It is already being used for the treatment of various physical illnesses and also for resocialization projects. The use in the psychotherapeutic field would be new, but sounds interesting according to the research and development department. If the student they are talking about is available as a guinea pig, perhaps send us a requirements profile for a transformation. And we'll see what we can do….

Research Diary Timothy Walker

Day One: My psychotherapist tells me that my burn-out syndrome has progressed to the point that continuing my business studies is out of the question at this point. In fact, I am having a hard time concentrating. Writing this report is causing me great difficulty; my attention span is only a few minutes. Therefore, an experimental therapy has been decided with the psychology faculty, which is connected with a semester off for me. Under certain circumstances, the semester can be counted as an internship. Everything is fine with me. I am just tired. The work on the research diary was exhausting for me. I need to lie down.

Second day: I slept very well. No wild nightmares as usual. I woke up briefly once or twice at most, but went right back to sleep. Michael, who is in charge of the project as pysiotherapist, thinks that this would be a good starting point to work on my physical fitness. We both went running for an hour. I'm exhausted, I haven't moved that much since I started studying. But I feel good. Made myself a real breakfast for the first time in months according to my new nutrition plan. I'm supposed to spend the rest of the day walking on the beach. Let's see if that clears my head.

Third day: Before Michael came for the training session, I was already in the gym for an hour. I'm really enjoying the physical activity. The beach walk yesterday was great. And Michael was thrilled to see the progress I'm making in terms of fitness. Had the first session with my creativity coach today. Seems a little silly to me. But imagining what I would be doing if I weren't studying business was fun. But I have to admit, my head isn't really getting creative yet. At least writing the diary is already much easier for me.

Day four: I need new challenges. The beach run with Mike is fun, but it's not a sport. That's warming up. We discussed that I would go running alone for an hour tomorrow and that we would meet in the gym of the therapy center. I'm supposed to come without a T-shirt. Mike wants me to learn to love my body. To be honest, I already do. I've already jerked off twice today. And think about sex a lot more than usual. Mike also comes in the process. My creative trainer is also quite cute, but he's too skinny for me. I like men who have a lot of muscle on them.

Fifth day: Fuck, the workout with Mike is awesome! I love the gym from the first minute. Yes, the beach feels my home. But the gym is the place that prepares me for that home. Working out shirtless makes the workout even more intense. i can't get enough of Mike's and my sweat beading on our pecs. But I'm so horny. All the time. During the creative training with Kev it just bubbled out of me today. I would so love to be a lifeguard. Maybe not all the time. But on vacation. And on the weekends. The idea made me even hornier. Poor Kev. He's not my type, but I had to nail him during practice. No idea when I last had sex. but this first time in a long time was incredibly intense. Thank God Kev felt the same way….

Day six: Today is uh free day at da therapy center. Mike n kev are already down at da beach, I wanted to pump up da muscles beforehand. I'm looking forward to da sea n da sand. Both make my head so free. Although I wouldn't feel like my head wuz overly full right now anyway. Pumping, fucking, jogging n swimming. That's really all I'm thinking about right now. Kevin says that I certainly wouldn't have to worry about da practical entrance exams for lifeguards. But I shouldn't underestimate da theory. Shit, studying sucks. But I guess it haz to be.

Day seven: I like it when I have da early shift. Da routine of opening da station is relaxing, da beach is still quiet, da few guests are usually relaxed n in uh gud mood. Wuz one of da best ideas of my life to take uh semester off n work as uh lifeguard. My pal mikey told me to lay off this crappy journal. Somehow I thought it wuz important until now. I can't remember why, either. Anyway. Da main thing is that da surf is gud. Den you can have some fun with da surfers afta work. Hehehehe…

[freewatermelon0]

Hi, I just got a message from someone who is trying to save his family and to evacuate Gaza, and I'll just show you what he sent, please help him if you can.

A campaign to collect donations for the alostaz family in Gaza

introduction

I am Momen Al-ostaz, a German of Arab origins who works in the field of solar energy. I lived in war for a while, and I know all too well the pain and suffering it causes.

It is with great sadness and humility that I am launching this campaign on GoFundMe to raise funds to help my family evacuate the Gaza Strip.

the family

My family consists of 10 people, and they are Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip.

Father: Jawad Al-ostaz , 55 years old, works as a laborer to provide the family’s basic needs. His travel allowance amounts to $5,000.

