I remember when I was a kid, if someone was in therapy, people talked about it in hushed tones, like it was a shameful secret, and now people talk about it casually in every day conversation. It's good to see that things can change, even if it's just a bit.
this ties into a big lesson we've personally learned from queer history and enjoy applying elsewhere. when something is unspeakable, and you want it not to be, the most important step is to speak it.
@irenes@RickiTarr This has always been my reason for being really open about mental health, queerness, polyam, kink, and, as I work it out for myself first, plurality. The more I can humanize myself to others, the more it destigmatizes these experiences. This is the kind of 1:1 and day-to-day activism I think is some of the most important work, if you’re in spaces safe enough.
So true ... I was seeing a psychiatrist at 6 I think, due to not listening ... At first they thought I had a hearing problem ... I was a leper in primary school ... And it didn't help that my mum was a single mother in the late 70's in a high religious area ... A lot of hush tones
@RickiTarr When I was a kid (1960s), people talked about cancer in the same way - hushed whispers, as if they might catch it by talking about it out loud.
@mycotropic@RickiTarr Yes, if you thought in 2015 that fascism was a threat, you were "deranged". And in 2024 the guy is literally campaigning on fascism. Weaponizing language by calling a legitimate concern a "derangement syndrome" is an early warning sign of budding fascism.
@RickiTarr
We have actually witnessed lots of progress in recent decades.
The world is a better and more humane place than when I was a kid and I have to force myself to appreciate that sometimes.
@RickiTarr I’m happy other people can do that because they have thrown off the shame that they didn’t deserve for working on themselves.
Now if only I could do the same. :/ It makes me feel hypocritical to be happy for others but hidden myself.
I think, growing up autistic without having a word for it, I just learned that I was Wrong, and Wrong was deserving of shame or apology. Unfortunately having the words to describe yourself doesn’t scrape off the years and what they’ve done.
@WhiteCatTamer@RickiTarr We probably all need "therapy" to some degree or other,even if that just consists of sharing, with friends. But, like you said, easy to say but can be difficult to do.
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