writers of the world: please stop using epithets in your writing, trust me “the blonde army doctor”, “the curly haired detective”, “the blue-eyed man” etc. do not sound as good in writing as they may sound in your head
instead, use the characters’ names, they’re there for a reason and it’ll make your writing much more crisp, tight, to the point, and still entertaining
If you have a partner or are close to someone who struggles with depression, you may not always know how to show them you love them. One day they may seem fine, and the next they are sad, distant and may push you away. It is important that you know that as a person who is close to them and trusted by them, you can help your friend or partner have shorter, less severe bouts of depression. Mental illness is as real as physical illness (it is physical actually, read more about that here) and your partner needs you as much as they would need to be cared for if they had the flu.
Your relationship may seem one-sided during these times, but by helping your partner through a very difficult and painful affliction, you are strengthening your relationship and their mental health in the long term.
When a person begins spiraling into depression, they may feel like they are slowing down while the world around them speeds up. The mail may end up in stacks, dishes can pile up in the sink, laundry may go undone as the depressed person begins to feel more and more overwhelmed by their daily routine and unable to keep up. By giving your partner some extra help sorting mail, washing dishes or using paper plates and keeping chaos in check in general, you’ll be giving them (and yourself) the gift of a calm environment. (I’m a fan of the minimalist movement because of this, you can read more about that here.)
Your partner may do one of two things when they are in a depressed state. They may eat very little, or they may overeat. In either case, they may find that driving through a fast food restaurant or ordering a pizza online is just easier than fixing a meal. Eating like this, or neglecting to eat will only degrade your partner’s health, causing them to go deeper into their depression. Help your loved one keep their body healthy, and their mind will follow. This is a great article that talks about the “Brain Diet” which can help the symptoms of depression, and this article talks about how our modern diet could contribute to the recent rise in depression. Here is a recipe for a trail mix that is quick to make and has mood-boosting properties.
The benefits of getting outside for a depressed person are huge. And it is possibly the last thing on earth your partner will want to do. Take them to be somewhere in nature. Pack a picnic and lie in the sun, take a leisurely hike or plant a garden. Being barefoot in the dirt, or “earthing” helps ground the body and reverse the effects of living in a world of emf’s, and digging in soil can actually act as an antidepressant, as a strain of bacterium in soil, Mycobacterium vaccae, triggers the release of seratonin, which in turn elevates mood and decreases anxiety. Sunshine increases Vitamin D production which can help alleviate depression. My friend Elizabeth wrote an excellent post about Vitamin D and its link to depression here. For more information about other sources of Vitamin D, this is a great post as well as this.
If your partner is able to articulate what they are going through, it will help them and you better understand what you are dealing with, and may give insight into a plan of action for helping your partner. Also, feeling alone is common for a depressed person and anything that combats that feeling will help alleviate the severity and length of the depression.
Depressed people often stop taking care of themselves. Showering, getting haircuts, going to the doctor or dentist, it’s all just too hard, and they don’t deserve to be well taken care of anyway in their minds. This can snowball quickly into greater feelings of worthlessness since “Now I’m such a mess, no one could ever love me”. Help your loved one by being proactive. Tell them “I’m going to do the dishes, why don’t you go enjoy a bubble bath?” can give them the permission they won’t give themselves to do something normal, healthy and self-loving.
Studies show that a sincere hug that lasts longer than 20 seconds can release feel-good chemicals in the brain and elevate the mood of the giver and receiver. Depressed people often don’t want to be touched, but a sincere hug with no expectation of anything further can give your partner a lift.
Telling a silly joke, watching a comedy or seeing a stand up comedian will encourage your partner to laugh in spite of themselves. Laughing releases endorphins and studies show can actually counteract symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Your partner may be feeling worthless, angry and even guilty while they are depressed. They may be afraid that they will end up alone because no one will put up with their episodes forever. Reassure them that you are in the relationship for the long haul and they won’t scare you away because they have an illness.
A depressed person’s mind can be a never-ending loop of painful, destructive thoughts. “I’m unlovable, I’m a failure, I’m ugly, I’m stupid”. Challenge these untruths with the truth. “You’re not unlovable, I love you. You aren’t a failure, here are all the things you’ve accomplished.”
Look at pictures of happy times you’ve had together. Tell them your favorite things about them. Reminisce about your relationship and all the positive things that have happened, and remind your partner that you love them and they will get through this.
(via The Darling Bakers)
Star Wars: How the prequel trilogy mirrored and rhymed the original
Bold what applies to your character.
