Trying to be a Person @aspenfolklore - Tumblr Blog

Bro, the air right now is just awful. The worst part of the smoke coming down from Canada is running right over where I live. Air quality index is registering over 200. I've only been outside for like maybe an hour in total today, but I still managed to agitate my lungs and now I've got a bit of a cough. Don't go outside! If you have to wear a mask and don't be out there long. Hope it clears up soon.

#canadian wildfires #air quality

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“No man is an island” oh really? Really? What about him?:

adamsmasher

Torterra.....

theaceoffours

requiem-on-water

Sulfur combusts on contact with air to create stunning blue lava-like rivers of light in the Kawah Ijen crater on the island of Java | Ph: Olivier Grunewald

#save for later #landscape #nature #geology

artemistartarus

Losing so many court cases must be really tiring when you’re 80 and a narcissus.

#important #Good news #trans rights

vaguesnail

wip but happy 3rd anniversary to them!! 🖤💜

#imogen temult #cr3 #critical role #imodna #happy kissaversary

Chappell Roan was right. it is like a hundred ninety nine degrees

pokemon-personalities

if you’re reading this, i’m putting a thought out into the world for you. a hope that whatever’s worrying you works out in your favor, that a happy moment comes your way, and that you have a heartwarming reason to smile tonight

#important

nonaferatu

This would have had me crucified on tumblr 10 years ago but maybe we are ready for this conversation now:

If you are a socially anxious person, you have to socialize. Your panic/anxiety attacks will only get worse and trigger more frequently if you constantly avoid contact with The Public. Not saying that you need to be a social butterfly- but there is a genuine problem with not being able to order your own meal at a restaurant. And it cannot be solved by always having someone else do it for you.

This is a PSA to about 3/4s of the Portland Youth populace

nonaferatu

everyone who reblogs this and is like "I ordered my own tea this week" or "I only barfed once when I had to give a presentation'- you are doing amazing sweetie. Have patience with yourself, you are relearning a skill so difficult that people get 4 year degrees to do it professionally.

corishadowfang

For anyone who struggles to do this, I think it's worth mentioning that you can build coping strategies to help you get through things.

Like--for example. I struggle with verbal communication. I won't get into all the details, but the short version is that I worry that I'll get in trouble for saying the wrong thing, and so that can make it difficult to speak. Unfortunately, though, I still need to be able to communicate with people!

For some things: that simply means exposure. If my main worry is that getting in trouble for saying the wrong thing, then I just need to have enough proof that that won't happen, right? The "ordering your own meal" is actually a good example here; it feels very silly to say that trying to order something at like--a drivethru was terrifying for me, but oh my God did it take a lot to work myself up to doing it. But like--most of the time, drivethru workers aren't going to be actively yelling at or making fun of you, even if you stumble over your words or mess up an order. And eventually, doing that enough times was enough to go, "Okay. This isn't so bad. Even if something goes wrong, it's probably going to be minor." There's still some nerves there, but they're much easier to ignore!

For other things, though, doing them repeatedly...mostly just feels like picking up a burning pot with your bare hands. Yeah, you can do it--but it really sucks, and if it gets easier, that's just because the nerve endings have been burnt off. For these, just forcing yourself to do them doesn't help; you have to find some sort of metaphorical potholder to help. Phone calls fall into this category for me, for some reason; no matter how many calls I make, I can never fully get rid of the anxiety that surrounds making them. Sometimes, I can wait until a day where my anxiety is a little lower; other times, however, I need to make the call now, and so I need something to get me through it. In this case, writing a script for myself helps; this way, I can get my words right ahead of time, and while I may still struggle if we go off script, it's usually enough to at least get me to call.

And then there are times when doing something just--isn't possible, and you have to find workarounds. There are genuinely situations where I'll lose the ability to speak entirely, and there's nothing I can do to force myself to do it. But I can't always just leave when I can't speak! So I've found ways to cope with that. A lot of times, I can get away with just being really expressive. If I really need to use words, I can write things down or use text to speech; usually people are understanding if I explain, "Hey, I lost my voice, so I can't talk normally right now." (...Usually.)

And like--that's just kind of a personal example! You may have to experiment a bit to figure out what works for you and what doesn't. If you have a therapist, it's not a bad idea to talk to them and try to come up with some coping mechanisms. If not, but you have some people you trust, you can try talking to them, too. Or just writing things down to spitball ideas! And if something doesn't work out right the first time, try not to beat yourself up over it; you're learning, and anytime you're learning a new skill, that'll always come with a certain amount of setbacks. It's just a part of the process! Take your time and be kind to yourself, and it'll start to get easier.

#Important

aesungaia

Everyone's Friend

birdplushie

"it's not that deep" START DIGGING!!

magn-animously

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buriedunderyourmum

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hannisconfused

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kitsunesakii

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yourlocalfandomfriendo

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OOPS TOO DEEP

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She has caught the nefarious tail

#I love it when they do that

mens-rights-activia

Anemone song

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Joy and whimsy detected! This anemone song is joyful and whimsical!

#an absolute banger

horse-immorality-lives

Imagine your fav has an extremely distinct and unique look (lavender hair with braids and arms covered in purple lightning scars) and for two years it's just her and then then suddenly another girl shows up on the scene with the same style. Now 50% of the time when you see art of your fav it's actually the other girl. It could happen to you. It happened to me.

aspenfolklore

^ constantly happening to me