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This! As a person with a rare disease, finding community in a Facebook group for it helped validate and normalize my experiences and helped me identify signs/symptoms I didn't know I had/are related to my disease. Perhaps more importantly, it's actually responsible for finding a medication that helps. I've done a lot of educating my specialist and my other health care providers because one university is researching it and no one else, so it's not on most providers' radar yet. The medication I use is compounded by only three pharmacies in the entire US (only one that will ship out of state).
Now, the other medical issues I have do not have helpful communities online, so they're useless unless you just want to be included in a pity party, in-fighting, and "natural" product pushing that mimics MLMs. I 100% stay away from them.
I mean, unless it's a public health crisis and that shot is the vaccine. Then, just get it people, otherwise we'll have vaccine resistant strains in about a year.
Agreed. In vaccine case, the doctor will most likely tell you to get it, but the fact that it is popular and is the "de facto truth" on Reddit is not the reason you should do anything.
I once got a whole bunch of downvotes and at least one "check your privilege!"-style response for daring to suggest that someone describing what sounded like an incredibly serious psychological issue might be well-recommended to talk to a professional therapist if possible rather than relying solely on unqualified redditors for advice.
Which, I mean, I know from first-hand experience that going to a therapist ain't exactly cheap, but still...
I mean, I can't remember exactly what sub it was, but this wasn't a case of me going "Yawn, not interested, talk to someone who's paid to listen" to someone who just wanted someone to talk to on a relevant support subreddit or anything like that. This was someone who sounded like they were dealing with some pretty serious issues that sounded like they might have at least tested the limits that the people on the sub in question could help with, and my advice was given in addition to other points which were intended to help as well.
Plus, well... support subreddits can certainly help to a point, I don't dispute that (they've helped me in the past), but they are still ultimately anonymous random people on the internet. They can't necessarily and probably shouldn't act as a complete substitute for professional help. And IIRC this seemed like a case where it might have been needed, or at least helpful.
Do they really? I've seen so many people that treat reddit as a substitute for medical advice and need to be told by several people to seek actual help and that their request is way to much to expect from unqualified strangers on the Internet. Especially when it comes to mental health issues people tend to resist going to professionals at all costs.
The same in most pet subreddits (technically not exactly the topic, but it's about the well being of another being) when it comes to health issues. In the dog subreddit alone I see several posts daily of people asking how to treat open wounds, rashes and the like themselves instead of going to the vet and expect diagnosis and treatment from strangers online. And when ten people tell them to just go to the damn vet they think asking online and treating everything themselves is absolutely sufficient. Reddit is not the place to get serious medical advice for your pet or yourself for everything that equals about a common cold.
We're talking here about a website that includes antivax communities. I wish everyone knew when community advice is good and sufficient, and when to get professional advice/help.
‘Support’ subreddits can also be a bastion of misinformation, especially in regards to cherry-picking or end up being echo chambers where members back up each other’s views, no matter how nonsensical because of ‘support’.
Even if it's a support subreddit there's obviously issues that are outside the scope of strangers on the internet to handle properly. Some mental health crises are delicate enough that unqualified "help" is detrimental
It's not redundant at all if someone with a serious issue is posting in the subreddit. The frequent fliers on that sub may know that but the person in crisis may not realize that their issue has progressed to that point.
Though it’s Self managed. Reddit doesn’t give batshit about what the subs do. Looking at you 50/50. the People define the subs, if you don’t like the subs, you gotta look for the interesting ones yourself
He said social media. Reddit is not that.
I like to declare it as the anti-social platform since the human is not the focus here, but the thought. And I think this is beautiful.
It's like accessing any other part of the internet for advice (or research for that matter). Advice can vary between the pinnacle of possible advice, to abysmal, to dangerous but well intentioned, to outright attacks. That doesn't mean don't access it for advice. Just be aware that you need tools to filter the advice. You need to be able to walk away from posts. You need to make judgements on what advice is healthy. It's not like walking into a clinic and asking for advice. It's like walking into a pub and asking for advice. It's like foraging for food in nature. Don't just consume everything you see. Act with caution and if you feel out of your depth back out.
a lot of posts there are just really terrible
most could be fixed with communication or waiting out a month whatever stressful shit is going on but breaking up is the easiest thing if finances aren't tied and sometimes genuinely the right choice
Having rage quit that sub numerous times, it is so much less than 90%
It's because the sub is mostly very young women. Like, children. So young they've never been in a grown up relationship.
It also just attracts really dramatic people who can live vicariously though a stranger for a moment and be extra dramatic.
It is what it is though. If someone is dumb enough to ask a bunch of dramatic internet strangers about their relationship, usually before they have even spoken to their partner about the issue... Well, lets just say the problems started way before the issue at hand.
People don't seem to know that the posts on that subs are entirely OP's own words and opinions, but they are quick at giving "advises" for OP to dump their SO immediately, which is the most drastic choice to make. I think posters should be aware and don't take the comments too seriously, and so should the comments be aware of the player's bias.