Absent-minded - Preoccupied to the extent of being unaware of one’s immediate surroundings. Abstracted, daydreaming, inattentive, oblivious, forgetful.
Abusive - Characterized by improper infliction of physical or psychological maltreatment towards another.
Addict - One who is addicted to a compulsive activity. Examples: gambling, drugs, sex.
Aimless - Devoid of direction or purpose.
Alcoholic - A person who drinks alcoholic substances habitually and to excess.
Anxious - Full of mental distress or uneasiness because of fear of danger or misfortune; greatly worried; solicitous.
Arrogant - Having or displaying a sense of overbearing self-worth or self-importance. Inclined to social exclusiveness and who rebuff the advances of people considered inferior. Snobbish.
Audacious - Recklessly bold in defiance of convention, propriety, law, or the like; insolent; braze, disobedient.
Bad Habit - A revolting personal habit. Examples: picks nose, spits tobacco, drools, bad body odour.
Bigmouth - A loud-mouthed or gossipy person.
Bigot - One who is strongly partial to one’s own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.
Blunt - Characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion. Frank, callous, insensitive, brusque.
Bold - In a bad sense, too forward; taking undue liberties; over assuming or confident; lacking proper modesty or restraint; rude; impudent. Abrupt, brazen, cheeky, brassy, audacious.
Callous - They are hardened to emotions, rarely showing any form of it in expression. Unfeeling. Cold.
Childish - Marked by or indicating a lack of maturity; puerile.
Complex - An exaggerated or obsessive concern or fear.
Cruel - Mean to anyone or anything, without care or regard to consequences and feelings.
Cursed - A person who has befallen a prayer for evil or misfortune, placed under a spell, or borne into an evil circumstance, and suffers for it. Damned.
Dependent - Unable to exist, sustain oneself, or act appropriately or normally without the assistance or direction of another.
Deranged - Mentally decayed. Insane. Crazy. Mad. Psychotic.
Dishonest – Given to or using fraud, cheating; deceitful, deceptive, crooked, underhanded.
Disloyal - Lacking loyalty. Unfaithful, perfidious, traitorous, treasonable.
Disorder - An ailment that affects the function of mind or body. (List the disorders name if they have one) See the Mental Disorder List.
Disturbed - Showing some or a few signs or symptoms of mental or emotional illness. Confused, disordered, neurotic, troubled.
Dubious - Fraught with uncertainty or doubt. Undecided, doubtful, unsure.
Dyslexic - Affected by dyslexia, a learning disorder marked by impairment of the ability to recognize and comprehend written words.
Egotistical - Characteristic of those having an inflated idea of their own importance. Boastful, pompous.
Envious - Showing extreme cupidity; painfully desirous of another’s advantages; covetous, jealous.
Erratic - Deviating from the customary course in conduct or opinion; eccentric: erratic behaviour. Eccentric, bizarre, outlandish, strange.
Fanatical - Fanatic outlook or behaviour especially as exhibited by excessive enthusiasm, unreasoning zeal, or wild and extravagant notions on some subject.
Fickle – Erratic, changeable, unstable - especially with regard to affections or attachments; capricious.
Fierce - Marked by extreme intensity of emotions or convictions; inclined to react violently; fervid.
Finicky - Excessively particular or fastidious; difficult to please; fussy. Too much concerned with detail. Meticulous, fastidious, choosy, critical, picky, prissy, pernickety.
Fixated - In psychoanalytic theory, a strong attachment to a person or thing, especially such an attachment formed in childhood or infancy and manifested in immature or neurotic behaviour that persists throughout life. Fetish, quirk, obsession, infatuation.
Flirt -To make playfully romantic or sexual overtures; behaviour intended to arouse sexual interest. Minx. Tease.
Gluttonous - Given to excess in consumption of especially food or drink. Voracious, ravenous, wolfish, piggish, insatiable.
Gruff - Brusque or stern in manner or appearance. Crusty, rough, surly.
Gullible - Will believe any information given, regardless of how valid or truthful it is, easily deceived or duped.
Hard - A person who is difficult to deal with, manage, control, overcome, or understand. Hard emotions, hard hearted.
Hedonistic - Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses.
Hoity-toity - Given to flights of fancy; capricious; frivolous. Prone to giddy behaviour, flighty.
Humourless - The inability to find humour in things, and most certainly in themselves.
Hypocritical - One who is always contradicting their own beliefs, actions or sayings. A person who professes beliefs and opinions for others that he does not hold. Being a hypocrite.
