unziptheearth

[unziptheearth]

Nuggets - Directed by Andreas Kykade

A short video about addiction.

[unziptheearth]

YouTube: The Future Monopoly

As music videos, video game reports, and online video logs become more and more prominent in today's world, YouTube has found new opportunities to make even more money. They have added several new features to their site including up to 60 fps videos, larger video screen, and a new subscription service that bypasses the ads. As great as all of this may sound, Youtube is only trying to make more money than they have. Without this subscription service, YouTube is already making over 10K every minute, more than 5 billion a year. I can understand that YouTube simply wants to compete with other music services that have subscriptions, such as Rhapsody, Soundcloud, Spotify, and Pandora. However, these other services offer the same deal to every artist that wishes to put music on their site.

The War On Independents

To bring higher per-song royalties, the music industry has been urging YouTube to launch a subscription service such as the ones Spotify, Rhapsody and Rdio offer, in which they charge users a monthly fee to play an unlimited amount of music. The company is now doing just that, and 95% of its label partners have joined the new service, including all three major record companies (Universal, Sony, and Warner). However there are some smaller labels and notable artists that have been refusing to sign, such as the well known Adele, Arctic Monkeys, and Radiohead. In order not to prevent competition between the current free service and the new subscription-based one, YouTube told these labels and artists that they will take down their music videos and no longer provide a space for advertiser-supported uploads. Basically, if fans upload videos using these labels' recordings, the labels will be able to ask YouTube only to remove them, not monetize them. Therefore, it's not only effecting the artists themselves but it hurts the fans who want to make lyric videos and covers of their favorite songs. There is no need to pay for something that has been free for years.

"YouTube is no longer an upstart in a crowded market; it's a dominant player whose decisions have enormous consequences for its users." -LA Times

Obtaining Other Video Services

Recently, YouTube has made a new purchase for one billion dollars.  The popular video game live streaming website, Twitch, has given in under the pressure and sold out to YouTube. Now, YouTube has this as a live streaming site that has already made over $35 million since 2011. I can only assume that with their new subscription service, they will soon be charging people to stream their video games live. And then they'll be charging people to watch those live video streams. You may not think that watching video games is all that popular and it cannot make too much money, but more than 1 million people broadcast their playing every month, and nearly 45 million people watch these broadcasts each month. With YouTube's new purchase, I can see them taking over the live streaming services completely and knocking groups like UStream and Justin.tv out of the running.

On top of jumping on the band wagon of live streams, YouTube is also currently developing their own sort of Netflix or Hulu. They call this new project "YouTube Leanback". This new project is focusing on the idea of watching YouTube the same way you watch TV. No mouse movements. No faulty keystrokes. YouTube simply makes a video feed based off videos they think one would enjoy, and they play a constant stream of YouTube videos surrounding that theme. They will also be working with Facebook to make the video feed focus on friends' videos that they've been watching. Their idea is that one can "lean back" and enjoy their viewing rather than searching a new video every 4 or 5 minutes. However, this will likely also be a part of their subscription service as people will be renting videos and feeds to watch on their feed. There is no need for yet another money-making scam, when we could just as easily click a mouse and enjoy the videos the same way.

Fans Funding YouTube

YouTube has also come up with another way to make money. They offer fans the opportunity to "tip" their favorite YouTube video makers, in addition to the money that most the famous YouTubers already make. The company is saying that the audience and fund their favorite channel creators $1-$500 dollars at any time for any reason. In addition to allowing viewers to donate to these channels, YouTube is also being so kind to take 5% of all these funds and put it into their own pocket in addition to flat fee they charge the channel creator of 21 cents. I know it doesn't seem like much, but in due time, this Fan Funding could become huge (much like the already popular KickStarter or IndieGoGo) and could make YouTube a lot of money. With YouTube's refusal to work with indie labels, more and more people will be inclined to support these indie artists and possibly choose to donate towards their channel, without realizing they are still supporting the greediness of YouTube.