Mother: Nima Al-ostaz , 51 years old, housewife. Her salary is $5,000

Children:

Ahmed (29 years old): He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics. $5,000 is coordinated by him. He is married to Iman Atallah (24 years old), and they have two children (Amir, 1.5 years old, and Malak, 50 days old). He coordinates them with $5,000. Iman Amir, $2,500, and Malak, $2,500.

Reham (26 years old): She holds a bachelor’s degree in law and human rights. She lost her job due to the current situation and is owed $5,000.

Karam (22 years old): A professional designer, he lost his job during the war. $5,000 for his coordination

Bahaa (20 years old): He used to work as a street vendor, and lost his job due to the current situation. $5,000 coordinated by him

Girls:

Minnat Allah (16 years old): A high school student, who lost her joy in studying due to the destruction of her school. $5,000 Format by him

current situation

Father: He suffers from heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and needs urgent medical care and continuous follow-up.

Mother: She suffers from high blood pressure and irritable bowel syndrome.

children:

Iman (Ahmed's wife) has difficulty finding milk or diapers for her two children due to a lack of supplies.

All family members suffer from severe water and food shortages, which exacerbate their illnesses.

Loss of property: The family lost their home, car, all of their possessions, and sources of income.

Psychological suffering: The family suffers from severe psychological trauma due to the loss of their loved ones, and their loss of shelter and safety.

The goal of the campaign

This donation aims to raise 100,000 US dollars, equivalent to 70,000 euros, to cover the costs of:

Asylum application fees and travel costs for 10 people to Egypt.

Covering the costs of living for two families in Cairo for a year.

Father's medical expenses.

Why donate?

The alostaz family is living in tragic humanitarian conditions and needs our urgent assistance.

Your donations will help save this family's life and give them a new lease on life.

Donations will provide the family with safe shelter, medical care and food.

Donations will help rehabilitate the family psychologically and socially.

Every contribution is appreciated, no matter how small.

You can donate through:

Link to the campaign page on GoFundMe

Share the campaign

Please share this campaign with your friends, family and colleagues on social media. Every participation contributes to delivering our message and spreading awareness about the suffering of the alostaz family.

Thank you for your generosity and generosity.

Together, we can help the alostaz family emerge from this ordeal and build a better future.

[ultrameganicolaokay]

The Exorcism at 1600 Penn #2 by Hannah Rose May, Vanesa Del Rey and Jordie Bellaire. Variant cover (1) by Tula Lotay. Main cover (2) by Del Rey. Out in December.

"After Mara was involved in what students called a satanic and violent incident at school, the First Family worries that she's succumbing to the stress of being the daughter of the first female president. But unbeknownst to them, a dark force looms from the doomscrolling shadows… Meanwhile, the Havana Syndrome situation is causing tension in the Oval Office as President Kelly's trusted circle advises military action that could tip the global scale to World War III, despite her better instincts. Can President Kelly save both her family and the world from the political spotlight, or is something more sinister pulling all the strings? From the pen of rising star comics writer Hannah Rose May (Rogue's Gallery) and acclaimed artist Vanesa Del Rey (Scarlet Witch) comes this year's most psychologically chilling tale!"

[alpaca-clouds]

So, What's Happening In Psychology?

So, uhm. Science has a problem right now. And there is probably no area that shows this better than the psychology departments.

If you are in any way adjacent to academia, you might have already heard about the problem that sceince is in right now. Namely it is that everyone who works in science is pushed towards publishing. If you want to keep praciticing science, you gotta publish papers. But because you only get to publish those papers in journals, and those journals are run under very capitalistic principles. This means for one: Scientists often do not get shit and at times have to pay to get their papers published. But it also means that the journals prefer to publish papers that a) get a clear result, and b) get a result that will make headlines, because then they can sell the paper a lot more. This also means, that nobody is interested in replicate studies and replicate papers, meaning there is little motivation to replicate someone else's study for scientists (who need to publish, after all).

Now, this is a general problem in science. But the difference in psychology is, that other sciences have at least some clearer ways in regards to replicating studies. I am not saying it is easier - but it is clearer to control for other factors in biology, chemistry or physics than it is in psychology.

To keep standards up, it has long been standard practice to mathematically control studies, but... That is easier said than done, given that the scientist doing the study will often even through subconscious bias manipulate the study.

And then there is the general study issue that a lot of stuff has and that shows really strongly in psychology and sociology studies. I don't know whether there is a name for it, but I call it the "student bias". Basically: Often when you do a study at university where you need ask people questions and stuff, most of the people the study will be done on will be students. This will kinda presellect the kind of people you will do the study on to certain demographics.