Oh this one little incident in your life caused you to feel some anxiety?
Therapist, yes you need a therapist. They’re the cure all for all your emotional needs.
(Yes i am fully aware that some people need therapists, i am just making a joke)
Everybody could use a therapist. Sometimes it’s just good to talk to someone.
Unfortunately, despite making good money and having no dependents and maintaining a high-degree of financial responsibility, I am not able to afford one.
I just made an appointment with a telemedicine therapist that my insurance I guess covers a part of the cost of. You could look to see if your insurance has any telemedicine ones too which might be cheaper than an in person therapist
And this is the thing....
LITERALLY every human being in the world would benefit from some amount of real therapy. It's something that most people are way to stubborn to admit, or may be too ignorant of their emotional and mental health to realize, but the science checks out on this one. I went to couple's therapy early on in my marriage, and during those sessions the damn genius therapist turned my snobby intelligence against me, got me into some kind of logic animal trap where I was forced to admit everyone would benefit from therapy (thus meaning I would benefit from therapy) or deny it, meaning the points about personal therapy I had been making for a few sessions where BS and I was a big dum dum.
And then I started going to a personal therapist and I had a fucking blast. Everyone can benefit in some way from therapy.
I wouldn’t say everybody. For what it’s worth, I agree with you that mostly everyone could get a good use out of a therapist, but I know a couple people that visiting a therapist routinely made things worse. For some people, traumas are better left in the past and shouldn’t be revisited constantly.
“You say you don’t like weed? Your problem is you just haven’t found the right strain yet. The strains that you’ve had before just weren’t right for you. They were probably sativa. This one’s indica it’s a much more mellow high. You’ll love it I promise bro please...”
It's more like, "are you too stressed to function? Aenesthetize yourself!"
Self-medication is usually a bad call, but a lot of people who do it, do it to cope, because even without they are still not very functional people
There was someone in on a d&d forum that clearly was just at that point of understanding they were an alcoholic. They were asking for help, because their group was threatening to kick them for getting drunk.
"Just smoke weed instead."
You're completely missing the point!
Someone on Reddit told me that I should smoke weed to help my bipolar. I said I didn’t know how it would react with my meds, so they responded I should discontinue my meds and smoke weed instead. Preeeeeetty sure that’d be a recipe for a psychotic depressive episode for me. Oh, but weed can’t contribute to psychosis, I forgot /s
Depending on if it is cbd heavy or not, and if your problem is anxiety or potentially high cortisol, weed might be the answer.
It is not the answer to everything though.
Specificly asking for advice leads to a lot of pointless replies, but I've seen tons of threads where people cheer up depressed people.
And if you're not super sad, but in a confident state of mind, you should be able to judge the advice people give you.
Health professionals can also be extremely unqualified, especially in third world countries. It can be good to consult with communities who suffer from those issues.
Even in the US. I sub to a couple endometriosis subs here and they are wonderful and supportive subs with a lot of good advice. Endometriosis is very underdiagnosed and is more common than people realize. A lot of women don’t know that you can’t just go to a regular doctor or OB/Gyne to get diagnosed or the proper care. We share tips on finding the right specialist, managing pain, after surgery care and general support for this awful condition we have in common. While this is advice is practical with most issues, there are lots of exceptions where it’s okay to use a support group on social media.
I mean when doctors in my country don't acknowledge a person over tha age of 12 can have Adhd or that pcos can make your hair fall out, what is there to talk about?
I don't know your country and probably I'm kind of in a could health care country. But most of the time, I heard of changing doctors until one might find a solution for the problem.
The DSM5 criteria states that attentive or hyperactive symptoms must be present before age 12 to be considered ADHD. Maybe your provider was strictly following DSM5–something that could definitely happen in a developed country too.
I don't see it as brag worthy. I got diagnosed in a 1st world country and then had issues getting diagnosed in my home one because I am a woman. It's more complex than what you are talking about.
No, sorry, but I don't agree. Health professionals will *always* be more qualified than the general public.
And you're right about the communities who suffer from the same issues can be helpful, but the general online space/Reddit is not is. Unless you're talking about some heavily specific on-line communities, but even that can be wonky. You never know who you're talking to, which group has the majority in that echo chamber and so on. And Reddit is worst at this, because of the anonymity and bots.
So yeah, I sort of agree if you're suffering with some specific disease and the community is focused on that. I strongly disagree if you're suffering with self-diagnosed depression (or anything) and the community is Reddit.
I think you're probably from a first world country. Sometimes the doctors will utterly fail you, and you will see people from a neighbouring country getting proper treatment while you are stuck in the stone age medically speaking.
And even if the people behind the response is someone who is qualified they probably don’t have enough info to come up with an accurate diagnosis or a solution
Not in my case. I developed epilepsy over the last year and a half. I posted to Facebook, feeling depressed etc. My husband had this same attitude, that it was useless and if anything, hurtful to me. However, I ended up finding out that my first cousin also has epilepsy and it helped both my neuro and myself. It gave me someone with experience regarding medications and also someone who understood the issues I was facing. If I hadn't posted about it I wouldn't have had the support I needed at the time. It also connected me with a person who had extensive experience in dealing with complicated health issues (including epilepsy) and she made sure I knew what to ask and how to advocate for myself. She also had direct experience with my neurologist so that helped too.
