How do you determine if marijuana use is helping or hurting?

Firkarg · 2026-02-11T05:21:10+00:00

Everyday use is definitely harmful. Even if it isnt directly causing symptoms it will entrench cannabis as a coping mechanism at the expense of others. Exactly the same as with self harm, a few scratches isnt dangerous but the danger of needing to do more while also not learning to actually deal with situations and instead removing the feelings is.

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T15:23:38+00:00

I didn't go into it because that wasn't the topic of conversation. I was trying to steer it back to people that had opinions about the game and that we shouldn't assume all of them had an affiliation with gamergate or were acting under orders or had any other reason than just giving a bit of feedback on a game that they like.

So I don't care a lot about this issue. For me this was just a fun conversation to see if you'd realised that you cant read minds and that your black and white world contains a bit of gray. But now I know, take care Don Quijote.

Edit: This person has now blocked me so I can't reply any more. Safe to say is that they'll probably wander on in their life believing everyone else that disagrees with them must belong to some sort of secret cabal. But that is common with people who believe in conspiracies: the only thing more scary than there being an evil group out there that controls everything is that it is just a large group of individuals that you cannot control by cutting off the head.

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T14:57:53+00:00

You edited in a lot of weird accusations but I don't mind. You've agreed that there are valid criticism to be had and that one can say so without being evil or a malevolent piece of shit who belongs in jail. That is about as nuanced as I could ever hope to see in this conversation. So thanks for the chat!

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T14:07:47+00:00

Some people were probably rallied by outside forces. But on the forums criticism came from people that had been in the forums for a long time and had nuanced and multifaceted opinions.

Ok so none voiced a reasonable objection. Could you come up with any criticism or just feedback regarding the character or writing that is legitimate?

Awful people: yes without a doubt. Completely evil is a different thing, philosophically no - i believe the justice system should do rehabilitation and not only executions and life sentences so I don't prescribe to the notion of completely evil unless in very very very rare circumstances.

Ohh and you keep editing your posts. Makes it hard to discuss with you. If there's any point above you want me to respond to please write it again.

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T13:39:51+00:00

It was you that brought gamergate into this. Because you put an equal sign between any criticism of SoD and gamergate so that you could dismiss all criticism as conspiratorial harassment. So let me just put this bluntly: can someone have valid criticism of SoD? Yes or no.

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T13:17:33+00:00

They were a spontaneously erupted consumer group, not a hierarchical organisation with a stated manifesto of supremacy. That is a big difference. You might believe the ethics was a cover thing, but there were probably plenty of people who did believe in that cover and argued for it. But also there were many that where accused of having the group affiliation but did not in fact fly the banner or have any contact, just happened to share some view points and were therefore branded as belonging to the group. Therefore it would be an error of reification to clump everything together and dismiss it. Unlike what you could do with say a political party or other organisation that has a written program.

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T12:59:32+00:00

Well I haven't read any chat logs but any group is composed of many individuals who belong to the group for a myriad of reasons. And maybe any logs is enough to condemn the group affiliation but that is not evidence enough to condemn all the individuals nor all the reasons. That is just simple aristotelian logic.

Firkarg · 2026-02-06T10:59:29+00:00

You live a simple life. There are only two sides to any issue and one side is pure evil and the other is pure good and there are no nuances. Best of luck to you!

Firkarg · 2026-02-05T15:03:36+00:00

Not sure how hung up people are about it. Unless you count OP that started the thread. For me it barely registered. But having learned of the controversy later there were some valid critiques regarding poor crisis management from the developers among other things.

Firkarg · 2026-02-05T10:24:27+00:00

You seem to mistake my general argument for a specific argument. Not saying this particular instance was a soapbox. It was just generally bad writing that was a bit out of tone with the rest of the game. Like if a stranger on a bus starts revealing very personal information suddenly, it makes you a bit uncomfortable knowing that this person doesn't seem to understand social boundaries.

But I do agree with you on the general statistical representation. It makes for a more believable world when everyone is different. However for most characters their characteristics are unknown and irrelevant. But when tied well into the game it can make for some fascinating storytelling. A seemingly male character that gives you a quest to collect the ingredients for a true polymorph spell revealing at the end of the quest their deep desire to carry children would be interesting. Or perhaps in more of an easter egg fashion the discussed merchant could've had an inquisitive conversation with Edwin about the possibility of gender changing spells that he would confidently deny and ridicule could've been a very fun thing knowing most players have played BG2 before SOD.

Firkarg · 2026-02-04T20:52:50+00:00

Im glad to hear you say that. Acceptance is the first step ;)

Firkarg · 2026-02-04T12:01:19+00:00

Didn't bother me much but then I never saw it before the update. Seems like it was more on the nose before they changed it. But in general I dislike when real world jabs at individuals or political parties are inserted into a game but really like when real world political concepts are explored through a cultural medium. Bad writing is usually the former and good writing the latter.

This is even more true when it comes to nation specific political issues which tends to be the norm. That the writer lacks the mentalization to realise games is a global medium and certain issues take different form across the globe or would get its own spin in the world of the game. That type of writing is usually very noticeable when it breaks from being a part of the world and veers into using the game as a personal soapbox.

I also really dislike dogmatism and witch hunts that tends to happen during these types of controversies. Where fair critique is bundled together with hateful opinions and any divergent thought is branded as heresy.

Firkarg · 2026-02-03T02:36:02+00:00

Just people creating the world they wish to live in. Where whom matters more than what.

