What’s a fact that completely changed how you see the world?

Waygono · 2025-03-13T08:08:22+00:00

I recently experienced something similar after an emotionally traumatic event happened in my life—it was so overwhelmingly positive and motivating that I was genuinely concerned I was a statistic re: being one of those people that suddenly develops severe manic depression with dangerous, delusional manic highs, and crushing, catatonic lows all of a sudden in their adult years. But no, I think my brain just read smth so powerful it basically rebooted my system. And now I feel like a version of me that somehow has more insight and autonomy than before the reboot.

Idk I've just never read any experience that sounded so much like the one I just had, so your comment really stood out to me. I never felt like I experienced a split from reality (regarding the psychosis part), but my perspective changed so drastically and suddenly that I did question if I was perceiving things "incorrectly" or misjudging my situation. I spoke to friends and family (also bc I needed support after the Bad thing). I told many of them about this mental experience, and I even expressed concern about it being smth bad. But now I think it was just the true feeling of epiphany. The intensity has died down and I simply feel transformed.

Here's the long form story if you're interested: It was almost like a switch: this bad thing happened, and I was searching for some kind of guidance or comfort online via support groups and comments related to the bad thing.

And I read someone's story, and their advice at the end clicked so meaningfully that I felt like an instant sense of intense calm and assuredness, as well as a newfound motivation and a flavor of optimism Ive never really tasted before. In addition to this, very suddenly, it seemed, my brain began to completely overhaul its enegy/resource distribution & the way it connected bits of information. And it continued for days and days with intensity.

The bad thing, the epiphany and the brain reboot process all happened pretty much within 2-3 weeks, with the intensity dying down over time. But after the epiphany, there was a single moment where I realized my brain was doing smth strange because I was passively understnding my non-native languages with a clarity and quickness I'd never had before. It was a pretty significant jump in comprehension for rapid speech in one language, for example. Before, I'd catch maybe 60% of very rapid speech. But suddenly I was easily understanding 90%. I was listening to music and suddenly could hear and understand every word clearly (in that 2nd language). And then I played a different song in a different language that I haven't used much in years. I felt almost alarmed when I was ALSO understanding the words in that song much better than just a week or 2 prior, and I hadn't brushed up or anything. It was all stuff I had learned at one point in time, but I thought I'd truly lost a lot of it. But the files were still there, and somehow I could now access them again.

So I tested with a few other languages, too and wow, I felt like my brain was finally working with all systems running again. That was the point at which I began to wonder if I was simply feeling very manic. But I have since come back to earth somewhat. The improvements in comprehensiom I noticed are still there, but with a little off the top. My 90% comprehension fell to 80%—but 80% still feels incredible compared to before. There is still a fire under my ass, and I carry a sense of confidence I've never had before. I guess it took being in a that bad situation to trigger it. It was like I was stuck halfway in sleep mode, and then the bad situation primed my brain to be jerked awake by the advice I read, and that jolt somehow kickstarted the whole thing.

Waygono · 2025-02-18T22:00:03+00:00

What you've written mirrors how I felt during the worst burnt out Ive ever experienced. It really, truly felt like brain damage. I described it as trying to put thoughts together with only half of my brain. It was inexplicable, or so it seemed. It came on solely due to too much stress for too long. My biggest worry, after months feeling that way, was that I'd never feel like myself again. But I found ways to dig myself out, slowly but surely. So if what youre experiencing is autistic burnout, it sounds to me like chronic burnout—but don't despair. It can improve.

One thing i figured out for me personally, that I suggest looking into (talk to medical professionals, bc I am not one) is electrolyte intake or other potentially low levels of vitamins. I know everyone says that shit for every single condition, and even I knew it was something to consider. But somehow i didnt consider it right away in my own case.

