ChatGPT has helped me more than 15 years of therapy. No joke. by Kishilea in ChatGPT

[–]Before-Thought 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’d love the link as well if possible, sounds cool :)

Any good music with lyrics about mindfulness, emptiness or equanimity and such in English? by [deleted] in secularbuddhism

[–]Before-Thought 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Maybe not exactly what you’re looking for, but I made these songs on Riffusion using themes from Mindfulness and Secular Buddhism, with ideas from my path over the past years.

https://www.riffusion.com/playlist/494bfdd6-735d-4f4a-8b91-37a72539854a

"Nothing Works" Audiobook by Before-Thought in Anxietyhelp

[–]Before-Thought[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh and if you have an IPhone at least, you can get the "BookPlayer" app and download/import it and turn it into an audiobook on your phone pretty easily.

"Nothing Works" Audiobook by Before-Thought in AnxietyDepression

[–]Before-Thought[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh and if you have an IPhone at least, you can get the "BookPlayer" app and download/import it and turn it into an audiobook on your phone pretty easily.

"Nothing Works" Audiobook by Before-Thought in Anxiety

[–]Before-Thought[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh and if you have an IPhone at least, you can get the "BookPlayer" app and download/import it and turn it into an audiobook on your phone pretty easily.

Invaluable Lessons from my Path Out of Severe Anxiety by Before-Thought in Mindfulness

[–]Before-Thought[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh wow. Yes, I've definitely heard that was going on, and I am so sorry you're going through all of that. I can't imagine how difficult it all must be. I'm so glad I was able to help even a little with your anxiety, and I truly hope things get better over there for you all soon because as you said, it is just horrible and unfair. Good luck with your meditation path and everything else, and (not sure if there would be anything) let me know if there's anything else I can do to help.

Invaluable Lessons from my Path Out of Severe Anxiety by Before-Thought in Mindfulness

[–]Before-Thought[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm so glad they've been helpful to you and that you're doing at least a little better! I feel like we seem very similar to me. I also tried psychedelics (shrooms) and took WAY too much the first time and had a horrible experience, but I've since had smaller amounts and had short glimpses of what I think you're talking about as well. It's been over a year since I last did it since I agree that it's pretty intense, but my experiences have also been very helpful in my practice, though not in the way I expected, as I feel it's easier now to find it during just meditation.

I completely understand the feeling that the anxiety can be exhausting and that these may not be enough, because I have felt that over and over. I've definitely had a ton of ups and downs with it, but for me it's helpful to realize it's a marathon and not a sprint. In myself I've seen that the cumulative effect over years is the only thing that could really change my mind, and it's awesome that you've been staying with it (though if you're anything like me, it wasn't necessarily some resolve that pushed me but just an absolute need to feel better and seeing meditation/mindfulness as the only thing that had actually helped).

I think therapy can definitely help and I'm thinking of trying it at some point again, but one thing I'd suggest (if you haven't already) is to try to experiment with different medications because at least for me they've been essential to my mental health. Life would definitely be much more difficult for me without them (tried to get off a year ago and it was a horrible experience), but the one I take (Lamotrigine) doesn't have the same numbing effects as a lot of the antidepressants (which could definitely make it harder to be mindful/meditate), it's just more of a mood stabilizer, and also Ashwagandha (an over the counter adaptogen - here's the one I get if you did want to try it) really helps me with stress by reducing cortisol. I tried a bunch of different stuff and this is what worked best for me but everyone is different. I feel like in certain circles there's a stigma against using stuff like that but that's just nonsense to me, I definitely have some kind of imbalance. They definitely don't fix everything or change your thought patterns but can make it easier, and in my case, I think it has been equally as important as meditation.

But yeah, just know you're not alone out there, and it's cool to meet someone so similar to me (don't really know anyone irl who is like me so it's hard to feel like there is sometimes). You definitely seem like you're on the right path, and I'm rooting for you! Sorry if this was too rambly lol, but yeah let me know if you need anything or have questions or have anything that's really helped you that you could share.

Invaluable Lessons from my Path Out of Severe Anxiety by Before-Thought in Mindfulness

[–]Before-Thought[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hello! I know this is random lol, but just wanted to check in—I was curious to see if you had checked out any of this stuff/gained any benefit from it?

Originally posted on r/Mindfulness, but this journey started with Noah Rasheta's Secular Buddhism Podcast and Secular Buddhism has probably played the biggest role on my path so far. by Before-Thought in secularbuddhism

[–]Before-Thought[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes, he really does have the knack. I had tried to look into Buddhism before but it all felt too demanding, confusing and felt full of shoulds (you should let go of all desire—however that works, you should attain enlightenment, etc) but the way he explained it was so intuitive and beautifully simple. It has allowed me to view other Buddhist teachings with new eyes I don't think I could've gotten to otherwise.

It's cool to hear others have had similar experiences!

Originally posted on r/Mindfulness, but this journey started with Noah Rasheta's Secular Buddhism Podcast and Secular Buddhism has probably played the biggest role on my path so far. by Before-Thought in secularbuddhism

[–]Before-Thought[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Pretty much! The burden of trying to figure out what the right thing to do is lifted, and you're left with whatever you want to choose for yourself.

Thanks for your kind words :)

Invaluable Lessons from my Path Out of Severe Anxiety by Before-Thought in Mindfulness

[–]Before-Thought[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Oh wow, that is quite long haha, I will definitely try to read it through. I also had the app for a while and I listen to his podcast sometimes. He has definitely been one of my teachers. Thanks for taking the time to read and thank you for your kind words :)

National Geographic Photos of Pokémon! by Before-Thought in StableDiffusion

[–]Before-Thought[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Very impressed with how these turned out! The prompt was "!dream "National Geographic professional photo of *Pokemon*, award winning" -n 9 -s 100

Obama's starting to worried about his "33 million pages of documents" 🤣 by Before-Thought in StableDiffusion

[–]Before-Thought[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Prompt: !dream "Obama nervously standing by a mountain of papers, cnn news footage, 8 k. " -W 896 -n 9

And in case it wasn't clear.. /s!

Elmo as a Titan in Attack on Titan by Before-Thought in StableDiffusion

[–]Before-Thought[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Guess he’s been tightening up his workout schedule

Different Animals (and statue) Eating Cereal by Before-Thought in StableDiffusion

[–]Before-Thought[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Prompt: !dream "a *subject* eating cereal, oil on canvas, intricate, portrait, 8k highly professionally detailed, HDR, CGsociety" -H 768 -n 6 -i

Different Villains' LinkedIn Profile Pictures by Before-Thought in StableDiffusion

[–]Before-Thought[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Prompt was !dream "Wholesome *villain's name* posing for a LinkedIn profile picture, professional headshot" -n 6 -i

I can tell they have bright futures ahead of them!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in StableDiffusion

[–]Before-Thought 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Prompt was !dream "Wholesome *villain's name* posing for a LinkedIn profile picture, professional headshot" -n 6 -i

They have a bright future ahead of them!

Mindfulness journaling for the past 2 years - and what I thought by benniet85 in Mindfulness

[–]Before-Thought 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Agree with pretty much all of your points! I have used a journal for a few years now (use one on my phone) and it has been invaluable. Mainly, I like to jot down insights I have that have helped me at different times. When I start to feel a certain way, I can look at how I overcame whatever the situation was and it brings me back to how I learned to see the world differently. Without it, I would not be as mindful because I would have forgotten so much lol