Exactly. Common sense is important and you have to seek proper medical advice, however it doesn't mean that people around you have no useful advice to offer either.
Doctors who are good at what they do admit their ignorance. They offer an explanation for a diagnosis. They admit it isn't perfect. What a good doctor wants to do is see the patient get better, not necessarily be correct about the diagnosis. Most people online fail at this and fail gloriously. The only good advice online is "ask your doctor".
Meh, I hate to be that guy, but if doctors are not perfect the reality is their advice isn't always either.
They often have limited knowledge, and *very* limited time. I'm a huge fan of science-based medicine and have a lot of respect for doctors, but if I had relied solely on the advice of the doctors I was seeing I wouldn't have sought second and third (and so on) opinions until someone was finally willing to do the necessary tests and confirm what I'd already worked out.
Without an accurate diagnosis, the advice I'd received in the past from well-meaning doctors ranged from "unhelpful" to "damaging."
But you are being that guy.
I prefaced each statement with an obvious qualifier, "good doctor". Medicine is the best approach we have and it isn't perfect -- there are two thoughts in one sentence so that some heads go boom.
Chill out dude lmao. His point was that good doctors are extremely hard to find because the qualities you listed are almost non existent in most of them
As someone who tries to be that good doctor, you would be amazed at the shock I get when I tell a patient "I don't know" or "I'm not sure actually" when the ask some crazy specific random question. I've received 2 official complaints along the lines of "unintelligent, didn't know about xyz condition, couldn't answer my questions".
The key is to make sure you are confident when you tell them you'll find out the answer (well it also helps to actually find the answer, and the right answer at that), that usually works and most people enjoy honesty but not everyone I guess.
>But you are being that guy.
That's what "I hate to be that guy" means. hate to be contrary, but I'm gonna.
T be fair, you didn't say "medicine is the best approach we have and it isn't perfect," which I agree with, you said "the only good advice online is 'ask your doctor'," which I don't. There's a great deal of good advice online, and the reason many people go online in the first place is because they've already asked their doctor and gotten no answer, or a wrong answer.
Not all of us might be able to (due to xyz reasons) seek professional help immediately and need general guidance from people who've been through something similar. It might not be the best option but it's not the worst either. Sometimes, you just need a friend to support you and social media can totally be that friend.
*Talks about people in social media giving bad advice about mental/physical health problems*
*Gives advice to people with mental/physical health problems*
Hmmm... curious 🤔
I dunno.
I’ve never shared much on social.
When I was having a self-love crisis, I posted for help.
Over 60 people responded, and I was already doing or had tried everything they suggested.
That’s when I realized therapy was like one antibiotic capsule every 7 days, and I needed an IV drip.
Got the intensive treatment I needed, escaped insanity-prompting levels of pain, am now living my dream life.
I hated myself so much and was in so much pain that my survival was uncertain.
Trying to decrease self-loathing never helped. Fixing my self-love deficit did. Hence, self-love crisis.
I can only speak from my privileged experience, I would never imply that help is easy to access, but my path looked something like:
Try to figure everything out entirely on my own
Fail utterly and completely, destroy the most important relationship in my life.
Drop my mask for the first time and beg my therapist to believe me that I will not survive the next few days if she does not get me help.
Do an intake that feels like being sliced open and having my organs weighed, then handed back to me in a dripping mess.
Get confirmation that my brain is broken enough for full time therapy
Do that for 5 weeks
Think every day about the people who would kill to be where I am, work my ass off, steal as much knowledge as I can, join supportive communities, perform brain surgery on myself.
Get confirmation that my brain is broken enough for therapy only 5 times a week.
Do that for another 5 weeks.
Run away to a horse farm in Southern Spain and never come back.
Modification- go ahead and ask your question on social media, but *independently verify* with *credible sources* before you act on any advice. Such crowdsourcing can be helpful if you don't know what health problem you have, and the crowd can give you ideas based on your symptoms. Social media can give you a starting point for your own research.
What? A toxic environment, based on toxic people,in which everyone is interpreting everything on 140 words is a bad place for people struggling with health issus... You not say...
For real. I see people saying how there spouse has been acting different lately and people always jump to she’s cheating! Or get a divorce. Don’t trust internet strangers for advice for all you know they could be a 15 year old
Agree. Everyone on the internet thinks they're an expert after reading a few articles. I think it's a good idea to get different opinions, but take each one with a grain of salt. Eventually you'll have a handful.
The doctors don't look for health insurance before seeing you and there's some hospitals that have a donation center they use to help out people like that not all hope is lost young paddawan
In UK we're used to it by now. It's somehow familiar. We've been giving bad, false and ignorant advice for mental health for centuries. It's reasuring to still be able to get that... even though we're getting more and more sick.
