this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2023
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I appreciate the advice and I am considering therapy right now.
I'm unsure about returning to my previous "carpe diem"-esque lifestyle, because at the moment I am pretty convinced that disaster is coming within the decade and I'm afraid that every moment will be tainted by this fear. I also don't know if I want to talk to other people about this, because I don't want to push this onto them and make them feel the same way as I do now.
And yes, every generation thought they'd be the last but I do think ours is in a bit of a more dire situation. Maybe that's just a dumb take on my part, but that's how I feel at the moment.
Sorry for basically dumping all my yucky feelings right now but I guess it had to come out somehow and I'm not waking up my roommate at 4AM
If you can't stop the (possible) coming disasters, what's the point in paralyzing yourself with fear? Do what you reasonably can to prepare, and enjoy the life that you have now while it's here.
Things will certainly get worse, and disasters will happen in the coming decades, but the end is not right around the corner. The decline will be slow, and it's still possible that solutions, or at least mitigations, will be found. Look for little ways to contribute something positive, and try to appreciate the moment.
Every generation was convinced that their fears was the real one, and all past fears were just irrational. There is no reason to think that this has changed.
It is also important to note that some past fears were arguably just as extreme if not worse than current fears. After all, a massive nuclear war was a real possibility. It never meant that people had to put everything down and just wait for death.
Disaster IS coming within the decade. Disaster is coming this week, this summer, this year to someone, somewhere. But the thing is, disaster has always been a very common and normal part of the human experience. It doesn't happen to everyone, everywhere, all at once. (See what I did there? ;)
When I was in high school, the chemical factory where my mother worked had an explosion that killed three people and started a fire that threatened to kill both my mom and my dad who was working at a nearby factory. For nearly a decade of my life afterward, PTSD convinced me that nothing was worth doing because it would all just end at any second anyway.
I really missed out on a large chunk of my young adult life because I was stuck in my own head about it. A lot of cognitive behavior therapy and I learned how to live in a world where disasters are part of it.
I went on to do crazy things like live on a Caribbean island for six years. That was later leveled by a Cat 5 hurricane. But all my friends and the vast majority of the general public there were fine! And five years later, life there is right back to normal.
Humans are resilient. To quote one of my favorite Crystal Method songs: There is hope.
Try therapy. It's great.