Venting thread

[WeepingElf]

I just found out that a coworker I really liked working with from my previous institute in the Netherlands passed away, and quite suddenly as well. There's apparently not a lot of answers (perhaps unsurprisingly) as to what happened, though the people I've spoken to are as shocked as I am. And I was quite looking forward to seeing them again next month...

I'm sorry to hear that!

So am I.

Yes.

[malloc]

Really worried about what these tariffs and the coming recession mean for my job. It seems a forgone conclusion that my workplace will experience massive layoffs, assuming it doesn't shutter entirely. Needless to say, losing my job will amount to certain death since I simply don't have the resources to survive indefinite unemployment. If that does happen, will you please give me permission to end it all rather than slowly and painfully starving to death?

[WeepingElf]

Really worried about what these tariffs and the coming recession mean for my job. It seems a forgone conclusion that my workplace will experience massive layoffs, assuming it doesn't shutter entirely. Needless to say, losing my job will amount to certain death since I simply don't have the resources to survive indefinite unemployment. If that does happen, will you please give me permission to end it all rather than slowly and painfully starving to death?

GET PROFESSIONAL HELP!

[zompist]

That is the takeaway message, yes. But to expand on it a bit: Eddy, your constant catastrophizing is not OK and not rational. It's a symptom that something is wrong. It's not rationality that's giving you these ideas, but illness. What is OK is talking to a professional to figure out better ways of coping.

Call 988. Or call Behavioral Health Response at (314) 819-8811.

[bradrn]

If that does happen, will you please give me permission to end it all rather than slowly and painfully starving to death?

No. And I never would.

I second WeepingElf’s suggestion:

GET PROFESSIONAL HELP!

It’s not hard. As zompist said, it’s just a phone call away. If nothing else, it will at least give you someone who you can talk to openly and without judgement.

[malloc]

My workplace cannot survive these tariffs indefinitely and it certainly can't survive another Great Depression. Those are simple brute facts that no amount of therapy will change. Do you have compelling reason to believe that Trump will refund the tariffs soon? Do you have any suggestions on how to survive for years without money?

[Travis B.]

One thing is that many mental health issues severely distort one's view of the world such that one cannot see realistic positive outcomes. I say from personal experience that no matter how bad things seem now and no matter how impossible a positive outcome seems, it is by far the best if one sticks with things and continues pushing along.

In the case of the current political situation, we need every person we can against Trump and the Republicans, and that includes you. Ending it all certainly does not help in that department. In the very least you can vote against the Republicans -- sure you may think that your vote does not matter, but what if everyone opposed to them thought their vote did matter? That is how elections are won! Also, have you thought about attending demonstrations (and contrary to what you may think there have been many demos against Trump) or volunteering for the greater cause? That is much more useful than sitting around on the Internet moping about how impossible you think the present situation is. And again, you can't do that if you're dead.

[WeepingElf]

One thing is that many mental health issues severely distort one's view of the world such that one cannot see realistic positive outcomes. I say from personal experience that no matter how bad things seem now and no matter how impossible a positive outcome seems, it is by far the best if one sticks with things and continues pushing along.

In the case of the current political situation, we need every person we can against Trump and the Republicans, and that includes you. Ending it all certainly does not help in that department. In the very least you can vote against the Republicans -- sure you may think that your vote does not matter, but what if everyone opposed to them thought their vote did matter? That is how elections are won! Also, have you thought about attending demonstrations (and contrary to what you may think there have been many demos against Trump) or volunteering for the greater cause? That is much more useful than sitting around on the Internet moping about how impossible you think the present situation is. And again, you can't do that if you're dead.

AMEN!

[malloc]

You're not listening. If my factory closes, I won't have the money to survive til the next election. What the hell am I supposed to eat when spending years unemployed?

[Travis B.]

You're not listening. If my factory closes, I won't have the money to survive til the next election. What the hell am I supposed to eat when spending years unemployed?

You're catastrophizing here -- for starters, you've already presumed that the factory you work at will close, and second, you've already presumed that you won't be able to find another job of any sort. And even then, that is not reason to kill yourself -- look at all the people who, unfortunately, are homeless, yet haven't starved to death or killed themselves.

[doctor shark]

Losing a job does not mean you won't ever get another. I've had periods of unemployment. Lots of researchers I know have had them to some degree as well, for some periods, and guess what? They make it work, they find new positions, and tings roll along. And a single setback does not have to be the end of the world.

Relatively minor vent: I've been having a lot of problems with my scalp, of all things, itching. It's somewhat intermittent, but it's quite annoying... though I don't know if it's annoying enough to go to the doctor (yes, GP visits aren't very expensive here, but I have to find time and I still prefer not going to the doctor unless unavoidable... reflexes from living in the US, I guess?).

[zompist]

You're not listening. If my factory closes, I won't have the money to survive til the next election. What the hell am I supposed to eat when spending years unemployed?

You do what every other person does if they are laid off: you go on unemployment and you look for another job.

Does this suck? Yes, and I've gone through it as has every other unemployed person.

[malloc]

Except that the tariff situation will almost certainly cause a catastrophic depression with no job openings for years to come. How does one look for jobs when the unemployment rate remains permanently stuck at 20% for years?

[bradrn]

Except that the tariff situation will almost certainly cause a catastrophic depression with no job openings for years to come. How does one look for jobs when the unemployment rate remains permanently stuck at 20% for years?

No matter what, there always is a way to keep on going — as long as you don’t despair. It is not tariffs or unemployment which can make you die, but only your own mind.

[linguistcat]

We've all told malloc, repeatedly, that he is catastrophizing, that he needs to get help for his mental health, and that things won't look as bleak if he gets it. I have even personally pointed out previous times that he has assumed the worst, and nothing of the sort happened. He can literally look back to the times he's thought "My life is over, X happened and now Y WILL happen, and I will suffer and slowly DIE." and that has not happened.

And I suggest he do that and see how often the worst has NOT come to pass and that maybe there is a little hope especially if he

GETS HELP FOR ONCE

[alice]

malloc, due to circumstances beyond my control in three and a half months time I will most likely have no job and no source of income, and moreover I am much less employable than I used to be. What do you suggest I do?

[Travis B.]

My house got a new WiFi router from AT&T (AT&T switched the house from copper to fiber) and my DHCPv6 implementation in zeptoIPv6 stopped working (it no longer finds a DHCPv6 server for some reason even though the router says that the network is managed)...

[zompist]

Got my new phone from AT&T. Attached Google account OK. Now I need to link it to a Samsung account. To do that requires entering a code sent to my phone. I can't receive codes because the phone is not set up.

That is: to get this phone working, you have to have the phone already working.

[bradrn]

That is: to get this phone working, you have to have the phone already working.

Ah, don’t you love technological progress?

[zompist]

That is: to get this phone working, you have to have the phone already working.

Ah, don’t you love technological progress?

It's working now, but I needed to use my wife's phone to get past the Samsung thing. I have no idea how it's supposed to work for single people.