YouTube has also come up with another way to make money. They offer fans the opportunity to "tip" their favorite YouTube video makers, in addition to the money that most the famous YouTubers already make. The company is saying that the audience and fund their favorite channel creators $1-$500 dollars at any time for any reason. In addition to allowing viewers to donate to these channels, YouTube is also being so kind to take 5% of all these funds and put it into their own pocket in addition to flat fee they charge the channel creator of 21 cents. I know it doesn't seem like much, but in due time, this Fan Funding could become huge (much like the already popular KickStarter or IndieGoGo) and could make YouTube a lot of money. With YouTube's refusal to work with indie labels, more and more people will be inclined to support these indie artists and possibly choose to donate towards their channel, without realizing they are still supporting the greediness of YouTube.

Now, I'm not necessarily saying that YouTube is the root of all evil. I just want to make people aware of the dangers if we keep giving everything to YouTube. They have so much already, and they have so much potential to make so much more money. All in all, I can say nothing more than keep a keen eye on YouTube, stay informed and be ready to run when they take over the Internet.

Sources: http://mashable.com/2014/05/19/youtube-twitch-gaming/ http://time.com/2934093/youtube-crowdfunding/ http://m.entrepreneur.com/article/235235 http://www.cnet.com/news/youtube-leaked-contract-hits-off-notes-for-indie-labels/#ftag=CADf328eec http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/23/youtube-indie-artists-subscription-deal_n_5522515.html?ir=Technology&utm_hp_ref=technology http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-youtube-music-service-20140622-story.html http://www.cnet.com/news/youtube-tries-for-the-tv-again-with-leanback/

--Charlie Bolling

[unziptheearth]

Barry Ratner, November 12, 1960- August 5, 2014

Alex Lee Ratner of Monacan Hill will be performing an acoustic set at Wing Command, tomorrow, August 7th, in memorial of his father Barry Ratner. 

Barry Ratner was in his mid-50s when he passed away yesterday, August 5th, after a two month battle with cancer. He was known as a supportive father and an extremely talented table tennis player.

"I always wanted my music to be of service to someone's rough time," says Alex, "Now I realize that I need music more than ever. The realization hasn't even sunk in yet, this all feels surreal, like a horrible dream."

Music will begin around 7, and all are welcome. 

Our condolences to Barry's family and loved ones.  

[unziptheearth]

Our next show is this Saturday! We have lots of wonderful musicians, industry professionals and guests from DC, Maryland, Virginia, Wisconsin, Spain and more who will be attending. The last show was a fantastic success, and I'm excited to see you all there.

If you performed at the last show, you have free admission to this one. Come on out and have a great time. 

Doors open at 7, get pumped.

--Hannah Brady

[unziptheearth]

A Tale Of Polyamory and Compersion

Polyamory: it's a word and lifestyle that's been gaining mainstream exposure in recent years. From TV shows like Showtime's Polyamory: Married and Dating, to blogs like Mark Manson's "life enthusiast" blog, which is melting the minds of it's over 750,000 subscribers.

As an idea, polyamory, has different definitions and connotations for the experiences people have in this lifestyle. I relate it as this concept: that we as humans have a desire for more than one love outside our sexual partner.

It isn't such a far out notion that we as people are inherently non-monogamous. "An excuse for cheating", as my friend Adam so eloquently put it. It is a conscious realization that maybe the answer to finding contentment isn't just the one person you've been dating for the last two years, but maybe it can be found in making that connection with more people, whether that connection be sexual, emotional or other.

Growing up in America, the are a lot of things that either get passed over, swept under the table, or completely ignored. Things like the idea of having guns in a house, sexual health and sexuality are frequently glossed over or misunderstood.

Introduction

Two years ago, I met my wonderful girl friend Annie. We had been dating for five months and had made this amazing connection in that time. She had asked me how I felt about opening up our relationship. She further clarified that she was interested in a polyamorous relationship. I had never learned about polyamorous relationships for the usual sources of education, and I had no idea what she was talking about.

