About depression Help with depression Help for relatives Society DepNet Community My Depression

Read diary

About life and death

A page in the diary "surprise surprise"
Written by g463 17. Apr 2008 08:38 PM

While I'm aware that in life there is heaps of 'grey' - not as in depression per se, but in terms of compromise, or half-way, or in the the various shades of things, that's not quite what I meant when I said that I am motivated by putting the things of life into the "Life" basket or the "Death" basket.

The Life basket is a series of decisions that I make that enhance my life - bring life to my life!

The Death basket isn't about actual death, but more about 'does my decision to do something take away from my life?'

So while the decision to eat another Mars Bar might fall into either category depending on the reason why I'm eating it (Life if its for healthy pleasure, energy etc; Death if what's motivating me to eat it is self-harm, self-hate, comfort eating or whatever) there's no real 'grey' there - it's one or the other. Any 'Life' reason is a good reason, and therefore any 'Death' reason is not a good reason. One way or another, my decision to eat it either leads to more of life, or more of death.

And I guess that's what I was intending when I referred to it elsewhere on Depnet.

If I choose to blob on my sofa watching TV, it might be a 'life' decision if I need to relax and unwind. If I did that all day every day perhaps it's doing little to nothing to enhancing my life and therefore leads to 'death' - death of my potential, death of relationships with others, death of dreams...

Life itself is far from black and white, and to think that it is, is a mistake. The issue here is both simple and complex at the same time in that there's nothing between life and death - no middle ground. The decisions I make fall one way or another...and yet it's not black and white at all. The grey, I suppose is in eating the Mars Bar and knowing that today because I burned a lot of energy it's okay...but that a second one would be sabotaging the 'life' and inviting 'death' into the picture.

Hope this makes more sense now.

Cheers!

« Prev page | Next page »
 

Comments from the community:

G

I am really not sure what this diary entry is to mean/represent. Hope you are taking life and not death and you are right, you can watch the tv, eat the mars bar whenever you like. You are the only one who can judge your life and no one else can.

Go G!!!

Mrs Studying1

Written by studying1, 17. Apr 2008 08:47 PM

I can see how you are using the Life and Death baskets as a metaphor for good and bad- and that's fine, as long as you don't punish yourself about the "Death" bits, in my book. I would love it if you and other people could divorce "good" and "bad" from food! It just doesn't apply for me and never has- so it MUST work for others. I just think "fuel in", "energy out"- I REALLY do go for moderation- it's been part of my life since I was a baby- I've never been any other way. I have a bucket of hot chips a few times per week because I adore them- and I always have. Friends who don't know me that well will look on with great horror and envy. I AM a few kilos overweight but it's not a disaster area and I have been getting a bit more exercise and eating slightly less all round to help that out, but I'm not stressing or giving myself rewards and punishments because I just don't weight myself. Weight that way is just a number. If my clothes fit, fine, if they don't I eat a little less on every occasion I eat. Good/bad is just not the way to go- I think it rubs off on the person. I am a good person because I am not a criminal and I don't deliberately hurt or upset others. Full stop. NOTHING to do with food or habits- they are behaviours, not me.

Written by Templdust, 17. Apr 2008 09:00 PM

Hi g463
Demons 48 here. the song i just got back from hell is by an artist named Gary Allan.
So glad you liked it.
Regards Demons48

Written by Deleted_User, 17. Apr 2008 09:51 PM

G463

Thank you ... it is very clear... and I truly appreciate your comment and this post... I will read this over again.. as what you say is important to remember... I think I understand what you have said...

I am sorry other people are a little confused about the post... G told me this in a post to me...

take care

rgds
cate

Written by cateblack, 17. Apr 2008 11:42 PM