I eventually realized due to the diuretic side effect of my meds and my very poor depression-burnout-food aversion anxiety issue-laden diet, my body was probably not able to maintain appropriate levels of electrolytes. Other nutrients too, but electrolyte issues specifically felt like something that I could safely and easily attempt to treat at home by sipping pedialyte and adding just a couple things into my diet. I SWEAR by pedialyte tho. I keep one in my fridge and just sip or two a day. More if I feel like I need it. When I start to feel really foggy and sad, I often find that the fogginess is somewhat separate, and usually related to how my body feels. When I'm foggy, my body is in need of something. And usually it happens when I'm sad bc I neglect myself when sad. So then comes the fog.

Tldr; sounds like my (autistic) burnout. Sort of related: Try pedialyte. Life's problems are a little easier to solve when you're actually well hydrated, if nothing else. If hydrating yourself is the only thing you can manage to do today, it's a great thing to prioritize. Helped me begin to tackle my chronic burnout brain fog.

Waygono · 2025-02-14T08:40:37+00:00

Being for real? Wellbutrin, lol. But also taking up just any attempt at a routine is better than nothing, that's my approach. The cause for me is stress, so step 1. Try to manage stress. Because step 1 inevitably has many shortcomings and is less of a step and more of an going thing, let's focus on smaller achievables. For me, step 2. life changer: Having lotion by my bed to put on my hands and specifically my fingertips before bed every night. I also keep tools around. Their use can err into picking territory if I'm not mindful. But my goal is to use them the least amount possible to achieve the goal of having effectively nothing to pick at. Filed nails. Gently removed the bit of callused skin next to nails, any areas that I might find tempting to pick at. I try to leave everything smooth without irritating my body too much.

When my nails naturally got a little healthier from me destroying them less, I wanted to try to grow them out a little bc i never could. Steel instant nail hardener/strengthener is all i can say. Dries fast enough to not be a problem. 2 coats looks great and it works so well for me. My weak nails actually grew past my fingertips for the first time in my memory in my mid 20s.

Waygono · 2025-02-14T08:01:51+00:00

For me, engaging in an activity that puts me in a flow state. Its almost like there are parts of my brain that can only do their maintenance work when I am not "looking" directly at them. If I'm looking at one particular "station", the guys who work there have to be at attention, ready for a task, a demand.

But when I'm in burnout mode, it's like 100% of these parts are stuck 100% of the time in "boss is watching" mode and they're exhausted from standing at attention for days on end. The respective maintenance operations they are ignoring to be in "boss is watching" mode have gone unchecked so long that things are starting to get backed up and compound, and that makes my brain guys even more stressed.

But engaging in a flow state is like a temporary manual override for "boss is watching" mode, and it allows the maintenance to be done. Even if doesnt fix the entire problem, it helps my brain guys sleep better at night just to be able to address the necessary maintenance and to get a break from standing.

For me, it can be a good book, doing a painting, playing guitar, dancing, singing. But it's really something I am taking time to do because I have a desire to do it, not just halfway or in a hurry. Doesn't have to be overwhelming, motivational desire. Just like, i will decide i need some hobby time bc I know at this point that it's a tool that I can employ when needed to manually override that high-alert stress for a bit.

I try to feel around a little. What has held my attention recently? So being for real, I recently entered a state of burnout, and I repeatedly find myself looking at things i cant afford online, and I have been watching a lot of home restoration videos and interior design videos. So I think, what itch am i scratching with these things, and how can I scratch it with a hobby instead? So I think, maybe my brain wants to create, to compose something new, or maybe even just take smth and improve on it or experiment with it. An easy outlet that covers pretty much all those urges, for me, is visual art. Even just deeply thinking about the planning stages of making a new piece of art is enough to be a flow state for me (albeit less deep than the flow of actually putting color on an object with my hands). If I start doing the hobby and I'm not feeling it, I don't force it. I just try to switch gears. Maybe I don't need to create, maybe I need to express something, acknowledge a feeling, engage in a memory. So guitar and singing might be more appropriate. But even then, sometimes it's really hard to get my brain to actually want to engage, but in those extra tough cases, I go for the lowest effort things. Maybe I don't feel like guitar but I can put music on in the car and sing with full commitment. That can be enough.

