What properties would you have to see in someone to consider them "crazy"?

[Nine Toes]

What can I say?  I've been under a lot of stress lately; I haven't had any close friends to confide in for months... and I feel like I'm starting to lose it...  I feel like the walls are closing in, and everyone's out to stick a knife in my back... I haven't had a panic attack since high school, now I'm up to once a week... I always worry about what's happening with important things in my life, and I get agitated really easy; and the thing is I don't need anyone to agitate me, all I have to do is think of something that pisses me off, and off I go, like a rocket... I can never stop thinking.

I haven't had a good night at work in about 2 1/2 months... when I'm at work, I'm always thinking things like, "my parents hate me, my girlfriend is cheating on me, I'm never going to finish high school, I'm going to be stuck at this same crappy job until the day I die... or I'm going to lose my job and I'll never be able to find a one for months...".

I've had problems with depression for as long as I can remember because of a chemical imbalance, I'm probably bi-polar, I've got problems controlling my temper, I've got ADHD, hypertension, and as of late, I've got some new problems that I would rather not mention, but I would like to know what you think:  What makes a person crazy?  What would a doctor look for in order to label you as crazy?

Is it just me, or does it seem like everyone on here is having troubles lately?

[Evil]

Ive got everything you just said... Except for bi-polar, a girlfriend and a job... But I know how you feel... You'll be ok.

[Robert Eric]

If a man was sitting in an apartment covered in his own feces, wearing his underware on his head, smearing peanut butter all over his body, whistling the tune to Barney and watching "How to molest a ten year-old boy", I'd think they were:

1.) Intoxicated
2.) An artist
3.) Mentally Handicapped
4.) Crazy

[Pessi]

You're not crazy, Bodyart. I think those are the 'normal' symptoms of depression or a burn-out. The best advice I can give is - don't worry about it and try to think positively. However, having the same thing, only in smaller degree, I know it's not easy. When the senses get weaker, one starts to live more and more without them. Like Stephen LaBerge (scientist who concentrated on lucid, "conscious" dreams) put it, being awake is dreaming with external input. And when one doesn't realize what actually IS happening in the world, one easily makes wrong conclusions (is paranoid). I think this is due to the fact that depression deteriorates one's ability to focus. And more specifically, concentrating on what you do physically. Have you ever noticed doing something in your thoughts, kind of automatically, just noticing you just did it?

I don't know if you've ever tried medicine treatment for your condition, but there really doesn't seem to be a good cure for depression, at least yet. if you have, you probably know that the school medicine fails in the fact that it concentrates on the single symptoms and often fails to treat what is causing those symptoms. However, making the symptoms less distracting makes you think clearer, so nutritional products (or whatever they're called) like vitamins and antioxidants are helpful. Stress often takes lots of resources from the body and it's good to be well nurtured to prevent any more 'damage' and even repair any made. But as I said, they can't really cure the disease - you have to do it yourself. Unless the imbalance really IS caused by pure biological factors. I'm not a doctor or anything but it usually is about mental issues, even if it didn't seem like it. Like for me. I got really stressed out in army and it caused a burn-out. I'm slowly getting better but I can't make the process faster because I still haven't been able to identify what really made me so stressed out.

Anyway, one thing that to me sounds like a way to help it is meditation (taking the time to relax and think) and other eastern forms of natural healing. According to eastern traditional healing philosophy, diseases occur when a person doesn't have enough energy or there's a block in the energy flow which causes an imbalance, resulting in physical symptoms. I don't know, it's a weird concept but it makes sense and by all the stuff I've read about it, it seems to work really well on stress and depression. I mean, even if you didn't believe the energy thing, it does make sense that when you're relaxed, blood pressure drops and the amount of cortisol in blood decreases, for example. I'm thinking of buying a book on Qi Gong... I've tried reflexology already and it works really well, though it isn't claimed to be all that effective on stress. Reiki also seems interesting.

Anyway, as I always use far too many words to express myself, here it is in short: RELAX, EAT WELL AND TRY NOT TO WORRY!

PS. I hope I didn't sound scary or anything. I mean with that eastern medicine thing and all. And it seems I didn't really answer your original question, but by your incentive on your post (not topic), I thought I'd try to discuss the matter in constructive manner.

[m0ds]

If anyone mentions my name...

