Wow, I'm totally numbed. I can't wait to hit my lounge chair and find a recorded show on TV I love and get lost in it. My life is in shambles, and I really want to move south and be by the ocean. That seems to be the only thing that bring me happiness and a feeling of freedom. I can't afford to make that move and I'm stuck in commitments I can't escape from. I know it's time to take care of myself, but I spend my time taking care of others who depend on me. I'm exhausted. I love to write my substack and that has helped me more than anything. I just need more time to myself to do it. I love to paint, but I haven't wanted to express myself in the doldrums I find myself in. Part of it is Political, but I try to not get embedded in that delimma. I need space to relax in nature and being an elderly woman, I find it a bit uncomfortable to find a quiet space that feels safe. I know what's best for me, but I'm not free to live in that space now.
Thank you so much for sharing. And we all do it, for sure. Sometimes it’s needed, unfortunately. And that’s ok.
My main hope with this post is for people to build a little self awareness around numbing. And then decide how they might choose better activities more aligned with their goals, hopes, and dreams.
Give yourself some grace! If you feel like numbing might not be best for you, you can start with some tiny actions and see how it goes!
Andy, I really appreciate everything you have to say about numbing out: the nature of doing so, signs it's happening and, especially, the various ways to reduce it. (I happen to believe that every form of addiction – from porn to gambling to alcohol to crack cocaine – is a more severe form of numbing out.) My go-to form of "crack": doom scrolling on YouTube. I can spend hours, literally in an altered form of consciousness, then "wake up" and discover that I'd just wasted a portion of my life. (And, of course, we know that the Powers That Be behind these online platforms are doing this deliberately, which is evil.
Anyway, Step 1 in dealing with this is to recognize that it's happening. Thank you for the reminder that this is indeed the case.
Wow, I'm totally numbed. I can't wait to hit my lounge chair and find a recorded show on TV I love and get lost in it. My life is in shambles, and I really want to move south and be by the ocean. That seems to be the only thing that bring me happiness and a feeling of freedom. I can't afford to make that move and I'm stuck in commitments I can't escape from. I know it's time to take care of myself, but I spend my time taking care of others who depend on me. I'm exhausted. I love to write my substack and that has helped me more than anything. I just need more time to myself to do it. I love to paint, but I haven't wanted to express myself in the doldrums I find myself in. Part of it is Political, but I try to not get embedded in that delimma. I need space to relax in nature and being an elderly woman, I find it a bit uncomfortable to find a quiet space that feels safe. I know what's best for me, but I'm not free to live in that space now.
Thank you so much for sharing. And we all do it, for sure. Sometimes it’s needed, unfortunately. And that’s ok.
My main hope with this post is for people to build a little self awareness around numbing. And then decide how they might choose better activities more aligned with their goals, hopes, and dreams.
Give yourself some grace! If you feel like numbing might not be best for you, you can start with some tiny actions and see how it goes!
I will work on it. Thank you for being there. We need people like you as friends, for sure.
Very good article, Andy! I am sure this article will help many others experiencing numbing out.
Thank you! 🙏🏻
Andy, I really appreciate everything you have to say about numbing out: the nature of doing so, signs it's happening and, especially, the various ways to reduce it. (I happen to believe that every form of addiction – from porn to gambling to alcohol to crack cocaine – is a more severe form of numbing out.) My go-to form of "crack": doom scrolling on YouTube. I can spend hours, literally in an altered form of consciousness, then "wake up" and discover that I'd just wasted a portion of my life. (And, of course, we know that the Powers That Be behind these online platforms are doing this deliberately, which is evil.
Anyway, Step 1 in dealing with this is to recognize that it's happening. Thank you for the reminder that this is indeed the case.
Thanks, Larry!