Again, this is not only a psychology problem, but it shows so strongly in psychology, where the additional problem is that... well, at times there is moments where the scientific method was not used or is not used still.

I talked in the first entry this week about IQ tests. IQ tests are bogus. They always were bogus. But they were what was always used and nobody ever questioned that.

Same goes with other stuff. I talked a few weeks ago about Stockholm Syndrome being bullshit. It is kinda the same issue. Someone claimed it was true, nobody challenged the guy immediately, and then people just got used to it.

I am not saying that all psychologists are unscientific. Of course not. Just that some are and that right now it is at times hard - especially for people not working in the field - to actually differenciate the good from the bad. Especially when reading those papers. (I mean, I am no psychologist, but at the very least I know how to read and understand papers.)

Honestly, I personally do not even know what to do about that kinda stuff. It is probably good that right now some attention gets paid to this fact at the very least.

But really, can we stop pushing scientists to always publish stupid papers? And can we make those papers free, too? Because this stuff is bullshit right now.

[saucy-mesothelioma]

October 25th: Dario Argento | Suspiria

Suspiria was released in 1977 and was directed by Dario Argento. Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper) has been accepted to the prestigious Tanz Dance Academy in Germany. She learns that a previous student who had seemingly fled from the academy the previous night has been found dead, and soon strange things begin to occur. Suzy and her new friend Sara (Stefania Casini) take it upon themselves to delve into the school's past and figure out what is going on, but the two quickly come to realize that there's something far more sinister going on beneath the surface.

Dario Argento is known as the master of the giallo film, which is a slasher-style, psychological murder mystery popular in Italian cinema. His films are popular for his absolutely fantastic use of color and the shock his kills bring the audience, and his movies are considered to have influenced other horror greats such as John Carpenter and David Cronenberg. His set designs remain some of the best that the horror genre has to offer, and his films (particularly Suspiria in my opinion) are visually stunning. Although Suspiria is probably the best-known film of his by Western audiences, he has had several other successful horror films such as Deep Red, Inferno, The Stendhal Syndrome, and Phenomena.

It can be watched for free on Xumo Play.

Content Warnings for the Film (may contain spoilers): jumpscares, violence, a fuck ton of maggots, bat death (but it's covered with a towel and it's obviously fake), dog attack (dog is unharmed), slight ableism against a blind man

This movie is so fucking beautiful and has some of my favorite visuals in any movie ever. Just LOOK at how stunning some of these shots are

Not to mention the theme kicks some serious ass; that theme is one of my favorite horror movie themes of all time.

[darkplaceblankface]

⚡Masterlist⚡

"dawg I got a final tomorrow and I'm reading erotic techno brainwash torture. I'm never seeing the pearly gates." - one of my readers

Hey, y'all, I’m Mocha, and this is my blog! All in all, it's a whump blog! I like to make pretty men suffer, so there will be a lot of that. But mostly by the hands of women, interpret that how you will.

I'm 25, she/her, you know the vibes.

TikTok for ILF-verse: @mocha2383

AO3: SilentMocha (formerly MinaMocha)

What I write...do be extreme. It's a rollercoaster ride out here. If something really bothers, lmk and I'll tag. My ao3 works are heavily tagged.

My inbox is very open, including requests/prompts. If you inspire me and identify yourself, I will shout you out in my author's notes on Ao3. Be warned. ;) Ha. My ask box is as open as James'... let's not go there.

I also answer any and all questions about the ILFverse (my beta reader never hears the end of it). I'm even open to suggestions and requests for those WIPs.

Am I going to act like I haven't been on Tumblr for 10 years and never worked a serious blog? Yeah. :) <3

I've been whumping it for a long time but I love hypnosis/mind control/brainwashing (par for the course, ifykyk) or anything psychological in general. That goes for procedures (sorry, Ben), conditioning (sorry, Paddy), and just all forms of mind manipulation.

——————————————

⚡Series⚡

If Power Remains

A series about a totalitarian matriarchy that started after women were suddenly blessed or perhaps cursed, with superhuman abilities. The roles are very, very reversed and cruelty toward men becomes the norm.

Main things that all ILF-verse stories have: Slave whump, fem/dom, hypnosis/brainwashing/conditioning, captivity, public humiliation, dehumanization, torture, stockholm syndrome, abuse, multiple whumpers and whumpees, carewhumpers, yandere ;)

⚡Main Story⚡

IF POWER REMAINS

If Lightning Falls

A story about what seems like dust settling on a growing empire. The Six Sisters rule the world, all at their feet. But love, rebellion, and betrayal test their bonds, tempers, and trauma.