On that note, my dad has tried to get me arrested before, has suggested I see a psychiatrist, AND said that sometime soon I'll be put in a mental hospital.

Which would have been funny, had he been joking.


m0ds

[BOYD1981]

i have to go see a psychiatrist, but i think branding people as crazy, loopy or wacko as unfair...
i'm agoraphobic and paranoid of other people as the result of a bad time at school then getting epilepsy just as i was getting my life together, and i can be very aggressive as a result of medication, and i'd like to hurt the people that have ever pissed me off, but that doesn't make me crazy, or feel the need to make long drawn out threads about it.
everyone has problems and everyone has to deal with them in their own way, that's why two people will never give you same piece of advice, like if you said "some guy keeps pushing me around" somebody might say "just ignore him or report him for bullying or something", my advice would be "kick the crap out of bastard and see how he likes it and stop looking for sympathy"

[Pessi]

You're right, Boyd. People need to deal with their problems their own way and yes, different people will give different advice... But I don't see how that would make talking about problems futile. I mean, it's no use to talk in any case if you're just looking for the perfect answer. No one has it. People only have different views and experiences and sharing them makes them wiser.

Furthermore, when you say people should deal with their problems in their own way, doesn't it mean you're not entitled to tell someone that discussing is the wrong approach. Isn't it the usual way of dealing with problems?

Finally, I don't want to pick a fight or anything. I just don't wish to encourage anyone to keep their problems to theirselves for it's the worst thing to do, in my opinion. Of course discussing is best done in real life (take Mittens for a far-fetched example), but it doesn't close this option out. Often people go like "don't ask personal advice on the internet". But I think that is merely underestimating the other person's ability to separate the wrong from the right. Ie. Those with good means and those with the opposite.

By the way, I understand I might have gone a bit too far on my advice for Bodyart. I mean, all he asked was everyone's concept of "crazy" and I go all "do this and do that".

[rodekill]

I don't think people are either crazy or not, some are just more crazy than the rest of us.

[FruitTree]

heh thats nicely put  

I think every being has the ability to mentally cure itself.
I know it's a bad example but look at me; I failed school got dumped by the one girl that ever dared to love me, am mentally unstable (I'm not dangerous or anything just afraid I might go schyzo one of these days) have been sent to a shrink (wich is horrible, in my case I only told her what she wanted to hear, lied my ass off and it made her feel happy and me poor) so why am I even here?
what am I doing breathing and walking?
turn the question around and you've got the awnser:
I AM BREATHING AND WALKING and thats way more important to me then all that other shit, I mean look around there's got to be something that makes you feel kind of happy, that makes you forget yourself? kids? animals? mother nature? a movie? a good book? friends?
I know that in the back of your head these things won't work either but they help me through my day they halp me breathe they help me walk they help me love other things aswell.

I can't stop thinking either,
it's a pain in the ass and I've got no solution for it.
just remember I'll also think of you from now on don't feel guilty, ambrace it.

and give some good advice to some one...
it makes you feel good  

dunno if it helped but my head hurts so I'm going to bed now.
see you tomorrow!

[Paranoia binnosey]

i have to go see a psychiatrist, but i think branding people as crazy, loopy or wacko as unfair...
i'm agoraphobic and paranoid

snap......
i'm s'pose to be taking a break because of the above, and all the crap that goes with it.. i dunno about boyd but it can become a very lonely planet if you let it.
try not to cut yourself off from friends, comunicate with your girlfriend, confide with her, shut her out and you will lose her (like i'm losing my wife)
find ways to improve your days, and not at negatives all the time.
you aint crazy...what robert eric sed sums up "crazy"
well we are all crazy to some extent, total sane would be feckin boring!

[FruitTree]

quote: "like i'm losing my wife"

I'm sorry if I might sound rude but I just don't understand this,
I myself hate pride, it's pretty much destroying everything, why not tell your wife this very instand how much you love her, what would happen if she leaves you and all the things you both know?
I just can't grasp it...

again I'm sorry if I'm off by miles and it's something completely different

[m0ds]

Boy meets internet.

Boy realises his real hobbies exist online, and can only take place online.

Internet screws with boy, in a way no-one can pin point what exactly.

Boy goes through some form of strong emotions.

Boy can't leave internet.

Internet screws with boy again.

Boy still can't leave internet.

Repeat.

m0ds



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