She explained that it was about keeping the strong bond that her and I had while having the freedom to explore having a relationship with others. While I never felt comfortable with a monogamous relationship, this felt more unknown.

I had every reason to trust her, so I did.

Our Poly Path

"Easy" is a road that gets used a lot in everyday life. We say things like, "my homework last night was easy" or "that test was easy". Up until then, the first 5 months of my relationship with Anne was easy.

The road for us to go from there to poly? Not so much. It was HARD. Sometimes I wondered what the end goal of this was and how worth it it was. I never had to do anything like this before and it was harder not knowing where to go for help.

But eventually, I learned that the is no goal in the end other than happiness. Happiness with yourself, happiness with your significant other, happiness with the way things are and are going. It took more of me being unsure and uncertain than I had ever experienced.

When I finally became comfortable with her having sex and another full on relationship it was because I had, for so long, been unsure and uncomfortable that it just clicked and just felt okay. I learned that feeling was called compersion: being happy for someone else's happiness.

Even when I was comfortable with our relationship, this was a huge point of struggle for me. I couldn't help but feel that her relationship with Carson, her other boyfriend, should just be over there. Over there by itself and completely separate from hers and mine. Which made things really difficult for her to be enthusiastic about things that happen in her relationship with him.

Now, Carson lived out of state and about ten hours away. And when someone loves ten hours away you get to barely see them. So needless to say Annie frequently would discuss wanting to go up and see him. After hearing about him we both decided to see him and have lunch, the three of us, when he came to visit. Doing this helps us out immensely, it has helped to put comfort to my uneasiness. Our poly life today:

Today we are happy. Happy with ourselves. Happy with each other and happy for each other. I had a relationship with someone that didn't work out, but Annie has been there righr beside me, through everything. She has had a few other potential partners but they never panned out.

Two things have come out of our unique relationship. I've gotten a much better understanding of how to go about emotional change and stress. I've also come to understand sexuality better. In fact, so much better that I've come to know my own attraction and emotional capacity. Through that I'd changed how I define my own sexuality, and began to identify as bisexual. 

Cool people are cool people and that's what I'm attracted to, whether they're male or female or still figuring out what they consider themselves.

A Few Tips

The tips that I might offer are probably pretty cliche but that does not mean they're any less important. Communication is a huge part of any relationship. If you don't communicate, you're likely to draw false assumptions or conclusions about things, and when people feel emotionally vulnerable, this is very dangerous. Be loving and patient. People take time to change and come around to new ideas, so take time to understand and communicate.

Remember, poly people are just like you. Except a little cooler.

--Evan Laing

[unziptheearth]

EXCITING THINGS ARE HAPPENING

EDIT: ANY SIGNAL BOOST IS APPRECIATED AND WILL BE REWARDED WITH ALL OF OUR ETERNAL AFFECTION. THAT'S QUITE A DEAL.

TOMORROW IS THE FIRST BENEFIT SHOW. THE SECOND BENEFIT SHOW IS NEXT SATURDAY. 

CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN HAS BEGUN: http://www.gofundme.com/cd6yls

WE'RE GETTING SO CLOSE TO ACTUALLY BEING ABLE TO HELP PEOPLE. CAPS LOCK NECESSARY.

EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING SO QUICKLY

For those who don't know what we're all about, here are the quick-notes: Right now, Unzip The Earth is trying to make stressful process slightly easier by providing low-income people in long-term eating disorder treatment the money to afford new clothing throughout recovery.

The not so quick notes:

When I was in the physical portion of my recovery, clothing a size up was one of my biggest triggers. The fact that I didn't have enough money to buy bigger clothes coincided with the fact that my clothes were tight enough to constantly remind me that I was gaining weight. 

