Posts by Anthony Booth42

Look, I don't even smoke! And I voted 'No' because this whole thing is an attack on freedom of conscience. If it comes down to it, I'll just skip a cafe or politely ask someone to move their cigarette so the smoke isn't blowing right in my face. That's really all there is to it.😎

relativity said:Your God doesn't exist in my world.

I can live with your take on God.
P.S. Obviously REM cycles exist; I was just getting to the core purpose of dreaming!!

Later.

Jonathan Brown6 said:Where does my consciousness go when I sleep? Am I even alive while I'm out? Do I still have a soul? Where does "me" go? Yet, I’m still me. If I can't remember a single REM cycle or any dream... then I'm not sleeping, I'm just going to bed and waking up as myself again... in an instant, or maybe a split second after I lie down, I'm already getting up... Is there a jump between lying down and my "self" waking up? Does my consciousness shut off for a moment, reset, turn off for longer, or does it never turn off at all? My clock shows eight hours have passed since I went to bed, but I only remember the last REM phase. Am I conscious during REM? There has to be a shutdown if I believe time exists, meaning this world keeps moving even when I'm not spiritually present... I have zero awareness of what happened while I was asleep—no images, no memories... Where was I?

You're definitely alive. Your consciousness doesn't go anywhere because it *is* you; it's inside you. It doesn't shut off, otherwise you'd be dead. You don't need to have images, and if you do, they're just there because the barriers holding you back while awake are being released—those are dreams. They're just a mirror of your conscience. Don't stress over them; plenty of people have gone crazy chasing dreams. The only dreams worth anything are the ones sent by God. You can tell the difference in those; I can't quite explain it, you just know they're from God.

Best,

Kikaa said:I’m struggling with depression. One minute everything feels fine, and the next, it feels like the ground is slipping out from under me and everything is sinking. There are moments when I feel genuinely motivated and enthusiastic about life—looking forward to tomorrow and feeling truly grateful for everything I have and everything happening to me.

But often, whenever I'm not in that great headspace, I feel like I have nothing to live for, like I'm unloved, and I just don't have the energy for work. My perfect day would be just crawling into bed and sleeping it off. I give up on my dreams quickly because they start to seem impossible, and if they're impossible, why even bother trying? Why just head toward disappointment?

One day, I went to see a psychic who summed all this up in a single sentence. She told me I have a lot of bad energy coming from my past and that I need to close that chapter before I can move forward, offering to help since she's a "spiritual healer." I just said thanks, but no thanks. I don't believe in that stuff; I'm more of a realist who thinks this is just some chemical imbalance in my body.

I really want to get rid of these mood swings and the depression, but I don't want to see a doctor. It feels silly to me, and I don't believe in taking things like antidepressants; I think there's another way.

Does anyone have any ideas? Please...

Through prayer! That helps most, and that's when God gives you strength. If you're a hard realist, find someone or a group that relaxes you (but NOT too much), and most importantly, someone who actually SUPPORTS you! Then just relax with a comedy. DON'T LISTEN TO PEOPLE WHO TELL YOU "everything will be fine"—that's like telling a blind person they'll see soon. Just don't sleep too much. Better to dream about the good days ahead, write down how you're feeling in a journal (you'll laugh at it later), and plan for the future; that's what provides support.
AGAIN, I REPEAT: FIND SUPPORT, BUT NOT FAKE SUPPORT THAT JUST PITYS YOU!

P.S. I'd also recommend a psychiatrist and antidepressants alongside everything else I mentioned, or a local priest (if you're religious)!

Wishing you the best in your recovery!👍 🙂