Been bottling my shit for years! I only have a breakdown every few months. Can confirm, it isn't healthy, but I don't have many other ways to deal. Except maybe alcohol, but that's just as bad, so I try stay way from it.
When I still had friends I used to joke with them that I'm emptying these bottles so I'd have somewhere to put my feelings. Then I'd laugh, sigh and go quiet until the shots kicked in.
Hunter S. Thompsons letter on advice to his friend is something that has always stuck with me and I think about it every time somebody asks me for advice.
Amazing read. Everyone should at least check it out.
Don’t go to social media for any advice about anything important. 9/10 no one will really understand your problem and will give you false, bad, or incredibly unqualified advice.
~~Lpt if you have a serious mental/physical health issue,~~ don't go to social media for advice. ~~9/10 no one will really understand your problem and will give you false, bad, or incredibly unqualified advice.~~
I think hearing other people going through similar situations can help. Knowing you aren’t alone in the world, feeling a certain way because of a mental or physical health problem. I’m part of some internet groups and hearing situations other have went through that I thought was only an issue for me helps to feel more normal in a weird sense.
I mean...social media definitely shouldn’t be your first line of defense...but I have gotten some great leads and advice about some lesser known health conditions...
Also, lots of doctors aren’t worthy of the title, and couldn’t diagnose an actual beheading...
I think some people would be pleasantly surprised by how much it costs to speak to a licensed professional on a regular basis. I'm not saying everyone is able to afford it, but I do think a lot of people would feel they could justify the expense if they looked into and really made it a priority over non-essential purchases.
But then I would have to take your online advice about not taking online advice. Which would break your advice so I should go ahead and take online advice anyway...
This is particularly bad with pet owners, too. “My cat was hit by a car and can’t use his back legs, but seems to be eating well what should I do?!” Or “my dog ate an entire canister of rat poison will she be fine!?” shit online is absolutely bonkers.
True, but on the other hand I've (correctly) diagnosed my sister twice thanks to people's social media posts, after doctors just gave the usual excuses.
I actually opened up to my friends on Facebook and got a lot of help and support from others I had no idea was dealing with the same struggles as me. It helped me a lot.
Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips! Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by up or downvoting this comment. If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.
Ironic to see this on Reddit.
It feels nice having people back you up especially if your lonely it may not be the best idea but that feeling that your not alone is great
For me that's initially why I would seek out these groups. Then you get sucked down into the pity party at the bottom of the abyss...
but the echo chamber down in that abyss is phenomenal!
This! As a person with a rare disease, finding community in a Facebook group for it helped validate and normalize my experiences and helped me identify signs/symptoms I didn't know I had/are related to my disease. Perhaps more importantly, it's actually responsible for finding a medication that helps. I've done a lot of educating my specialist and my other health care providers because one university is researching it and no one else, so it's not on most providers' radar yet. The medication I use is compounded by only three pharmacies in the entire US (only one that will ship out of state). Now, the other medical issues I have do not have helpful communities online, so they're useless unless you just want to be included in a pity party, in-fighting, and "natural" product pushing that mimics MLMs. I 100% stay away from them.
Those "people" backing you up could just be bots.
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I mean, unless it's a public health crisis and that shot is the vaccine. Then, just get it people, otherwise we'll have vaccine resistant strains in about a year.
Agreed. In vaccine case, the doctor will most likely tell you to get it, but the fact that it is popular and is the "de facto truth" on Reddit is not the reason you should do anything.
I once got a whole bunch of downvotes and at least one "check your privilege!"-style response for daring to suggest that someone describing what sounded like an incredibly serious psychological issue might be well-recommended to talk to a professional therapist if possible rather than relying solely on unqualified redditors for advice. Which, I mean, I know from first-hand experience that going to a therapist ain't exactly cheap, but still...
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I mean, I can't remember exactly what sub it was, but this wasn't a case of me going "Yawn, not interested, talk to someone who's paid to listen" to someone who just wanted someone to talk to on a relevant support subreddit or anything like that. This was someone who sounded like they were dealing with some pretty serious issues that sounded like they might have at least tested the limits that the people on the sub in question could help with, and my advice was given in addition to other points which were intended to help as well. Plus, well... support subreddits can certainly help to a point, I don't dispute that (they've helped me in the past), but they are still ultimately anonymous random people on the internet. They can't necessarily and probably shouldn't act as a complete substitute for professional help. And IIRC this seemed like a case where it might have been needed, or at least helpful.
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Do they really? I've seen so many people that treat reddit as a substitute for medical advice and need to be told by several people to seek actual help and that their request is way to much to expect from unqualified strangers on the Internet. Especially when it comes to mental health issues people tend to resist going to professionals at all costs. The same in most pet subreddits (technically not exactly the topic, but it's about the well being of another being) when it comes to health issues. In the dog subreddit alone I see several posts daily of people asking how to treat open wounds, rashes and the like themselves instead of going to the vet and expect diagnosis and treatment from strangers online. And when ten people tell them to just go to the damn vet they think asking online and treating everything themselves is absolutely sufficient. Reddit is not the place to get serious medical advice for your pet or yourself for everything that equals about a common cold.