Idealist - One whose conduct is influenced by ideals that often conflict with practical considerations. One who is unrealistic and impractical, guided more by ideals than by practical considerations.
Idiotic - Marked by a lack of intelligence or care; foolish or careless.
Ignorant - Lacking knowledge or information as to a particular subject or fact. Showing or arising from a lack of education or knowledge.
Illiterate - Unable to read and write.
Immature - Emotionally undeveloped; juvenile; childish.
Impatient - Unable to wait patiently or tolerate delay; restless. Unable to endure irritation or opposition; intolerant.
Impious - Lacking piety and reverence for a god/gods and their followers.
Impish - Naughtily or annoyingly playful.
Incompetent - Unable to execute tasks, no matter how the size or difficulty.
Indecisive - Characterized by lack of decision and firmness, especially under pressure.
Indifferent - The trait of lacking enthusiasm for or interest in things generally, remaining calm and seeming not to care; a casual lack of concern. Having or showing little or no interest in anything; languid; spiritless.
Infamy - Having an extremely bad reputation, public reproach, or strong condemnation as the result of a shameful, criminal, or outrageous act that affects how others view them.
Intolerant - Unwilling to tolerate difference of opinion and narrow-minded about cherished opinions.
Judgmental - Inclined to make and form judgements, especially moral or personal ones, based on one’s own opinions or impressions towards others/practices/groups/religions based on appearance, reputation, occupation, etc.
Klutz - Clumsy. Blunderer.
Lazy - Resistant to work or exertion; disposed to idleness.
Lewd - Inclined to, characterized by, or inciting to lust or lechery; lascivious. Obscene or indecent, as language or songs; salacious.
Liar - Compulsively and purposefully tells false truths more often than not. A person who has lied or who lies repeatedly.
Lustful - Driven by lust; preoccupied with or exhibiting lustful desires.
Masochist - The deriving of sexual gratification, or the tendency to derive sexual gratification, from being physically or emotionally abused. A willingness or tendency to subject oneself to unpleasant or trying experiences.
Meddlesome - Intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner, given to meddling; interfering.
Meek - Evidencing little spirit or courage; overly submissive or compliant; humble in spirit or manner; suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness.
Megalomaniac - A psycho pathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence.
Naïve - Lacking worldly experience and understanding, simple and guileless; showing or characterized by a lack of sophistication and critical judgement.
Nervous - Easily agitated or distressed; high-strung or jumpy.
Non-violent - Abstaining from the use of violence.
Nosey - Given to prying into the affairs of others; snoopy. Offensively curious or inquisitive.
Obsessive - An unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone.
Oppressor - A person of authority who subjects others to undue pressures, to keep down by severe and unjust use of force or authority.
Overambitious - Having a strong excessive desire for success or achievement.
Overconfident - Excessively confident; presumptuous.
Overemotional - Excessively or abnormally emotional. Sensitive about themselves and others, more so than the average person.
Overprotective - To protect too much; coddle.
Overzealous - Marked by excessive enthusiasm for and intense devotion to a cause or idea.
Pacifist - Opposition to war or violence as a means of resolving disputes. (Can double as a merit in certain cases)
Paranoid - Exhibiting or characterized by extreme and irrational fear or distrust of others.
Peevish - Expressing fretfulness and discontent, or unjustifiable dissatisfaction. Cantankerous, cross, ill-tempered, testy, captious, discontented, crotchety, cranky, ornery.
Perfectionist - A propensity for being displeased with anything that is not perfect or does not meet extremely high standards.
Pessimist - A tendency to stress the negative or unfavourable or to take the gloomiest possible view.
Pest - One that pesters or annoys, with or without realizing it. Nuisance. Annoying. Nag.
Phobic – They have a severe form of fear when it comes to this one thing. Examples: Dark, Spiders, Cats
Practical - Level-headed, efficient, and unspeculative. No-nonsense.
Predictable - Easily seen through and assessable, where almost anyone can predict reactions and actions of said person by having met or known them even for a short time. (Somewhat. He’s predictable in personality, but in regards to battling, he’s not.)
Proud - Filled with or showing excessive self-esteem and will often shirk help from others for the sake of pride.
Rebellious - Defying or resisting some established authority, government, or tradition; insubordinate; inclined to rebel.
Reckless - Heedless. Headstrong. Foolhardy. Unthinking boldness, wild carelessness and disregard for consequences.
Remorseless - Without remorse; merciless; pitiless; relentless.
Rigorous - Rigidly accurate; allowing no deviation from a standard; demanding strict attention to rules and procedures.