Explanation on why ILE went away & plans about it

If Serpents Lie - coming soon

⚡Side Stories & Companions⚡

THE REGIME STORIES

If Rooms Were Sweet: Liam and Anika

The story of Liam, a ridge resident, and his desperate effort to escape by seducing a girl he used to know. That girl being a top brass Mindworker...

THE REBELLION STORIES

If Spiders Live : Ben's Story

POV of Benedict Andante, the former medical student forced into the role of the Southern Rebels' demo expert. He tries to maintain his faith, despite the will of a witch who tests it. While his sins slowly crawl up his neck.

If Facts Were Simple: Patrick's Story

The POV of the Northern Rebels' bomber, Dr. Patrick Maxwell, and his spiral into insanity and self-hatred before his capture by Colonel Wiseman. His mind is a twisted thing, but he's not afraid of anything, especially not the dark, because he's growing strong in a world that can't love him.

Snippets with Inspiration for IFWS

[666kalebthewitch666]

New account— Not new to Tumblr

Although, I haven’t REALLY used Tumblr too much.

Hello, my name is Kaleb, it’s a pleasure to meet you all. I am looking to make some mutuals, and build friendships among the community!

I am a 21 year-old bisexual transman. No, that probably doesn’t matter to most, but that alone will filter out people who can’t respect me enough as a person.

I am Autistic, and I have ADHD, BPD, and Anxiety (general & social).

I have Ehlers-Danos Syndrome, and I’m in the tiring process of getting it properly diagnosed by a a healthcare professional, but unfortunately it is difficult to get people to listen to you, even though I had a physical therapist who could see my hypertension dilemma, as well having knock-knees, but it’s not “severe enough” for surgical intervention.

First and foremost, I am an occultist. Or, however I’m supposed to be labeled, I’m not one to really label all of the details of my practice. Death witch, necromancer, demonolater. I follow the left hand path and practice many variations of divination, which of course includes tarot, oracle, osteomancy or bone throwing, playing cards or cartomancy, and so on.

I have practiced “witchcraft” for about 6 years, and the same with reading tarot cards. For the first year or so, one of my best friends had mentored me—well, tried to at least. I was always off paving my own path.

I started working under Hades initially, soon followed by Persephone. I didn’t get into demonolatry and the left hand path until about 2 years ago, after my grandfather had passed away.

I am a devotee to Santa Muerte as well.

Deities I am actively devoted to and working with include:

Hades

Hekate

Asmodeus

Stolas

Glasya Labolas

Saturn

Qayin

Lilith

Those I have worked with, but aren’t fully involved in my practice currently include:

Azazel

Clauneck

Belial

King Paimon

Bael

Beelzebub

I am a full-time online college student. At the moment, I am working towards my associates in human services and a certificate for drug and alcohol counseling.

I love Psychology, and it is a special interest of mine. I enjoy learning about psychological disorders and the process of diagnosis.

I love horror movies and true crime documentaries.

I regularly talk to inmates or incarcerated individuals in prison.

I enjoy reading books, again, finally. Lately I’ve been reading many thrillers and [dark] romance, so primarily fiction. I love booktok, they always have good recommendations.

I am an artist. I know, shamed for being apart of the furry community. Growing up, I was always fascinated by the different OCs, and how people personalized their characteristics and personalities. It helped me connect with others during a time I didn’t have many people in my life, or friends.

I enjoy studying astrology, especially health, past-life, karmic, and shadows.

I am open to answering any questions to those who may be newer to practicing witchcraft, or those who might just be trying to learn more in a specific area or topic.

I am open to any questions in general really, guess I should clarify that.

#trans #transman #transgender #bi #bisexual #lgbt #lgbtq #lgbtqia #queer #autism #autistic #autistic adult #ADHD #bpd #borderline personality disorder #anxiety #social anxiety #EDS #Ehlers Danos #Ehlers Danos Syndrome #chronic pain #disability #disabled #hypermobility

#occult #occultist #occultism #spiritual #spirituality #demon #demons #demonolater #demonolatry #goetic #goetic demon #goetic demons #goetia #goetia demon #goetia demons #witch #witches #witchcraft #divination #tarot #oracle #tarotcards #oraclecards #LHP #left hand path #death witch #necromancy #necromancer #Qayin #Saturn #Hades #Hekate #Asmodeus #Stolas #Clauneck #Lilith #Azazel #Glasya Labolas #witchblr #Santa Muerte #Santisma #Santisma Muerte #Santa Muerte devotee #devoted to death