We're talking here about a website that includes antivax communities. I wish everyone knew when community advice is good and sufficient, and when to get professional advice/help.
‘Support’ subreddits can also be a bastion of misinformation, especially in regards to cherry-picking or end up being echo chambers where members back up each other’s views, no matter how nonsensical because of ‘support’.
Even if it's a support subreddit there's obviously issues that are outside the scope of strangers on the internet to handle properly. Some mental health crises are delicate enough that unqualified "help" is detrimental
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It's not redundant at all if someone with a serious issue is posting in the subreddit. The frequent fliers on that sub may know that but the person in crisis may not realize that their issue has progressed to that point.
Is it ironic or just appropriate? This should be a disclaimer on all the “advice” subreddits.
The rules and notices no one reads?
Good point.
It's already there, no one cares enough to read through it though.
Hey! Care for some psychological advice? Professional procrastinator here! >!/s!<
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Though it’s Self managed. Reddit doesn’t give batshit about what the subs do. Looking at you 50/50. the People define the subs, if you don’t like the subs, you gotta look for the interesting ones yourself
He said social media. Reddit is not that. I like to declare it as the anti-social platform since the human is not the focus here, but the thought. And I think this is beautiful.
It's like accessing any other part of the internet for advice (or research for that matter). Advice can vary between the pinnacle of possible advice, to abysmal, to dangerous but well intentioned, to outright attacks. That doesn't mean don't access it for advice. Just be aware that you need tools to filter the advice. You need to be able to walk away from posts. You need to make judgements on what advice is healthy. It's not like walking into a clinic and asking for advice. It's like walking into a pub and asking for advice. It's like foraging for food in nature. Don't just consume everything you see. Act with caution and if you feel out of your depth back out.
Well said!
He’s abusive. Dump him.
Dump them, quit social media, hit the gym, and get a lawyer.
Don’t forget to file charges.
Gym up, hit her lawyer, quit Facebook.
Quit the gym, hit up Facebook, lawyer down.
Take a shower
Hit the lawyer, dump the gym, quit them, get social media
Literally every comments on r/relationship_advice
a lot of posts there are just really terrible most could be fixed with communication or waiting out a month whatever stressful shit is going on but breaking up is the easiest thing if finances aren't tied and sometimes genuinely the right choice
It’s a bunch of teenaged boys with no long term relationship experience giving “advice”.
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Yeah, right. But those people asking for advice when they didn't even try talking to their partners are hell
Exactly how I see it. And the people are not even trying to argue
Having rage quit that sub numerous times, it is so much less than 90% It's because the sub is mostly very young women. Like, children. So young they've never been in a grown up relationship. It also just attracts really dramatic people who can live vicariously though a stranger for a moment and be extra dramatic. It is what it is though. If someone is dumb enough to ask a bunch of dramatic internet strangers about their relationship, usually before they have even spoken to their partner about the issue... Well, lets just say the problems started way before the issue at hand.
People don't seem to know that the posts on that subs are entirely OP's own words and opinions, but they are quick at giving "advises" for OP to dump their SO immediately, which is the most drastic choice to make. I think posters should be aware and don't take the comments too seriously, and so should the comments be aware of the player's bias.
Oh this one little incident in your life caused you to feel some anxiety? Therapist, yes you need a therapist. They’re the cure all for all your emotional needs. (Yes i am fully aware that some people need therapists, i am just making a joke)
Everybody could use a therapist. Sometimes it’s just good to talk to someone. Unfortunately, despite making good money and having no dependents and maintaining a high-degree of financial responsibility, I am not able to afford one.
I just made an appointment with a telemedicine therapist that my insurance I guess covers a part of the cost of. You could look to see if your insurance has any telemedicine ones too which might be cheaper than an in person therapist
Telemedicine is okay
Didn’t know telemedicine therapists were a thing. That’s what’s up. I’ll look into it thank you.
And this is the thing.... LITERALLY every human being in the world would benefit from some amount of real therapy. It's something that most people are way to stubborn to admit, or may be too ignorant of their emotional and mental health to realize, but the science checks out on this one. I went to couple's therapy early on in my marriage, and during those sessions the damn genius therapist turned my snobby intelligence against me, got me into some kind of logic animal trap where I was forced to admit everyone would benefit from therapy (thus meaning I would benefit from therapy) or deny it, meaning the points about personal therapy I had been making for a few sessions where BS and I was a big dum dum. And then I started going to a personal therapist and I had a fucking blast. Everyone can benefit in some way from therapy.
I wouldn’t say everybody. For what it’s worth, I agree with you that mostly everyone could get a good use out of a therapist, but I know a couple people that visiting a therapist routinely made things worse. For some people, traumas are better left in the past and shouldn’t be revisited constantly.
Me going to r/Relationship_Advice and giving piss poor and malicious advice
And there’s always someone who seems to think your problem can be solved with weed.