Sadist - The deriving of sexual gratification or the tendency to derive sexual gratification from inflicting pain or emotional abuse on others. Deriving of pleasure, or the tendency to derive pleasure, from cruelty.
Sadomasochist - Both sadist and masochist combined.
Sarcastic - A subtle form of mockery in which an intended meaning is conveyed obliquely.
Skeptic - One who instinctively or habitually doubts, questions, or disagrees with assertions or generally accepted conclusions.
Seducer - To lead others astray, as from duty, rectitude, or the like; corrupt. To attempt to lead or draw someone away, as from principles, faith, or allegiance.
Selfish - Concerned chiefly or only with oneself.
Self-Martyr - One who purposely makes a great show of suffering in order to arouse sympathy from others, as a form of manipulation, and always for a selfish cause or reason.
Self-righteous - Piously sure of one’s own righteousness; moralistic. Exhibiting pious self-assurance. Holier-than-thou, sanctimonious.
Senile - Showing a decline or deterioration of physical strength or mental functioning, esp. short-term memory and alertness, as a result of old age or disease.
Shallow - Lacking depth of intellect or knowledge; concerned only with what is obvious.
Smart Ass - Thinks they know it all, and in some ways they may, but they can be greatly annoying and difficult to deal with at times, especially in arguments.
Soft-hearted - Having softness or tenderness of heart that can lead them into trouble; susceptible of pity or other kindly affection. They cannot resist helping someone they see in trouble, suffering or in need, and often don’t think of the repercussions or situation before doing so.
Solemn - Deeply earnest, serious, and sober.
Spineless - Lacking courage. Cowardly, wimp, lily-livered, gutless.
Spiteful - Showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt; motivated by spite; vindictive person who will look for occasions for resentment. Vengeful.
Spoiled - Treated with excessive indulgence and pampering from earliest childhood, and has no notion of hard work, self-care or money management; coddled, pampered. Having the character or disposition harmed by pampering or over-solicitous attention.
Squeamish - Excessively fastidious and easily disgusted.
Stubborn - Unreasonably, often perversely unyielding; bull-headed. Firmly resolved or determined; resolute.
Superstitious - An irrational belief arising from ignorance or fear from an irrational belief that an object, action, or circumstance not logically related to a course of events influences its outcome.
Tactless - Lacking or showing a lack of what is fitting and considerate in dealing with others.
Temperamental - Moody, irritable, or sensitive. Excitable, volatile, emotional.
Theatrical - Having a flair for over dramatizing situations, doing things in a ‘big way’ and love to be ‘centre stage’.
Timid -Tends to be shy and/or quiet, shrinking away from offering opinions or from strangers and newcomers, fearing confrontations and violence.
Tongue-tied - Speechless or confused in expression, as from shyness, embarrassment, or astonishment.
Troublemaker - Someone who deliberately stirs up trouble, intentionally or unintentionally.
Unlucky - Marked by or causing misfortune; ill-fated. Destined for misfortune; doomed.
Unpredictable - Difficult to foretell or foresee, their actions are so chaotic it’s impossible to know what they are going to do next.
Untrustworthy - Not worthy of trust or belief. Backstabber.
Vain - Holding or characterized by an unduly high opinion of their physical appearance. Lovers of themselves. Conceited, egotistic, narcissistic.
Weak-willed - Lacking willpower, strength of will to carry out one’s decisions, wishes, or plans. Easily swayed.
Withdrawn - Not friendly or Sociable. Aloof.
Zealous - A fanatic.
From The Character Therapist
I decided to create a masterpost that would help you with what you are struggling with. Hopefully any of the links below will help you! Reminder; You’re going to be okay. What you are going through will pass, just remember to breathe.
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Here are some distractions to help keep your mind occupied so you aren’t too focused on your thoughts.
-Draw something
-This website translates the time into colours.
-Create your own galaxy.
-Play flowing.
-Make a 3D line travel where ever you like.
-Listen to music.
-Calm.
-Ocean mood, do nothing for two minutes.
- 8 hour sleep music.
-Rainy mood.
-Meditation.
-Coping with nightmares.
-How to cope with nightmares, 11 steps.
-Calm
-Foods that can affect your sleeping, both positive and negatively.
-Rainy mood.
-10 hours of rain and thunder.
-3 hours of rain and thunder.
-Human heartbeat.
-Rainforest.
-Sound of rain on a tin roof.
-Autumn wind.
-Rain on a tent
-Traffic in the rain.
-Soft traffic.
-Fan.