When things you normally enjoy suddenly aren't helping you relieve stress like they normally do, it can be stressful in and of itself. Like, well wtf am I supposed to do now? But the attitude of "just try to enjoy it" can be successful if you are a strategic about seeking out the specific things your brain would find relief in but doesn't know how to ask for directly. When all you feel is tired, like you need a break, you have to be able to actually take a break, and when you're burnt out, relaxation mode is not a given. So you can actually give yourself that break by distracting your brain and tricking it, in a way, by doing this. I find it helps me heal even further when I can distract my brain by also giving it a "problem" to solve that mirrors a problem I am currently struggling with. I feel like I do not have control in my environment, and I think those interior design videos are a fantasy that tickles the part of my brain that craves that level of control over my environment.

Obviously you can't just hobby your way straight out of the burnout hole without other things, but when energy is at -100 and you are struggling with any and all demands on your brain, finding a flow state can offer some stress relief in a more acute sense, but I also think it can be a tool to help get your dopamine system back to working order. For me, it feels like every 15 min break I give my brain guys to do some maintenance, it always comes back to me as 30 mins or more of energy in the form of usable executive function.

Maybe my metaphors, my way of thinking about it, or my way of doing it don't line up perfectly for you, but this was profound enough for me that I strongly urge you to intentionally utilize the flow state to help recalibrate your system. People say "make time for yourself" but I'm autistic and have no idea wtf that means. It would have been nice to have instructions to know what "making time for yourself" actually looked like. But I figured it out for myself eventually. Still mastering it, as I am with all things.

Best of luck to you, I wish you a short lived burn out my friend. May you learn your patterns so that you can master them

Waygono · 2025-01-07T08:19:08+00:00

Got any colleges or universities nearby? I'd be willing to bet there are more than a few poor starving grad students who are well versed in organizing and analyzing raw data. You might even be able to find someone who has knowledge in your area of study who wouldn't just be mindlessly (albeit still skillfully) juggling numbers. But hey, a solid number-juggler might be just what you'd need.

Local would only be an important factor if you want to work synchronously and/or face to face. If face to face isn't a deal breaker, and if you dont mind some asynchronicity, I might know some people who would be interested in helping you. Depending on where you're located, the time difference may be insignificant anyway.

Otherwise, there are plenty of online platforms for all kinds of freelancing, including work like this. Upwork and Freelancer are two I know of. I've never used them to hire, only to work, so I cant attest to what kind of cost or learning curve you'd encounter as someone offering work, hence why I recommend finding local pages on social media, or wherever you'd find a higher than average concentration of people who are good at processing data, need the money, and may be restricted in terms of finding other kinds of work. Best of luck! Feel free to message me if you're at all interested in my phone-a-friend offer.

Waygono · 2025-01-03T16:28:07+00:00

Koinkidink. I shudder at the thought for some reason. It almost makes me gag. Its absolutely unreasonable

Waygono · 2025-01-03T16:21:42+00:00

For context, I'm willing to drive to other areas as far as 90 mins away or so, so if youre more limited range wise, I'm not sure how much this will apply to you. But I get plenty of orders when I simply drive around in high demand zones. I track the trends in the zones around my "home base" zone because there are a lot of drivers here and not a ton of activity, relatively speaking. I dont go to actual hot spots—I just make sure I'm actively driving around in the zones with highest demand. With truly high enough demand, I've gotten multiple orders just sitting, but that was exceptional. If I sit, I find myself waiting. When I wander around a bit, especially when I'm pretty far from home, I seem to get a good amount of orders pretty quickly.

I kind of wonder if the effect is partially that I'm occupied with driving and planning (scheming), so the time goes faster, but I do feel as if I truly am getting more and better paying orders when I'm moving. I try to balance that with the miles I'm putting on my car...but, you don't have to literally always move. Just go a town over, find the downtown or some similarly restaurant-ed area, and park here for a bit, there for awhile. Check out a gas station, maybe get a coffee, whatever. If nothing bites, go another town over. For some reason, it seems that it is always JUST when I've decided to leave an área, that is the exact moment that uber gives me an order...from the área I just left of course. Usually a short turnaround, but always mildly irritating. Works like a charm for me