I want to help people who are in the same situation that I was in, and with your support, I can. I want to start implementing programs that help people face these triggers while still in a safe environment, starting with those in treatment facilities. Buying clothes a size up is extremely stressful, and not being able to buy those clothes is even worse.

I want people to have the funds they need to recover. 

If you have the money, please help me help others. Any donation is greatly appreciated. 

[unziptheearth]

Best of The Internet: Anchorman

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Mental Liberation Through Meditation?

Thought cessation transpires through inhalation. There is pure mind, body, soul elation as peace flows freely.  Brain restoration is realized after completion.  Meditate and allow yourself to fully feel the full range of emotions, your being, and your essence.  Dive deep into the self, to come closer to the oneness that connects us all.  

I consider myself to be a part-time meditation practitioner.  But, due to recent events, I am becoming more consistent in taking care of my mind, body, and spirit.  I first delved into the metaphysical world of holistic practices about 6 years ago.  

The journey has taken me all over the spectrum as far as spiritual practices are concerned.  I’ve experienced a lot in a short time, but one of my mainstays is meditation.  Meditation traditionally occurs as one is seated quietly in a space where they can remain undisturbed at least twenty minutes.  The practitioner then assumes his or her chosen comfortable position and closes their eyes.  Rhythmic breathing in through the nose, and out thru the mouth begins, and the practitioner allows himself to be taken to a different mental space as the focus is taken away from thoughts floating through the mind, but to the breath.  The steady breath cycle allows one to let those thoughts come to the surface.  The practitioner becomes aware of them, but is guided not to give too much attention to them…allow them to float in the void, if you will.

There are many different types of meditation that are used for different purposes.  There is transcendental meditation which allows one to come to a “zero” point and free the mind of restrictions, which is what I spoke of above.  

There is also a chakra meditation.  Chakras are energy vortices throughout the body.  If anyone has ever had acupuncture, the practitioner works specifically with the different energetic points (also known as chakras) throughout the body.  You will also notice that these energy points exist all over the body.

For the purposes of the chakra meditation, we focus specifically on seven main chakras that go from the bottom of the torso to the top of the head.  The purpose of the chakra meditation is to clear emotional blockages within each of these chakras.  The last type of meditation that I’ll mention is the guided meditation, where the practitioner is literally guided through the meditation by an instructor’s voice.  The purpose of this meditation could be to further release blockages and bring things to the surface; it could also be to allow the practitioner to be in a creative visual space of their life.  The possibilities within meditation are endless.  

Medical studies have shown that meditation may help people manage or lesson the symptoms of anxiety disorders, asthma, cancer, depression, heart disease, high blood pressure, pain, and sleep problems.

Some other benefits of a regular meditation practice are the following:

-gaining a new life perspectives

-increasing self-awareness

-personal healing of mind, body, and spirit

-a more youthful appearance

-heightening one’s intuition

-releasing “negative” emotions

-increasing one’s creativity

  If you are suffering from a mental illness, I encourage you to explore your holistic options, and definitely keep meditation in mind, as it can become a passageway to your personal healing and freedom.

For further research visit these links:

http://chopracentermeditation.com

www.how-to-meditate.org

www.tm.org

http://imeditatedc.org

http://learningmeditation.com

--Opal Rose To learn more about Opal, please follow her on Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram: @opalrose4ursoul

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Best Of The Internet: Aubrey Plaza

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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Is Shitty

When I first tell somebody that I have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, I can see their eyes unintentionally light up as they question whether or not to ask what happened to me. They can’t help it, humans are fixated on the morbid side of humanity. The bad and scary is interesting from 100 feet away. Luckily, I’ve moved past the point of trying to hide my traumatic experiences, but many have not. I used to squirm at that question and try to laugh it off, trying to pretend that it wasn’t a big deal and that it was just a way my brain reacted to some ordinary events.