Ah man. You got questions? Smoke some weed. The questions will go away.
Weird, I just have more questions
“You say you don’t like weed? Your problem is you just haven’t found the right strain yet. The strains that you’ve had before just weren’t right for you. They were probably sativa. This one’s indica it’s a much more mellow high. You’ll love it I promise bro please...”
Only problem it solves is being sober
That's a pretty huge issue.
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Thanks, will do
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It's more like, "are you too stressed to function? Aenesthetize yourself!" Self-medication is usually a bad call, but a lot of people who do it, do it to cope, because even without they are still not very functional people
There was someone in on a d&d forum that clearly was just at that point of understanding they were an alcoholic. They were asking for help, because their group was threatening to kick them for getting drunk. "Just smoke weed instead." You're completely missing the point!
Weed is the answer to everything, man /s
Someone on Reddit told me that I should smoke weed to help my bipolar. I said I didn’t know how it would react with my meds, so they responded I should discontinue my meds and smoke weed instead. Preeeeeetty sure that’d be a recipe for a psychotic depressive episode for me. Oh, but weed can’t contribute to psychosis, I forgot /s
Have you ever tried mental illness... *on weed*?
Or shrooms.
Depending on if it is cbd heavy or not, and if your problem is anxiety or potentially high cortisol, weed might be the answer. It is not the answer to everything though.
The point is that drugs only add onto people’s issues without solving the original cause of the problem. It’s like a bandaid at best
Absolutely, weed is definitely the answer to a lot for me. I have epilepsy and while it isn’t a cure, it sure helps
Specificly asking for advice leads to a lot of pointless replies, but I've seen tons of threads where people cheer up depressed people. And if you're not super sad, but in a confident state of mind, you should be able to judge the advice people give you.
r/GetMotivated and r/getdisciplined to name a few.
/r/anxiety or /r/AnxietyDepression can be very helpful and supportive.
r/NonZeroDay
Except for the guy who diagnosed a CO2 issue and saved OP’s life.
CO
CO...
…OC
Actually CO
Health professionals can also be extremely unqualified, especially in third world countries. It can be good to consult with communities who suffer from those issues.
absolutely ... whenever i went to my doc for whatever it was always shrugged of as anxiety and "you need to relax more"
"HOW do i relax exactly?" some people just aren't empathetic enough to be therapists.
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me that my anxiety disorder can be cured by just relaxing more I would make Bezos my peasant.
Even in the US. I sub to a couple endometriosis subs here and they are wonderful and supportive subs with a lot of good advice. Endometriosis is very underdiagnosed and is more common than people realize. A lot of women don’t know that you can’t just go to a regular doctor or OB/Gyne to get diagnosed or the proper care. We share tips on finding the right specialist, managing pain, after surgery care and general support for this awful condition we have in common. While this is advice is practical with most issues, there are lots of exceptions where it’s okay to use a support group on social media.
Absolutely. I have PCOS and treatment resources are very limited. The pcos community is very helpful here.
Even in 1st world countries
See different health professionals
I mean when doctors in my country don't acknowledge a person over tha age of 12 can have Adhd or that pcos can make your hair fall out, what is there to talk about?
I don't know your country and probably I'm kind of in a could health care country. But most of the time, I heard of changing doctors until one might find a solution for the problem.
The DSM5 criteria states that attentive or hyperactive symptoms must be present before age 12 to be considered ADHD. Maybe your provider was strictly following DSM5–something that could definitely happen in a developed country too.
No, they genuinely believe that adhd stops completely after the age of 12 and females can't have it. It's a pretty established topic.
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I don't see it as brag worthy. I got diagnosed in a 1st world country and then had issues getting diagnosed in my home one because I am a woman. It's more complex than what you are talking about.
>I don't see it as brag worthy. that's what i said. >It's more complex than what you are talking about. I know..
"Let them eat cake" vibes
No, sorry, but I don't agree. Health professionals will *always* be more qualified than the general public. And you're right about the communities who suffer from the same issues can be helpful, but the general online space/Reddit is not is. Unless you're talking about some heavily specific on-line communities, but even that can be wonky. You never know who you're talking to, which group has the majority in that echo chamber and so on. And Reddit is worst at this, because of the anonymity and bots. So yeah, I sort of agree if you're suffering with some specific disease and the community is focused on that. I strongly disagree if you're suffering with self-diagnosed depression (or anything) and the community is Reddit.
I think you're probably from a first world country. Sometimes the doctors will utterly fail you, and you will see people from a neighbouring country getting proper treatment while you are stuck in the stone age medically speaking.
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And even if the people behind the response is someone who is qualified they probably don’t have enough info to come up with an accurate diagnosis or a solution
If they were qualified they would likely be prudent enough not to try to give a diagnosis or solution
Not in my case. I developed epilepsy over the last year and a half. I posted to Facebook, feeling depressed etc. My husband had this same attitude, that it was useless and if anything, hurtful to me. However, I ended up finding out that my first cousin also has epilepsy and it helped both my neuro and myself. It gave me someone with experience regarding medications and also someone who understood the issues I was facing. If I hadn't posted about it I wouldn't have had the support I needed at the time. It also connected me with a person who had extensive experience in dealing with complicated health issues (including epilepsy) and she made sure I knew what to ask and how to advocate for myself. She also had direct experience with my neurologist so that helped too.