#college #college student #college students

#psychology

#horror #horror movies #horror fandom #true crime #true crime documentary #true crime documentaries

#book #books #book lover #booktok #book tok #dark romance #thriller #thriller books

#furry #furry fandom #furry community #furry art #furry artist

#astrology #astrologer

#AMA #Ask Me Anything

[covid-safer-hotties]

False divisions and dubious equivalencies Children’s rights during the COVID-19 pandemic - Published June 18, 2024

Introduction In January 2022, nearly two years after the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), millions of students, educators, and parents around the world, including in the United States (US) protested that no student should have to risk their health for education (Pinsker 2022) However, many Western governments—led by Sweden, the United Kingdom (UK), and the US—have chosen to ignore calls for public health and safety. As Sweden adopted the least protective approach to community transmission, contrarian physicians in the US and UK advanced the anomalous Swedish example for in-person schooling without mitigations, particularly as soon as pediatric COVID-19 vaccines were in sight. Despite proving false for previously-vaccinated age groups, the most controversial and oft-mistaken contrarians—inexpert in social or behavioral sciences—claimed that ending school masking requirements would incentivize parents to vaccinate younger children, whose vaccine uptake never reached adequate levels despite the implementation of this advice (MSNBC 2022). Public admissions of such mistakes have never led to correcting the policies based on them. Instead, the lack of health and safety in schools resulting from zero-mitigation policies continues to cause great physical and psychosocial harms to children and families.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic—the worst global health crisis in over a century—at least 10.5 million children in the world have lost a parent or caregiver to COVID-19, tens of thousands of children have died, and millions have suffered disability (Bellandi 2022; UNICEF 2022). The pathway of SARS 2 infection is through the respiratory system, but COVID-19 (or COVID) is a multisystemic, vascular, and neurotropic disease with immunological effects that often renders survivors vulnerable to other infections and morbidities (Smadja et al. 2021; Temgoua et al. 2020; Zhou et al. 2020). Although the vast majority of those infected live past the initial, acute phase of infection, survivors of COVID-19 are at substantial and cumulative risk for Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC), also known as Long COVID, regardless of age, vaccination, or health status (Iacurci 2022).

Life expectancy has fallen in four out of five OECD nations during the pandemic, and dramatically in the US, reversing decades-long gains (British Medical Journal 2022). Long COVID is a chronic manifestation of COVID-19 after the acute phase of infection with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, or SARS 2), with prolonged effects and substantial global prevalence (Chen et al. 2022). Each COVID infection carries between a one-in-five and a one-in-eight chance of progressing to Long COVID within about a month or more of infection, with recent studies reporting as high as nearly one-in-two prevalence (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2022d; Van Beusekom 2022). Long COVID commonly causes chronic fatigue, neurological damage, psychological disorders, memory impairment, confusion, and numerous other serious and lasting sequelae in healthy people across age groups, such as blood clots, heart attacks, and a three-fold increased risk of death within a year of a non-severe infection (Al-Aly, Bowe, and Xie 2022; Salari et al. 2022; Uusküla et al. 2022; Xu, Xie, and Al-Aly 2022). Long COVID experts admonish against current policies of mass infection, asserting the need to create awareness of this “urgent problem with a mounting human toll” (Ballering et al. 2022; Kikkenborg Berg et al. 2022; Lopez-Leon et al. 2022).

Princeton historian Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor describes the US toll of death and disability as “surreal,” which official estimates undercount (Taylor 2022). More than one million Americans died in fewer than two-and-a-half years, exceeding four thousand deaths per day several times (Taylor 2022). More than 7 percent of the US population (twenty-three million people) suffer from disabling Long COVID, causing more than half a million Americans to become unemployed (Iacurci 2022; British Medical Journal 2022). While comprising only 4 percent of the global population, the US has the highest COVID-19 death toll in the world, has fared worse than peer countries, and has accounted for approximately one-quarter of global COVID infections and one-sixth of deaths (Bennett and Cuevas 2022; World Health Organization 2022b).