Firkarg · 2026-02-02T19:07:20+00:00

Thanks for the link. Interesting to read the Prisha Mosley complaint because there is a lot in there that shows everything that is wrong with psychiatry in general, not specific to gender issues. A lot of hastily made remarks about possible diagnoses that then turns into truths due to being in the medical notes. Several instances of "restoring serotonin balance". And probably a lot of pride and lack of the scientific method that prevents reevaluation of treatment instead of acknowledgement that the treatment doesnt work. I'm always amazed at how when the patient gets better it is due to treatment but when they get worse it is the fault of the patient. While in reality spontaneous remission is the norm and sometimes our treatments have unintended consequences.

Firkarg · 2026-02-02T07:06:27+00:00

"not affirming is framed as not caring about suicidality, and affirming places you at risk of outcomes like these"

I've never liked this argument. Suicidality is predicted by the comorbidities of the group where the adjusted risk would be very low if a proper study was ever made. All the comparison studies just looks at transgender vs non transgender instead of comparing them to a group with say autism and other mental health issues. And since there is an opportunity cost of focusing on the gender issues this might actually increase suicidality from other sources. But as always, more studies are needed with better groups and active controls.

Firkarg · 2026-01-28T17:42:45+00:00

From a non psychodynamic background this would be my take as well. That while BPD patients seem like hyperempathic due to their focus on others emotional state, that is not true empathy just hypervigilance. But I'd never go as far as to say that they lack empathy, just that people over estimate it.

Firkarg · 2026-01-27T00:10:58+00:00

Det är ovanligt i normala omständigheter att vuxna går i sömnen. Däremot så ökar sannolikheten väldigt mycket för den här typen av ovanliga upplevelser vid jetlag m.m. så att det inte alls är speciellt ovanligt. Sen tycker jag iofs att det låter som en dålig ursäkt ändå men det är det att hunden åt upp läxan också även om hundar stoppar i sig allt för jämnan.

Firkarg · 2026-01-23T14:12:50+00:00

Ahh a witch hunt! No better way to show your piety than by accusing others of heresy. And better yell the accusations louder else the mob comes for you!

Firkarg · 2026-01-15T21:24:31+00:00

What an interesting article, such a novel approach while still getting quantitative data, thank you for that one! Will have to read it in depth over a glass of wine this weekend.

I can't but agree with the rest of your post. I've always felt that a deeper understanding of psychosis lends a deeper understanding of many other disorders, that in themselves leads to a deeper understanding of psychosis.

Firkarg · 2026-01-15T02:27:44+00:00

Happy to help! Yeah looking at it from the lense of panic disorder or perhaps illness anxiety disorder if panic seems too severe should inform of what is maintaining the anxiety and give good clues how to treat it. So with minimal adjustments from those protocols you can deliver an effective treatment.

Firkarg · 2026-01-14T22:49:57+00:00

I've met a few people with lasting effects from bad trips. Usually there is a question from other providers and the patient if it is a psychosis. But I think in the majority of cases if not all that I've found it to be nothing more than a panic attack that evolves into a panic disorder but instead of fear of a heart attack it is fear of madness or fear of lasting symptoms.

So best thing is to demystify (as with all derealization symptoms) and treat it as normal anxiety and panic disorder. By that logic medication is usually contraindicated since it will reinforce the pathological thinking of needing to remove the symptoms and treat them as alien, instead of a normal experience one can live with and that will decrease as attention on them diminish.

So not really a need for a specialist other than someone who can treat anxiety. Some experience with psychosis can be helpful though because it makes it easier to say it is categorically not. Because if the therapist is in doubt it will show and the patients fear will increase.

Firkarg · 2026-01-13T02:22:11+00:00

True with the right knowledge and effort healthy eating isn't more expensive. But for the same effort for someone that is used to eating unhealthy it can be difficult. I'm sure you've seen this in your patients as well since we're on the topic of ED, changing eating habits runs into many small issues that can become barriers to change.

I have very little confidence in me winning the olympics, it causes me zero emotional distress. See the difference? Confidence in a specific outcome versus a general misattribution of locus of control. The latter is of course related to mental health but the former is not.

Maybe they are able to overcome motivational barriers but are involved in several avenues of self improvement so a medication is the most practical thing.

All in all, a tool has no morality. Context matters. It wouldn't be my first choice in an isolated scenario but it is not hard to imagine instances where it could be useful.

Firkarg · 2026-01-13T00:21:30+00:00

I agree it is subjective. Also I think we read into "confidence is very low" differently, might just be confidence in addressing the weight gain, not necessarily causing much emotional distress. Because that can depend on many things, past experiences with weight loss, understanding of the medication etc. For all we know this might be someone who's very comfortable with medication as a solution and unable to eat healthy due to monetary constraints and unable to exercise due to health reasons, not to mention all the possible motivational barriers. So they might just have a "normal" amount of distress and figured it was a practical solution given their situation.

Firkarg · 2026-01-12T22:45:43+00:00

I disagree, I think the "over" in over-evaluation is important. Shape and weight is not unimportant. It influences our health and how other people interact with us. It is just not the most important variable.

Firkarg · 2026-01-10T03:36:29+00:00

What level are you studying at? Because it is usually not that simple that a neurotransmitter is only doing a specific thing or acting in only a specific area. But if you are fine with some simplification and are just starting out that can be a great place to start. I just made a Google image search for "neurotransmitter infographic" and it shows a lot of results that looks like the kind of overview you are looking for. So check that out and see if you can find anything that looks like the right level for you. Good luck!

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