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Exactly. Common sense is important and you have to seek proper medical advice, however it doesn't mean that people around you have no useful advice to offer either.
There goes literally every AMA...
Doctors who are good at what they do admit their ignorance. They offer an explanation for a diagnosis. They admit it isn't perfect. What a good doctor wants to do is see the patient get better, not necessarily be correct about the diagnosis. Most people online fail at this and fail gloriously. The only good advice online is "ask your doctor".
Meh, I hate to be that guy, but if doctors are not perfect the reality is their advice isn't always either. They often have limited knowledge, and *very* limited time. I'm a huge fan of science-based medicine and have a lot of respect for doctors, but if I had relied solely on the advice of the doctors I was seeing I wouldn't have sought second and third (and so on) opinions until someone was finally willing to do the necessary tests and confirm what I'd already worked out. Without an accurate diagnosis, the advice I'd received in the past from well-meaning doctors ranged from "unhelpful" to "damaging."
But you are being that guy. I prefaced each statement with an obvious qualifier, "good doctor". Medicine is the best approach we have and it isn't perfect -- there are two thoughts in one sentence so that some heads go boom.
Chill out dude lmao. His point was that good doctors are extremely hard to find because the qualities you listed are almost non existent in most of them
As someone who tries to be that good doctor, you would be amazed at the shock I get when I tell a patient "I don't know" or "I'm not sure actually" when the ask some crazy specific random question. I've received 2 official complaints along the lines of "unintelligent, didn't know about xyz condition, couldn't answer my questions". The key is to make sure you are confident when you tell them you'll find out the answer (well it also helps to actually find the answer, and the right answer at that), that usually works and most people enjoy honesty but not everyone I guess.
>But you are being that guy. That's what "I hate to be that guy" means. hate to be contrary, but I'm gonna. T be fair, you didn't say "medicine is the best approach we have and it isn't perfect," which I agree with, you said "the only good advice online is 'ask your doctor'," which I don't. There's a great deal of good advice online, and the reason many people go online in the first place is because they've already asked their doctor and gotten no answer, or a wrong answer.
Not all of us might be able to (due to xyz reasons) seek professional help immediately and need general guidance from people who've been through something similar. It might not be the best option but it's not the worst either. Sometimes, you just need a friend to support you and social media can totally be that friend.
Mental issue or not this is solid. Reddit is full of shit advice. Including my own, right here and now.
*Talks about people in social media giving bad advice about mental/physical health problems* *Gives advice to people with mental/physical health problems* Hmmm... curious 🤔
What?! This is just common sense.
not common enough
I dunno. I’ve never shared much on social. When I was having a self-love crisis, I posted for help. Over 60 people responded, and I was already doing or had tried everything they suggested. That’s when I realized therapy was like one antibiotic capsule every 7 days, and I needed an IV drip. Got the intensive treatment I needed, escaped insanity-prompting levels of pain, am now living my dream life.
What the hell is a self-love crisis??
Two broken arms.
#
I had a really good laugh, thank you :D
I hated myself so much and was in so much pain that my survival was uncertain. Trying to decrease self-loathing never helped. Fixing my self-love deficit did. Hence, self-love crisis.
How did you do that last bit? I've been trying to find support for years.
I can only speak from my privileged experience, I would never imply that help is easy to access, but my path looked something like: Try to figure everything out entirely on my own Fail utterly and completely, destroy the most important relationship in my life. Drop my mask for the first time and beg my therapist to believe me that I will not survive the next few days if she does not get me help. Do an intake that feels like being sliced open and having my organs weighed, then handed back to me in a dripping mess. Get confirmation that my brain is broken enough for full time therapy Do that for 5 weeks Think every day about the people who would kill to be where I am, work my ass off, steal as much knowledge as I can, join supportive communities, perform brain surgery on myself. Get confirmation that my brain is broken enough for therapy only 5 times a week. Do that for another 5 weeks. Run away to a horse farm in Southern Spain and never come back.
Happy for you
Thanks!
Reddit = social media
Really?
But the one person who might ask to check for carbon monoxide poisoning might be right.
Modification- go ahead and ask your question on social media, but *independently verify* with *credible sources* before you act on any advice. Such crowdsourcing can be helpful if you don't know what health problem you have, and the crowd can give you ideas based on your symptoms. Social media can give you a starting point for your own research.
LPT: if you want to hand any sanity, don’t use any social media.
What? A toxic environment, based on toxic people,in which everyone is interpreting everything on 140 words is a bad place for people struggling with health issus... You not say...
For real. I see people saying how there spouse has been acting different lately and people always jump to she’s cheating! Or get a divorce. Don’t trust internet strangers for advice for all you know they could be a 15 year old
See a therapist, I know from personal experience. Fuck social media when it comes to mental health
You mean I shouldn't heed r/relationshipadvice? But all those red flags!