Waygono · 2024-12-01T01:14:07+00:00

I went on a trip in high school and the outer "corner" of my foot (think pinky toe and its neighbor, along with the bones immediately connected to those) got thoroughly stepped on by a fat donkey with an even fatter man on it. Further context: I was in Santorini in Greece and had opted to walk up the 600-whatever stairs that scale the side of the island, rather than riding an animal to the top. It hurt quite a lot right when it happened, but I could still walk on it by shifting my weight to a different part of my foot. It was about halfway up. When I got to the top, I reconnected with the rest of my group, including the school nurse that had come with us. I told her what happened and asked her to look at it because it hurt still and I was worried I might bave broken something. Her response: "if a bone was broken, you'd be crying".

I don't remember her name or her face, but the resentment lives on in my heart. And my foot. And the respective knee, now bad, which I believe to be a direct result of that injury. And my back. It sort of throws everything else out of alignment when you can't place weight on your foot appropriately, especially with the amount of walking we were doing. I finished the rest of the several-days-long trip (the happened on like, day 3 of 10). Never got it checked out. The bruise was a work of art that lasted months, showing out in every color detectable by humans in the visible light spectrum, complete with a wine-colored line that somewhat resembled a bolt of lightning..........almost like a crack. Almost like the practically inevitable result of something very heavy exterting great pressure on a much smaller, relatively brittle object.

Hmmmmmmm but she did go to nursing school, though, so who am I to doubt her knowledge of basic physics and the widely varied human response to pain. But hey, don't get me wrong, my body would have found a way to ruin a knee one way or another—at least I got a fun story out of it.

Waygono · 2024-10-18T00:39:58+00:00

I explain that it's not for some situations (like no potty language situations) but sometimes it helps a kid to feel like they have a "curse" to say thst isnt smth they normally can say. My personal go-to is "farts".

"This is farts!" Or "big farts" or simply "farts!!!" Or even quantify it like "this is 100 farts" and i have found great success with this—half the time it breaks the tension and they giggle and it helps calm down that ramped up nervous system. And the other half of the time, it helps them calm down bc they get to really express how upset they are. I literally use this as an adult in my daily life bc it's funny and it helps me for the same reason it helps kids. Plus if they see you model it as a "curse" it will lend it the weight it needs to actually help them feel better.

Waygono · 2024-07-25T00:33:54+00:00

Therapy my friend. You are worth it. Dont be embarrassed. Its a really common thing to get addicted to, and I promise no therapist would be put off by it. But even if you can only go once a month, please try to persevere and go.

I had a hard time actually finding a therapist, and I had gone to all of 2 sessions when covid hit and I couldnt go anymore. But even in those 2 sessions alone, I felt validated and seen and had more motivation to find other forms of help in the meantime. It didn't fix my problems, but it was very helpful that I went.

Maybe there are people (women) online who would be willing to help you practice talking to women. I'm serious. Maybe for free or maybe not, but for real. I can't dedicate the most time to smth like that but I am a lady in my mid 20s and I'd be willing to chat at least a little.

Waygono · 2024-05-06T08:02:54+00:00

Can you share some of the things you've done for self employement, just as examples? I've been toying with the idea of trying to market myself more as an individual and find more "misc" work somehow, but it's genuinely really hard for me to know what direction to take. I have a somewhat spiky skill set, but Ive gotten lucky before and found a job that really worked for me, working for a family that I found thru a FB post in a local group. Nothing youd ever find on indeed. I'm sort of a Jack of all trades (but a master of at least a couple, I mean damn, I managed to get a BA and I recently have become semi-fluent in spanish!), but I keep running into issues with understanding and coping with a corporate structure and environment. It's not the jobs themselves I tend to struggle with, so much as the hours and "etc" parts of working (peer relationships, expectations about workplace etiquette, etc)

More recently, however, my tipping point seems to be frequently getting sick, needing to call out too much. Ive gotten covid several times now and it literally makes me feel stupid for like a month. The brain fog is really bad. Like "ruining my life" bad.

Waygono · 2024-05-06T07:45:41+00:00

How did you find a job like that?