It was difficult for me to speak about the problems I faced because I didn’t want to remember what happened to me. I was afraid that if I talked about it, it would in some way make everything more real. My PTSD is the product of childhood abuse and neglect, an attempted abduction, witnessing multiple stabbings, and being raped 4 times. I’m not going to get into the grimy details, but hopefully that’s enough to tide over your curiosity.

Before I was diagnosed with PTSD I was diagnosed with Severe Depression and Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Seasonal Affective Disorder and EDNOS (Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified). I didn’t understand that not all flashbacks were what you see on TV: a vietnam veteran throwing over tables and chairs, convinced that he was back in ‘nam getting shot at. I thought that my flashbacks were just bad memories, but when I started talking to a therapist about how real those memories could get, she told me that it sounded like I had PTSD.

Fast forward a couple months and the flashbacks were so bad that I would have to leave school in the middle of the day to go walk in the woods, occasionally smoke a joint or a cigarette, and do some grounding exercises so that I wouldn’t let anybody know  what was really going on. Teachers and administrators hated me. I didn’t do any work in or out of class, I was just creating escape plans in my mind.

How would I get out of this  room if shit hit the fan? How was I going to get out of this school? I was convince that someone was following me. I didn’t know why, I thought it was someone hired by one of my perpetrators, trying to either finish the job or capture me to ensure my eternal silence.

In my mind, being in school was just an amateur mistake, any dumbass could find me there. I had a schedule that I followed every day, and it wouldn’t be difficult to find a window to take me  out cleanly. I didn’t trust anyone.

I stopped going to classes regularly. I avoided buses and any form of travel that could make my death look like a tragic accident. Instead, I found myself either writing in the woods or sitting in on a class I found interesting, usually computer science or history. 

Weed helped me handle flashbacks and the idea that the world was working against me. It made everything  seem more like an interesting story than a fucked up life. I went to therapy high, it helped make opening up much easier than if I was sober. If I would have used it in moderation, I think it would have been much more effective, but I didn’t have the resources to have a doctor tell me exactly how much to use, so I used as much as I could.

I still showed severe PTSD symptoms including mood instability, substance abuse, self-mutilation, cyclical eating disorder behaviors, and panic attacks. It wasn’t until months after I was hospitalized that I learned that all of these behaviors fall under PTSD. I wasn’t Bipolar or Borderline, I was just dealing with the symptoms of PTSD.

I’d been passing out for about a year when I started having seizures. The doctors in the hospital thought it was a reaction to a new medication, but I had a feeling the two were related. They took me off of the medication, and I kept having seizures. After I finally got through my insurance to try and get a visit to a neurologist covered, I walked in expecting to be told that I had a tumor. What other explanation was there for a sixteen year old kid having rapid weight loss, blackouts, and seizures? That isn’t normal. When I started talking to the neurologist, she seems interested in my PTSD. I thought that it was just the morbid humanity factor, but it turns out that seizures and blackouts are par for the course when it comes to PTSD. I had talked to about six different doctors about my seizures before speaking to the neurologist, and nobody knew that severe physical symptoms could be connected to PTSD.

I was happy that it wasn’t a tumor, but I was pissed that nobody had even mentioned this as a possibility in the time before I went to a neurologist. Why the hell wasn’t it common knowledge that PTSD can cause seizures? Why wasn’t it common knowledge that any mental illness can come with severe physical problems? We don’t like to admit that mental illness affects more than just your mental state, because we don’t like to talk about mental illness. I speak out about my problems in the hope that it will help someone else in my situation, and I encourage you to do the same. With that in mind, here’s some more general information about PTSD and trauma.

  Summary

PTSD stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, also known as “that one fucking terrible piece of shit disorder”. A person can develop PTSD after living through a form of trauma. It isn’t the traumatic event that causes the disorder, it’s whether the person experienced that event as a trauma. It’s complicated. In order to understand the disorder, you have to first know what being traumatized actually is.

  What defines trauma?

Trauma is defined as a “deeply distressing or disturbing influence.” In regards to PTSD, it’s often referred to as an experience in which your life was threatened or you witnessed a life-threatening event.