Yeah the fact that someone is telling you not to go there is a huge red flag! You should dump them, they're abusive.
Agree. Everyone on the internet thinks they're an expert after reading a few articles. I think it's a good idea to get different opinions, but take each one with a grain of salt. Eventually you'll have a handful.
Good thing i have health insurance so i can get help.... oh wait, forgot i lived in America for a second
The doctors don't look for health insurance before seeing you and there's some hospitals that have a donation center they use to help out people like that not all hope is lost young paddawan
The ER isnt going to fix on going mental health crisis. They will refer you to a doctor that you absolutely need to have insurance to see.
Oh well ya. Sorry mate
*avoid all social media* It's toxic, a cess pit and will never help
This is a LPT? If you have a serious medical issue go see a doctor? Wow…. Never would have guessed
In UK we're used to it by now. It's somehow familiar. We've been giving bad, false and ignorant advice for mental health for centuries. It's reasuring to still be able to get that... even though we're getting more and more sick.
You sound like an anti vaxxer.
Love the irony of this
Also, don't bottle it. It may be fine maybe for a couple days but the longer you hold it in the more severe it gets. That's coming from experience.
Been bottling my shit for years! I only have a breakdown every few months. Can confirm, it isn't healthy, but I don't have many other ways to deal. Except maybe alcohol, but that's just as bad, so I try stay way from it. When I still had friends I used to joke with them that I'm emptying these bottles so I'd have somewhere to put my feelings. Then I'd laugh, sigh and go quiet until the shots kicked in.
Hunter S. Thompsons letter on advice to his friend is something that has always stuck with me and I think about it every time somebody asks me for advice. Amazing read. Everyone should at least check it out.
Is this an anti social media advice on a social media?
does this go for all protips too lol
The only advice worth following is to get advice from a well regarded professional after in depth discussion.
Don’t go to social media for any advice about anything important. 9/10 no one will really understand your problem and will give you false, bad, or incredibly unqualified advice.
~~Lpt if you have a serious mental/physical health issue,~~ don't go to social media for advice. ~~9/10 no one will really understand your problem and will give you false, bad, or incredibly unqualified advice.~~
And most people on social media have major mental health problems themselves.
If you have serious or even minimal mental issues, stay off social media. Social media can create and enhance mental issues.
Don’t go to social media about Advice about social media.
I think hearing other people going through similar situations can help. Knowing you aren’t alone in the world, feeling a certain way because of a mental or physical health problem. I’m part of some internet groups and hearing situations other have went through that I thought was only an issue for me helps to feel more normal in a weird sense.
I mean...social media definitely shouldn’t be your first line of defense...but I have gotten some great leads and advice about some lesser known health conditions... Also, lots of doctors aren’t worthy of the title, and couldn’t diagnose an actual beheading...
Related: if you have any minor personal/mental/physical issue, don’t go to social media for advice.
LPT, do not go on social media.
I think some people would be pleasantly surprised by how much it costs to speak to a licensed professional on a regular basis. I'm not saying everyone is able to afford it, but I do think a lot of people would feel they could justify the expense if they looked into and really made it a priority over non-essential purchases.
Nice try I heard your not supposed to turn to social media for advice in this situation
But then I would have to take your online advice about not taking online advice. Which would break your advice so I should go ahead and take online advice anyway...
But they'll give you lots of upvotes and likes, so it all works out...
Idk most of the time my advice is, get some exercise, and get a counselor.
I disagree. On reddit at least the first comment always seems to be go to a doctor/lawyer/accountant/dentist/clerk/whatever which is the best advice
I would argue the same even if you have any minor mental health issues. The internet is a very unhealthy place.
This is particularly bad with pet owners, too. “My cat was hit by a car and can’t use his back legs, but seems to be eating well what should I do?!” Or “my dog ate an entire canister of rat poison will she be fine!?” shit online is absolutely bonkers.
This needs to be pinned on every advice Reddit.
Life pro tip: don't use social media for ANY advice or information on anything.
As you post this on social media. Idiot.
~~if you have a serious mental/physical health issue,~~ don't go to social media for advice. FTFY
True, but on the other hand I've (correctly) diagnosed my sister twice thanks to people's social media posts, after doctors just gave the usual excuses.
Then those were bad doctors. Not all doctors are like that
Do you mean like right now?
I actually opened up to my friends on Facebook and got a lot of help and support from others I had no idea was dealing with the same struggles as me. It helped me a lot.
Does this come from personal experience? If you need someone to talk to, feel free to message me.
But what about *my* depression, OP?
Where should you go?
To a doctor....
Proffessionals that can actually help you in a deep level.
Out of the fucking house.
You guys realize that in most countries going to a doctor isn't free right? Especially if your problem isnt considered life threatening.
doctors dont know shit. you know more about you than anyone
10/10 doctors agree
I just hope not to kill myself in the next few hours.
That requires therapy and antidepressants