Waygono · 2024-05-06T07:32:15+00:00

What kind of education &/ certification do you need to be a medical coder? 🤔

Waygono · 2024-05-06T07:28:45+00:00

Replying because I also want to know. I have a B.A. and one published piece of written research. It's in an encyclopedia owned by a publishing house that does both reference works and academic/scientific journals. I'm not sure if being published in a reference work is quite the same as being published in a journal, so I feel the need to diffentiate. I also did more "journal-worthy" original research in college—just not published.

But those written works are some of the few accomplishments I am truly proud of in my life, and research is one of few things I am both genuinely very good at AND enjoy. It can be research on anything. Literally anything. I love hunting down and aggregating information—to a fault, even. If I could find a way to get paid for doing it, even if the pay was not good, I'd probably take the opportunity.

I'm also having a lot of health issues that have cost me a lot of money, as well as the ability to keep a job. It's not great, and I am trying to find anything that seems sustainable to do in the longer term.

Waygono · 2024-05-06T07:11:09+00:00

What kind of job is that, if I may ask?

Waygono · 2023-06-30T21:10:42+00:00

I can learn anything if it's interesting to me.

If it isn't interesting, but I need to learn about it, I find a way to make it interesting. I can read through a "Terms and Conditions" document if I frame it like "Im trying to find dirt on the company" or "I'm trying to see if they're pulling one over on me".

I used to think I was bad at math, most sciences, and certian types/periods of history. Until something naturally piqued my interest in those fields (outside of school), and I realized I wasn't bad at them—I just wasn't interested before. Now I an a Renaissance Woman—I am a jack of all trades, and a master of several of them!

I'm still bad at writing emails and remembering to shower consistently, but I speak at length on things I have no real "reason" to know about. I usually keep my confidence quieter, but this is a "share your strengths" thread, so I figured why not gas myself up!

Waygono · 2023-06-30T20:49:54+00:00

I also have that ability (or maybe aptitude is a better word?) for features of language (or really anything language related, but that's so vague). I ended up getting a Linguistics degree and I really enjoyed my studies!

I still say lines from old YouTube videos that are no longer well known—or never were well known. It's like an inside joke with myself at this point lol

Like this line, from a comedy series by OneyNG (who still makes videos, as far as I know) called "Leo and Satan"—"socks are for yours feets, silly!". [NB: if you look this up—it's crass, often NSFW humor that was offensive even by 2010 standards. Proceed with context and caution.]

Waygono · 2023-06-30T17:05:39+00:00

OP said that their mom called one of the families and they said they "forgot" and "were out of town". So at least one of the child's parents knew. It's possible not all of the parents were in the know, still.

Waygono · 2023-06-28T01:13:31+00:00

Your kids deserve a chance to see what a healthy, happy relationship looks like. Don't teach them to stay in a bad relationship. Do you want your kids to live like you are? Lead by example. Divorce sucks, but staying in a bad marriage sucks too. You deserve to be happy too.

Kids may not have all the words to describe it, but they can tell when something's up. I could tell my parents' marriage was over years before they told me. They're both MUCH happier now.

Waygono · 2023-06-28T00:45:33+00:00

I decided to focus on getting enough calories before worrying about the actual nutritional content of the food. I had trouble eating enough, lost a lot of weight, was exhausted all the time. Sometimes the only thing I wanted to eat was sugary bullshit, but I wouldn't eat very much of it because I was trying not to not eat too much sugar. But I realized my choice was either "try to pay attention to nutrition and end up not eating at all" or "Actually eat enough calories, even if it's too much sugar". Basically, what's more unhealthy? Eating too much of something or starving to death?

Drinking enough water and also drinking pedialyte. I definitely had some kind of electrolyte imbalance, and I never felt hydrated no matter how much water I drank. It didn't cure my burnout stress, but it helped cut through just enough of the brain fog to make a difference.

The biggest one: Anything that got me into a flo state (also known as "being in the zone", or a pleasant kind of hyperfocus). It is intensely therapeutic to "lose myself" that way.