Unfortunately, that’s a pretty terrible way to describe being traumatized. Being traumatized is usually caused by trauma, but can even be caused by something that seems as insignificant as a breakup. The difference between experiencing an event and a traumatic event is the way that your mind reacts to the event.

One person could get into a car crash and continue driving to work every day, living their life as they did before the crash. Another person could get into the exact same car crash and develop a fear of driving, making them incapable of going to work and living their life as they did before the crash. The first person just experienced the crash as an event, the second experienced it as a traumatic event.

  What is a flashback?

Some people feel, see, taste, smell, and/or hear the event(s) that have given them PTSD during a flashback. The “realness” of the flashback depends on the person experiencing the flashback. Some people completely dissociate, and others are capable of telling reality from their flashbacks. Most of the time people can tell what is reality and what is a flashback, but it varies from person to person.

  Misconceptions:

1. Flashbacks are visible

2. PTSD only happens to soldiers or rape victims

3. PTSD symptoms happen immediately after the traumatic event

4. A person having a flashback cannot tell the difference between reality and flashback

5. Only people who can’t handle hard situations develop PTSD

  Mental Symptoms of PTSD

1. Re-experiencing the event through flashbacks, bad dreams, or frightening thoughts (sometimes mistaken for severe anxiety)

2. Distancing yourself from the event, both literally and figuratively.

Literally: Staying away from people, places or things that remind you of the event.

Figuratively: Difficulty remembering time during flashbacks and the traumatic event, dissociation, feeling guilty, sad, or emotionally numb and losing interest in activities. These symptoms are often mistaken for depression.

3. “Overreacting” to things that don’t seem to be a problem to others.

PTSD comes with hypertension, feeling “jumpy”, on edge, and sometimes outbursts of anger.

(National Institute For Mental Health)

  Physical Symptoms of PTSD

Racing heart, raised blood-pressure, excessive sweating, memory loss, blackouts, loss of consciousness, psychoactive non-epileptic seizures, bedwetting, weight loss/gain, panic attacks, hot flashes, chills, tiredness, chronic pain, stomach pain, diarrhea, burning in the chest, cramps, lower back pain

  Common Co-Existing Disorders And Behaviors

Dissociative Identity Disorder, Panic Disorder, Acute Stress Disorder, Depression, Anxiety, Phobias, Anorexia/Bulimia/EDNOS,Self-Mutilation

Treatment Options

EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) therapy, immersion therapy, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy, medication (blood pressure medications, anxiety and depression medications), family therapy. 

—Hannah Brady

[unziptheearth]

Last of Original Ramones Dies at 62

Tommy Ramone, original drummer and producer of genre-defining band "The Ramones" died last night, July 11th, 2014, in New York City. His accomplishments included recording on the band's first three albums, "Ramones", "Leave Home", and "Rocket to Russia", as well as some of the band's more popular singles, "Blitzkrieg Bop," "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend", and "Rockaway Beach." In addition, he continued to handle management for The Ramones for their fourth album, "Road to Ruin," and production for their eight album, "Too Tough To Die."

The 62-year-old musician died after years of fighting bile duct cancer, Causation of bile duct cancer is limited, it's rarely found to be genetic, and occasionally has a connection with infestation of a parasite. His passing meant that there are no surviving founders of The Ramones.

His band's Facebook page confirmed the death of Tommy Ramone (a.k.a. Thomas Erdelyi), leaving behind a quote of what the music meant to him. 

