I've been through some hard times in the last few years. Mental breakdown at work (care worker, lots of physical assault), a wife who suffered post natal depression, me overworking myself to care for her and our two sons and work full time, my mam survived cancer only to lose my grandad the year after to cancer. I'm fairly certain I remember thinking once "If I just lie down here at the side of the road and die, wouldn't that be a lot easier than feeling this way every second of every day?"
So I'm fairly sure at some point I actually lost my mind, but one of the things that anchored me and helped me get through it all was D&D.
We play weekly on a Wednesday online. For months I didn't want to attend, looked for every excuse not to, and was miserable during most games. But I went. I spoke to people. I participated as much as I thought I could. And it came to a point i can't even define, now, when I realised I felt better than I had in ages.
There isn't any moral to all this, but I wanted to share. I didn't do anything like this for mental health week... maybe I was scared to revisit it... but I think it's important for men to freely express their vulnerabilities, and I feel good for sharing this with all of you.
If there is any message, it may be the clichéd "Don't give up." I'm glad I didn't.
I think there is a reason that D&D back in the day was the hobby of the bullied, ostracized nerds of their respective high schools and colleges. As a fantasy in which nearly anything can happen, it is a great way to escape from the unpleasantness of the real world for a few hours and live in a place where everything is possible. For a little while you can be a hero, slay dragons, save towns from orcs, and explore dark crypts, and all the BS of the world falls by the wayside. Although your case was obviously severe, I think D&D has helped keep a lot of people going over the years, by giving us something fun to look forward to even when the rest of our lives aren't so hot.
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
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I've been through some hard times in the last few years. Mental breakdown at work (care worker, lots of physical assault), a wife who suffered post natal depression, me overworking myself to care for her and our two sons and work full time, my mam survived cancer only to lose my grandad the year after to cancer. I'm fairly certain I remember thinking once "If I just lie down here at the side of the road and die, wouldn't that be a lot easier than feeling this way every second of every day?"
So I'm fairly sure at some point I actually lost my mind, but one of the things that anchored me and helped me get through it all was D&D.
We play weekly on a Wednesday online. For months I didn't want to attend, looked for every excuse not to, and was miserable during most games. But I went. I spoke to people. I participated as much as I thought I could. And it came to a point i can't even define, now, when I realised I felt better than I had in ages.
There isn't any moral to all this, but I wanted to share. I didn't do anything like this for mental health week... maybe I was scared to revisit it... but I think it's important for men to freely express their vulnerabilities, and I feel good for sharing this with all of you.
If there is any message, it may be the clichéd "Don't give up." I'm glad I didn't.
Good for you. Thanks for sharing. One foot in front of the other, and all that. It’s an achievement, and that should be acknowledged.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
I think there is a reason that D&D back in the day was the hobby of the bullied, ostracized nerds of their respective high schools and colleges. As a fantasy in which nearly anything can happen, it is a great way to escape from the unpleasantness of the real world for a few hours and live in a place where everything is possible. For a little while you can be a hero, slay dragons, save towns from orcs, and explore dark crypts, and all the BS of the world falls by the wayside. Although your case was obviously severe, I think D&D has helped keep a lot of people going over the years, by giving us something fun to look forward to even when the rest of our lives aren't so hot.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.