Posted by Damos on June 15, 2005, at 17:42:07
In reply to When you suffer from depression, how do you know, posted by sunny10 on June 15, 2005, at 10:30:18
Hey Sunny,
Hows the sleep and being back at work going?
Sadly can't be much help on the medication front having experience with a couple of ADs. But I think TamaraJ has got that pretty well covered as well as most everything else. She's good isn't she?
My experience has been that I do tend to get more paranoid when I going through a bad episode and I also find that my antennae are set to ultra-hyer-sensitive at these times too.
In all honesty my normal response is to withdraw even further into myslef and shut everything else out. There are probably only 2 maybe 3 people who I trust without exception even in these periods. My brain still puts a warped spin on everything they say and do - but I can somehow convince myself that "no, these are the good guys." It's hard to be in a place where everything tells you not to trust your own judgement about people and the people around you have proved (at least in a couple of cases) that they can't be trusted.
An interesting concept I try to remember is "The Ladder of Inference" and how it can effect my thinking and actions. So imagine a step ladder up against a wall. Starting at the bottom.
1st rung: Observable 'data' and experiences as a videotape might capture it
2nd rung: I select 'data' from what I observe
3rd rung: I add meanings - cultural and personal to to that 'data'
4th rung: I make assumptions based on the meanings I added
5th rung: I draw conclusions
6th rung: I adopt beliefs about the world based on those conclusions
7th rung: I take actions based on my beliefs
The reflexive loop then means that in the future we select 'data' back down on the second rung based on our beliefs.
So for example, if you'd observed soemthing I did on the video and run it up the ladder where your belief was that I am a jerk, your stating premise will be that I am a jerk and in the future you will observe data that supports that belief.
What this mean is that we, without realising it, collect data that reinforces what we've come to believe, without questioning its validity. A simple test of what we hear is: "When you said '[your inference]', did you mean '[my interpretation of it]'?
I see you've got a new label too. Just what you needed. Please take care Sunny. Really hoping things get better for you soon.
BTW when I played sport the guys called me Arfa. Cause half a glass/can of anything alcoholic and I was gone.
poster:Damos
thread:513088
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/relate/20050531/msgs/513273.html