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May 14, 2021Liked by Handwaving Freakoutery

I don't think clonazepam is for depression but anxiety.

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Same for nicotine. :)

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Clonazepam (Klonopin) is a benzodiazepine, very similar to lorazepam (Ativan), diazepam (Valium) and alprazolam (Xanax). They’re all anxiolytics, or anti-anxiety meds or “minor” tranquilizers (vs. antipsychotics).

Benzodiazepines can be addictive, but not nearly so as opiates, nicotine or alcohol. And unlike alcohol addiction, where abrupt cessation can be potentially life threatening, benzodiazepine withdrawal is at most uncomfortable.

Most addictions can be and are now managed medically on an outpatient basis rather than through very expensive inpatient “rehabilitation” clinics. Also, the pubic reporting on Jordan Peterson’s health problems is at best confused (e.g., travel to Russia for medically-induced coma). Peterson may have had a paradoxical reaction, he may have contributed to the severity of his condition by attempting to quit “cold turkey,” or he may be suffering from some other ailment. It does seem certain that he and his family aren’t telling the public the whole truth.

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Dec 2, 2021Liked by Handwaving Freakoutery

Divinity is what sits at the top of the moral gossip tree. That is what moralising religions provide. A top authority. Much of our social dysfunction comes from Twitter mobs acting as peaks of the moral gossip tree.

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May 14, 2021Liked by Handwaving Freakoutery

Interesting read

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> He’s stranded (arguably by choice) at the front lines of a culture war, and embattled by a media engine which revels in mischaracterizing him to reap clickbait money... thinks out loud and challenges his own assumptions... can’t trust that his own advice would be useful, because he can’t appeal to his own authority...

The anti-woke culture war is the Russian Winter of the meme landscape, and the "alt" sphere, Afghanistan. Only a man with excessive ego would dare waltz into multiple fronts. His caricature is also looking more and more clownishly authoritarian (see "who cancels who" memes). https://archive.ph/1uy2f https://archive.ph/FavJM https://archive.ph/wip/FavJM

The fatal assumption is that just because he challenged the idea, it does not guarantee reasonable ideological change, and his post-Zizek thought process has not changed much. A man who only changes beliefs in a state of fear, as with his desire to prayer, is not reliable in making advice an absolute ala 12 Rules of Life. If it sounds too appealing, it is likely to be either non-universal (lack of contextual clarity) or false, in both the countersignaling sense (platitudes & "just drink tea-ism") and in the grift sense (obvious advice attached to a cult of personality). https://thomasjbevan.substack.com/p/on-the-futility-of-offering-advice https://blog.asmartbear.com/advice.html https://amirbolous.com/posts/advice/ https://robkhenderson.substack.com/p/the-perils-of-imitating-high-status https://archive.ph/Y92ob

> Nicotine. I started vaping for a bit. I truly think this helped

Whenever nicotine use is considered, try topping up some eggs (or other source of choline) since that helps with maintaining mental focus. The wise either smokes or eats an egg-rich diet to cope with a resource-demanding strong mind. https://www.bravermantest.com/ https://www.uphs.upenn.edu/addiction/berman/relapse/ http://www.staystrongsc.com/blog/2016/7/1/a-heads-up-look-at-brain-health

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I don't think that there's necessarily a hierarchy since therapists can effectively help other therapists and it can form a circle. I view it more like the ways we help each other are positive sum (even if it's negative for one of the parties it at least helps the other party more), not so much that we spew our poison up the tree to one almighty stoic at the top.

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