COVID-19 is the leading infectious cause of death in US children, and among the top five causes of pediatric death overall, even after vaccination (White House 2022a). US COVID mortality has exceeded four decades of AIDS mortality (Thrasher 2022, 9–10). However, in the third year of the pandemic, 4,100 COVID deaths per week—more than a weekly September 11 mass casualty event—has been treated as unremarkable by US media and politicians (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2022a; British Medical Journal 2022). Public health scientists, physicians, economists, and other experts representing the consensus view of the pandemic warn that “Leaders and policymakers must not accept or normalise our dangerous current status quo,” including through minimization of hazards, which lead to widespread dissemination of false beliefs (British Medical Journal 2022). Yet, leading the way, after Sweden and the UK, the US government has ended effective COVID public health mitigations, despite ongoing and escalating need for public safety measures. Other nations, such as New Zealand and Singapore, loosened otherwise stringent national safety protocols only after achieving significantly lower per-capita death rates and making considerable public health investments to secure their populations during upcoming surges (British Medical Journal 2022).

In the US and UK, poverty, gender, and race are the strongest determinants of disease burden, encompassing public-facing workers in health, service, and retail sectors (Sustainable Development Solutions 2022; Taylor 2022). Those with fewest resources carry the greatest burdens. COVID fatality rates, and therefore COVID health concerns, are consistently far higher among Black, Latinx, and other US racial minority groups (Pew Research 2021b). Counties experiencing the highest death rates are those with average poverty rates of 45 percent (Taylor 2022).

Nations that consistently implement public health measures and/or have better infrastructure for health, safety, and education see more equitable outcomes across various socio-economic metrics. The zero COVID policies of New Zealand, Australia, China, and Pacific Island nations experienced relatively rare mortality and low morbidity overall in proportion to their populations than laissez-faire nations, translating to roughly eight to ten times lower case fatality rates (Our World in Data 2020–2022; World Health Organization 2022a). Nations in which mitigations are normalized, such as the Republic of Korea and Japan, have experienced remarkably lower mortality and morbidity (Our World in Data 2020–2022). Cuba took the approach of closing in-person schools indefinitely and used the widely accessible medium of state television to broadcast national curricula during school days so that schoolchildren could continue engaging educational material from home or settings outside of school (Goodman 2021a). Cuban leadership explained that they based this decision on epidemiological and experiential understanding that viruses transmit most efficiently among children in school settings, and as a result, focused on developing a COVID vaccine for children first.

Depending on the state and timing, US pandemic response has fallen along a continuum ranging from aiming to eradicate or contain the virus (most protective) to laissez-faire (least protective), the latter of which became the dominant national approach (Bai et al. 2022; Gretchen 2020; Long et al. 2022; Normile 2021; Yang et al. 2022). Laissez-faire refers to minimal regulations in the public interest by the state, and prioritization of “free market” activity and individual “choice” (Scott and Marshall 2009, 405). Laissez-faire nations deprioritized children’s vaccination, focusing instead on protecting the elderly, who, in the US, enjoy far greater wealth, political power, and governmental spending and benefits than children (Corsaro 2015, 308–314).

Research on children’s rights during the pandemic inadequately addresses the ways children’s rights to life, health, and safety have been falsely rendered oppositional to education and child development under the guise of championing children, uncritically accepting dominant narratives underwriting laissez-faire policies (e.g., Adami and Dineen 2021). This chapter reviews scientific studies, news articles, surveys, and statistical data involving experts and policymakers, and finds that the dominant narrative of school reopenings manufactured a “debate” that created false divisions and dubious equivalencies between different sets of children’s rights. Despite scientific and international-legal consensus on children’s rights to life, health, and safety as fundamental, the protection of these rights during the pandemic was rendered adversarial to child development, psychosocial well-being, and children’s economic, educational, and social welfare rights. Dominant discourse also ignored socio-economic disparities or leveraged them in ways to promote in-person schooling without mitigations.

How and why this occurred is analyzed from an intersectional perspective, meaning that inequities and injustices resulting from harmful policies are understood as having systemic and historical roots along the lines of race, class, gender, and generational disparities, which are reproduced in and through law, politics, and policy (Crenshaw 1998). An intersectional approach shows that violations of children’s rights to life, health, and safety are occurring through the exploitation and reinforcement of longstanding structural inequities, while creating new ones. Laissez-faire policy regarding childhood education has been driven by politics and power, against scientific consensus and public opinion. Coordinated inauthentic actions, disinformation campaigns, and political violence are considered within the scope of politics and power disfiguring public policy in violation of children’s rights.