"It wasn't just the music in The Ramones: it was an idea. It was bringing back a whole feel that was missing in rock music - it was a whole push outwards to say something new and different. Originally it was just an artistic type of thing; finally I felt it was something that was good enough for everybody." - Tommy Ramone, 1978

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Best of The Internet: Rape Culture

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Riusuke Fukahori's 3-D Painted Goldfish Embedded In Resin

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Living With Borderline Personality Disorder

Ever since I was thirteen, I knew there was something different about me. My world seemed black and white. People were either good or evil, like in superhero comics.  I got upset easier and for longer periods of time than others did; everything seemed to bother me and make me sad. My moods would change significantly almost constantly, going from happy and hyper to damn near suicidal. I felt like a walking nerve ending. I figured it was because of the tough issues I was struggling desperately to cope with at such a young age, such as juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, my dad’s alcoholism, and my parents’ divorce. I didn’t yet realize that I was also dealing with a disorder. Therapy seemed to be the answer.  I tried my best to attend regular sessions, but when my therapist would ask me to try something differently in order to solve a problem, I would feel attacked.

I hardly wanted to discuss my secret binge drinking with her, feeling she would judge me or tell my mother. Bottles of alcohol would be stored in my closet. Looking back now, I can’t even remember where I managed to acquire alcohol, but I know I always had at least a few bottles in my closet. I started smoking weed by fourteen. I cried myself to sleep every single night. Looking at me in school, you’d never know that I was a total mess. My arthritis was noticeable; my disorder was not. I trained myself to put on a mask at school and in front of family and friends. I figured I was just “overly sensitive” or a “drama queen” as I had so often been told as a kid.

Therapy sessions increased as I went into high school, and I got diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder, Attention Deficit Disorder, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. To get diagnosed with these disorders is common for people with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) because they tie into the BPD symptoms (see below). I was put on all kinds of anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications that didn’t seem to work for me, which is also quite common for those with BPD. High school is difficult enough as is: figuring out who you are, where you belong, what you would like to do with your life. It becomes insanely difficult when you have a gigantic mental issue that affects all three of those factors. I didn’t know I had Borderline Personality Disorder until last summer, after I graduated high school. I wish I had been diagnosed earlier, because it would have saved me years of frustration, confusion, desperation, emptiness, and loneliness. That’s why I feel it is so important for me to spread the word about this disorder - it is often mistaken for other disorders or illnesses. It isn’t well-known and there is an unpleasant stigma attached to it, largely due to its title. It is also called Emotional Dysregulation Disorder, which makes more sense, and hopefully the title will be officially changed soon. Here is the official list of BPD symptoms:

Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment

A pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation

Identity disturbance, such as a significant and persistent unstable self-image or sense of self

Impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating)

Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior

Emotional instability due to significant reactivity of mood (e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)

Chronic feelings of emptiness

Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights)

Transient, stress-related paranoid thoughts or severe dissociative symptoms

(Psychcentral)

Being diagnosed was like a breakthrough and a breakdown. When you’re diagnosed with a disorder, you can’t help but wonder which parts of your personality are actually you, and which parts are your disorder. I struggle with nearly every symptom on a daily basis.

 It’s easy to explain how each symptom listed applies to me and my life, but it feels a bit violating to me to explain all of that to an audience. What I can tell you is, this disorder can be quite alienating and, at times, downright terrifying. There definitely is help for those with BPD. Medical professionals developed a special, intensive therapy called Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for individuals affected. Therapists who specialize in DBT teach coping skills and potentially help with emotional control. It’s important to get help immediately for any mental issue, because without help, things can easily spiral out of control (trust me). If you find yourself identifying with five or more of those symptoms, please schedule an appointment with a psychiatrist or psychologist. To be helped, you must first help yourself.

--Kelsie Finnigan

[unziptheearth]

I am thrilled to announce Unzip The Earth’s very first set of benefit shows! The shows will take place at The Electric Maid with a group of extremely talented musicians. If you’d like advance tickets, email us at unziptheearth@gmail.com. Check out our Facebook events at the links below! 

August 2nd: https://www.facebook.com/events/328106430673071/?ref=70

August 9th: https://www.facebook.com/events/1492892870928167/?ref=70

[unziptheearth]

Best Of The Internet: Fourth Of July Edition