-Train.
-Simply noise.
-My noise.
-Rainy cafe.
-How to stop worrying.
-Tips to manage anxiety and stress.
-The 10 best ever anxiety management techniques.
-Self-help strategies for anxiety.
-Helping a friend with anxiety.
-All about worrying.
-8 myths about anxiety.
-“I’m always sad”
-Feeling sad.
-Going through trauma.
-“I’m always angry”.
-Anger management.
-All about anger.
-National helplines and websites.
-Self-help strategies for depression.
-Dealing with depression at work.
-Dealing with depression at school.
-Pets and mental health.
-All about loneliness.
-“I feel so alone”
-10 more ideas to help with loneliness.
-How to deal with loneliness.
-Alternatives to self-harm and distraction techniques.
-146 things to do besides self-harm.
-More alternatives to self-harm.
-Self-harm alternatives.
-How to take care of self-harm wounds/injuries.
-Getting rid of scars.
-How to help a friend with a drug addiction.
-What is addiction?
-All about alcohol and addiction.
-The facts about drug addiction.
-Helping a friend with an eating disorder.
-Eating disorder treatments.
-Support services for eating disorders.
-Self-help tips with eating disorders.
-Eating disorder recovery.
-Recovering from an eating disorder.
-100+ reasons to recover.
-Understanding and managing eating disorders.
-3 ways to ease self-loathing.
-How to turn self-hatred into self-compassion.
-Self-hatred resources.
-10 step plan to deal with self-hate.
-International suicide hotlines (1) (2)
-Preventing suicide.
-Reasons to stay alive.
-Dealing with suicidal thoughts and feelings.
-Coping with suicidal ideation.
-All about schizophrenia.
-Helping a person with schizophrenia.
-Understanding and dealing with schizophrenia.
-Delusions and hallucinations.
-Managing your OCD at home.
-Overcoming OCD.
-How to cope with OCD.
-Strategies for dealing with the anxious moments.
-Helping someone with BPD.
-All about personality disorders.
-Treatment for BPD.
-Healthy relationships VS abusive relationships.
-Emotional abuse
-Overcoming sexual abuse.
-Hotlines services.
-5 ways to escape an abusive relationship.
-Domestic violence support.
-Signs of an abusive relationship.
-What do to if you’re in an abusive relationship.
-Surviving abuse.
-What you can do if you’re sexual harassed.
-Sexual assault support.
-What to do if you’ve been sexually assaulted or abused.
-How to stand up against bullying.
-How to protect yourself when it comes to cyber bullying.
-How to help stop people bullying you.
-How to cope with a suicide of a loved one.
-Grieving for a stranger.
-Common reactions to death.
-Working through grief.
(Other loss and grief)
-Moving away from friends and family.
-Coping with a breakup.
-Seeking help early.
-All about psychological treatments.
-Types of help.
-All about age and confidentiality.
- Don’t stress about being fixed because you’re not broken.
-Remember to remind yourself of your accomplishments. Tell yourself that you’re proud of yourself, even if you’re not.
- This is temporary. You won’t always feel like this.
-You are not alone.
-You are enough.
-You are important.
-You are worth it.
-You are strong.
-You are not a failure,
-Good people exist.
-Reaching out shows strength.
-Breathe.
-Don’t listen to the thoughts that are not helping you.
-Give yourself credit.
-Don’t be ashamed of your emotions, for the good or bad ones.
-Treat yourself the same way as you would treat a good friend.
-Focus on the things you can change.
-Let go of toxic people.
-You don’t need to hide, you’re allowed to feel the way you do.
-Try not to beat yourself up.
-Something is always happening, you don’t want to miss out on what’s going to happen next.
-You are not a bother.
-Your existence is more than your appearance.
-You are smart.
-You are loved.
-You are wanted.
-You are needed.
-Better days are coming.
-Just because your past is dark, doesn’t mean your future isn’t bright.
-You have more potential than you think.
- Your value doesn’t decrease based on someone’s inability to see your worth.
Please remember to look after yourself and know that you are more than worth it and you deserve to be happy. Keep smiling butterflies x
New prints added to the Etsy shop. All of the wood I used to build these panels seem to be made from the same tree, which is pretty cool.
Do you pronounce anon as: 1) ah-non 2) uh-non 3) other (say how you say it)
And era as: 1) air-uh 2) eh-ruh 3) ee-ruh 4) other (say how you say it)
Reblog this with how you say these words! My friends and I were talking about this today and I’m really curious as to how the majority of people say these phrases!
Okay message over