The adoption of laissez-faire pandemic policies has occurred through at least three primary means, including (1) minimization or denialism and mythologizing regarding the harms of COVID-19 to children and their network effects; (2) a moral panic of pediatric mental health and academic attrition blamed on mitigation measures; and (3) political prioritization of narrow, short-sighted economic aims that insist upon labor and schooling in unsafe spaces despite the availability of effective mitigations. A policy of no policy during a global public health emergency has created a crisis of children’s rights in which life, health, safety, and education are routinely undermined, with poorer socio-economic outcomes. This requires corrective reframing of pandemic policy to combat disinformation, normalize mitigation of communicable disease, and prioritize children’s rights, needs, and perspectives. This chapter aims to expose violations of human rights through laissez-faire pandemic policy within the larger goals of generating critical awareness of their modus operandi and prevention of further systemic harms.

[graveyard-party666]

Blood & Wine

Perfect image

I've been working on this chapter for quite some time and it still came out mediocre.

I might change a few things later.

Also, now I'm introducing you to a new character. :3

Working with the person you deeply admire is probably everyone's dream. Or at least almost everyone's. Red got the opportunity to work with the person she admired, thanks to Kate Laswell. That woman had her own ways that people probably shouldn't question for their own sake.

Psychologist didn't know how to react to the fact that now she'll be working with her criminology professor, who kindly agreed on helping his ex-student to do the profile of a dangerous terrorist and his associates.

That one professor in his forties who she always had a soft spot for. The one who liked his coffee black, who's smile made wrinkles around his eyes when he smiled and who's French accent was really nice to listen to. Yeah... Red definitely had a thing for accents... Especially for a certain Mancunian accent if she's being completely honest.

Abel Benar was amazing at his job. There was no one better than him, probably. Yet... Red was scared to work with him. She knew she created an image of a perfect man and working with him might shatter that perfect picture.

The fear of working with someone you admire stems from a mix of psychological factors, including imposter syndrome, fear of disappointment, and heightened performance pressure. When you admire someone, you often place them on a pedestal, viewing them as superior or untouchable. This perception can lead to self-doubt and anxiety when faced with the prospect of collaborating or working alongside them.

Imposter syndrome, characterized by feelings of inadequacy despite evident success, can intensify in such situations. We may fear that our abilities will pale in comparison to the admired individual's, leading to a fear of being exposed as fraudulent or incompetent.

Moreover, the fear of disappointing the admired person adds to the pressure. You may worry that you won't meet their expectations or live up to the image you believe they have of you, leading to anxiety and reluctance to engage in collaborative efforts.

Additionally, there's the fear of losing the admiration or respect of the person you admire if you fail to perform at your best. This fear of judgment can hinder the ability to work effectively and confidently, as you may constantly second-guess yourselves and strive for perfection.

The fear of working with someone you admire is a complex interplay of psychological factors, including imposter syndrome, fear of disappointment, and performance pressure. Overcoming this fear requires recognizing our own worth and capabilities, understanding that admiration does not equate to superiority, and embracing the opportunity to learn and grow from the experience.

But did she have a choice? Not really. She just had to accept the fate and use her mantra... 'I LOVE MY JOB!'

13:50

Red knew that if she sits in her office any longer she might be late for the meeting with the team and professor. She could only let out deep sighs once in a while, hoping it might calm her nerves at least a bit.

Loud knock brought her back from her thoughts, making her jump a bit.

"Come in", her voice sounded shaky. She felt even more anxious now that someone is seeking her out.

Soap's bright smile came in before he did, that was the feeling Red had, seeing Scottish soldier in her doorway.

"Bonnie, you might be late if we don't hurry." His voice was lively, joyful even. "Frenchie is already here. Let's go meet your professor. I want to ask him some embarrassing stories about you. Or maybe even ask him your real name."

Red can't help but chuckle, hearing MacTavish's words and seeing the teasing smirk on his handsome face.

"I don't really won't to go. I know him. He knows me. I don't think my presence there is necessary." She feels like a teenage girl right now, being that unreasonable.

"Come on, Red. Are you scared of yer own professor or something? Me and Gaz can give him a talk if that's true. We can ask Ghost too if ye want."

Soap leaned on the doorframe, tilting his head slightly, looking kindly at the girl.

She only chuckled. "No, it's not like that. It just feels awkward. He is that famous professor who's been known for helping to catch many criminals. And I'm his ex-student."

"Awkward? Oh, lassy. You're just as cool as that professor of yours. If not cooler."

MacTavish who slowly came closer to her while speaking, is now reached down to take her hand, pulling her up from the chair.

"Let's go meet up with yer Mylène Farmer"

"She's from Quebec."