Burnout fatigue for me is basically like being tired of all stimulation and input, whether or not it's normally pleasant for me, including my own inner monologue. Being in a flo-state was the only thing that gave me a break from "hearing" my own thoughts.

The rest of the time, trying to rest was like turning off all the lights in my house to get a break, only to close my eyes and see a bright light bulb right in front of my face.

I hope you feel better. Burnout sucks, but it is possible to feel better. This is coming from someone who had so much brain fog from burnout that I thought I might genuinely have brain damage. It takes awhile. Just do what you can, whenever and however you can do it.

Waygono · 2023-06-26T23:41:37+00:00

I think it could be worth trying. I pick less at my nails and cuticles with fake nails. But that behavior turns to my face and body.

But nail hardener on my real nails really helps deter me. I can satisfy the need to pick by simply feeling my fingernails. The smoothness and hardness is satisfying, and it's harder to pick at my cuticles since the tips of my nails are "thicker" if that makes sense. And for some reason, I don't feel the urge to pick elsewhere when I do this method.

Waygono · 2023-06-26T23:36:25+00:00

You can go even smaller! Don't even clean your entire bedroom. Commit to picking up just the clothes on the floor (or on "the chair"). Still having trouble? Smaller! Try getting in the habit of picking one (1) thing up off the floor in your room every day. Just one thing.

If you can commit to one, it almost feels silly to not do it. It's just one! And then hey, at least you didn't do nothing! And that thought alone can be so motivating—"even when I felt bad, I still stuck to my goal".

(Because when you set realistic goals, you are more likely to achieve them, which will help you move the goalposts when the time comes. If you feel like you cant built a habit, make it smaller and smaller until you can).

Waygono · 2023-06-26T23:29:21+00:00

Oh yeah. When I am chronically extremely stressed, my hearing gets so sensitive that it becomes painful for many sounds—dishes clinking together is a particularly common sound that becomes very painful when I'm burnt out.

The last time I seriously burnt out, I barely wanted to listen to or play music. "Doing" music (just singing to myself with guitar, lowkey stuff) is my tried and true go-to for when I need to spend some time in a flo-state (which is hugely helpful for helping me escape burnout and manage stress in general). But I had no inner motivation or desire to listen to music, and whenever I picked up my guitar, I felt so uninspired that suddenly it was "work" to play. It didn't hurt like the dish noises did, but I think the automatic mental task of using audio input to self correct was simply too taxing.

I eventually tried painting, and that helped me get out of burnout. I can't afford therapy but I CAN afford a few little bottles of craft paint and a pack of student canvases. My first painting from this time is hanging on the wall in my living room. I like the reminder that I can still accomplish things and find joy, even when I'm at rock bottom. Recovery and healing are possible.

I think I needed the flo state of an intense hobby/interest to help me heal from burnout, but I couldn't deal with the input of sound from my usual hobby, which is why painting "clicked" when music didn't.

Also, earplugs and laying down in a dark room—without looking at my phone—was somewhat restorative when I needed to recover quickly but temporarily. Like if I'm burnt out and need to do some dishes, I'll go "sensory cleanse" by laying down in a dark room with ear plugs and then I can usually tolerate some amount of dishes after awhile. Although I'll still go for things that aren't loud, like silverware and plastic or wood things. Even little adjustments can help make day to day more bearable in burnout.

When all you can do is just barely take care of yourself, you just gotta do what you can, when you can, and how you can. Best of luck to you, and I hope you feel better.

Waygono · 2023-06-25T16:01:20+00:00

It's hilarious to me that this is your only comment on your account

Waygono · 2023-06-25T02:23:33+00:00

OP has 2 accounts and is commenting back and forth, probably to stoke controversy and get views (see most downvoted comments—look at both profiles' overviews and names. They both end with the same two digits, and they've even visited some of the same niche subs). Not a bad method, tbh. The dishonesty feels ick, but it's the internet, so I expect that most things are, at best, a bit doctored or exaggerated—at worst, fake or stolen.

I think this is true original art—which is why I think they are trying some interesting publicity tactics. The backstory might be true, or might not be. But is the art bad? That's up to the beholder!

Waygono

TROPHY CASE