"Whatever. Come on"

Red just laughs as she followed Scotsman, feeling much better and more confident.

"Yeah, let's go, braveheart."

14:06

She still felt a bit anxious as they walked through the labyrinthine corridors of the base to the briefing room. Yet, she also felt as if it's time to put aside her doubts and act like a professional that she is. It's time to listen to Soap's supportive words and show everyone that she's not just a pretty face.

Finally both of them reached to the destination. Surprisingly Red didn't even feel that anxious anymore. Weirdly eager. Eager to finish the meeting as soon as possible and relax for a moment.

Soap opened the door in front of the psychologist letting her in first. Red took a step in the room.

Professor was already there, speaking to the Task Force 141 and Laswell in a calm tone. Room's attention was now on late colleagues.

Psychologist greeted Benar with a slight nod, receiving a smile in return.

"Sorry for being late," 'i didn't want to come' - she thinks, "Please, continue."

Woman sat on the chair next to Gaz, looking down at her file as if trying to hide behind it, catching curious looks of the team.

She couldn't help but look up at Ghost who's eyes were looking at her through the eyeholes of the skull mask. His gaze would probably make the biggest, scariest soldiers fold. He nodded at her as if telling her that it's okay. 'Oh, Soap... you are such gossip'. She only once before today mentioned her thoughts about meeting the professor again and Sergeant already told Lieutenant. Snitch.

Red only raised an eyebrow looking at Soap who just innocently shrugged his shoulders as if telling her he had no idea what she thinks about. Cheeky bastard.

"I asked professor Benar to help Red with the psychological profile on Hassan. General Shepherd agreed that it will be a good help to our psychologist. " Laswell said, introducing new addition.

'Oh, Kate, just say it as it is: Shepherd thinks I'm not doing my job good enough.'

"For this mission Red will be assisted by professor Abel Benar"

'Oh, sweet, sweet, Kate. Wants me to feel in charge. Not me assisting him, but him assisting me. Good psychological trick though, i give you that.' Red shook her head.

The meeting soon ended. She heard nothing new. 'Hassan bad. Terrorism bad. Abel Benar good.'

But at least she didn't feel anxious anymore. Tired? Yes. Anxious. Not really.

But to be honest, tiredness and anxiousness is her constant state, something even pills can't cure. Maybe it's just her personality traits.

She stood up, picking her files. Men started leaving the room and Gaz, who was sitting beside her, just gave her a slight pat on the back, smiling gently before following his teammates. Red followed everyone out of the room, but right before she could reach the door Laswell, who was taking to both Price and Benar, called her. Well... guess Red just needed to face whatever Kate brings her way. And her professor too. And his kind eyes too. And his fluffy hair... too.

"Red, I'll ask you to show Professor his office for now. He will be your neighbor for now. The door next to you is office too, so please show where it is." Price spoke in a hushed tone. Red stands close enough to smell the cigar that he probably had smoked before the meeting. Weirdly enough the smell was great. Inviting, masculine. Yes, Soap was right, Price did have a smoking problem.

Kate only gave a nod, looking down at her watch, noticing the time. "I'll be leaving."

Woman leaves quickly, followed by Captain Price, who only winked at confused psychologist, leaving Red and Professor Benar standing in the briefing room.

"So... You go by Red now?" The man asked after a short pause, looking at the readhead.

Trying to explain why she uses the nickname is annoying. Now she understands why her colleagues don't talk much about the origin of their aliases. Completely understandable.

"For safety purposes. I'd ask you to not mention my name, professor. At all. My anonymity is what might keep me and my family safe."

Red's tone was completely serious, stoic. She probably took that from Ghost. His behavior was definitely leaving it's influence on her.

"I understand," he nodded slightly, smiling, "Red it is. And please, just Abel. We are colleagues after all."

His french accent sounded nice. Friendly.

"Abel it is."

14:30

Red spent some time showing professor his new working place. She had a feeling as if universe was just making fun of her. Readhead just wanted to go sit in her office, silently starting into the wall.

Which she was doing now as professor left to get a cup of coffee.

There is nothing she haven't seen or heard before. So how this man, her ex-professor is any different from men she's working with? They are now equals.

She sat in her office chair, swinging her high-heeled leg slightly. The sound of the message coming in on her phone brings her back from her thoughts. Soap asking if she will be down for lunch because apparently everyone is curious about that professor. And apparently Ghost is more grumpy than usual. Funny. Red thought it all was too funny.

Tag list: @cloudofbutterflies92 @chloekistune @justasmolbard