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My blue period - lack of sunlight?
07-30-2010, 02:49 PM
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#1
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Oct 2003
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My blue period - lack of sunlight?
My recent blue period (no paintings came out of it) might have been due to the lack of sunlight. During my last outing in my RV I was in Moab and Colorado either covered up to avoid the sun or the cold and doing strenuous activities. Even prior to this I wasn't getting much sun on my skin.
So, I started taking Vitamin D supplements and doing some sun bathing - difficult with the heat and humidity but it is needed. My mental outlook has changed for the better and I think my physical lethargy has taken a turn. Time will tell.
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Sometimes death is not as tragic as not knowing how to live. This man knew how to live--and how to make others glad they were living. - Jack Benny at Nat King Cole's funeral
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07-30-2010, 02:58 PM
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#2
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Texas: No Country for Old Men
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Judging by your avatar you've also managed a nice tan - but I think your disposition needs more sun.
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Numbers is hard
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07-30-2010, 03:01 PM
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#3
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 5,596
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Could very well be Dex. I've been going through a blue period too. My beloved cat died and I was feeling very, very low. Just recently, my doctor discovered low vitamin D levels and a thyroid imbalance which, IMHO, made matters worse. Taking the D and higher dose of synthroid does seem to be helping.
I also took in a new group of foster kittens and worked on a project to help older pets get adopted at the shelter. I've found putting my energy into a positive activity helps pull me out of those down days.
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I purr therefore I am.
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07-30-2010, 03:57 PM
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#4
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Collin County, TX
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Sunshine makes my body feel better...thus my outlook on life seems brighter.
I hope it continues to work for you Dex.
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There's no need to complicate, our time is short..
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07-30-2010, 06:18 PM
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#5
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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My mood definitely responds to sunshine. I'm just wrapping up a week of vacation that had the best weather imaginable. I feel renewed and invigorated!
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07-30-2010, 07:35 PM
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#6
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: New Orleans
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We get a lot of sunshine in Louisiana, between rainstorms. Maybe that is why I can honestly say I have not been blue or depressed since I retired.
I do pay attention, though, and try to balance depressing and happy activities. A retired person doesn't have to spend all his or her time doing something inherently depressing like worrying over politics. Some time doing that is fine, but a good balance is best. I consider this to be just as important for my mental health and well being, as regular bathing or showering is for my physical health and well being.
But gosh, if anybody were any happier than me they might explode. I guess I am a pretty simple person in that all I really needed for happiness was to retire. Laissez les bons temps rouler.
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Already we are boldly launched upon the deep; but soon we shall be lost in its unshored, harbourless immensities. - - H. Melville, 1851.
Happily retired since 2009, at age 61. Best years of my life by far!
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07-30-2010, 08:54 PM
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#7
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Lawn chair in Texas
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Dex, in case you hadn't seen this thread http://www.early-retirement.org/foru...ion-51266.html
I've been a little blue myself...
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Have Funds, Will Retire
...not doing anything of true substance...
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07-31-2010, 05:43 AM
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#8
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Location: Denver, Colorado
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dex
So, I started taking Vitamin D supplements and doing some sun bathing - difficult with the heat and humidity but it is needed. My mental outlook has changed for the better and I think my physical lethargy has taken a turn. Time will tell.
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Probably a good time for a Physical Examination by a Doctor. There are many other causes of the symptoms you describe -- Thyroid malfunction comes to mind.
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"It's tough to make predictions, especially when it involves the future." ~Attributed to many
"In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. But, in practice, there is." ~(perhaps by) Yogi Berra
"Those who have knowledge, don't predict. Those who predict, don't have knowledge."~ Lau tzu
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08-01-2010, 08:14 PM
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#9
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Full time employment: Posting here.
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08-01-2010, 08:18 PM
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#10
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Full time employment: Posting here.
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08-01-2010, 08:26 PM
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#11
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Full time employment: Posting here.
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one thing I figured out about myself later in life is the blues can sometimes be loneliness or boredom. Its easy to figure out....just seek out a socially intensive situation and monitor the emotional feedback. Same with boredom....do something intense and monitor the feedback. If you get relief, that may be part of your answer.
Sunshine is huge though...hence the second home in Florida.
check it out!
Paseo Fort Myers - Community and Developer of the Year 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
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08-01-2010, 09:00 PM
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#12
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kroeran
one thing I figured out about myself later in life is the blues can sometimes be loneliness or boredom. Its easy to figure out....just seek out a socially intensive situation and monitor the emotional feedback. Same with boredom....do something intense and monitor the feedback. If you get relief, that may be part of your answer.
Sunshine is huge though...hence the second home in Florida.
check it out!
Paseo Fort Myers - Community and Developer of the Year 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
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I think that is part of it and was thinking about it today. A mind alone or unchallenged can feed on itself and become negative.
thanks
__________________
Sometimes death is not as tragic as not knowing how to live. This man knew how to live--and how to make others glad they were living. - Jack Benny at Nat King Cole's funeral
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08-01-2010, 10:28 PM
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#13
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: yonder
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My daughter moved from sunny Southern California to not-so-sunny Wisconsin(at least in the winter). Anyhow, she tended to get blue (and, not just from being outside in the freezing weather). I sent her a SAD lamp from Costco. But, it arrived broken--really smashed up. She returned it to Costco and instead of getting another SAD lamp, she took the refund and went out and bought $200 worth of make-up. She says she hasn't felt blue since. I hope this helps.
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08-01-2010, 10:41 PM
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#14
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bbbamI
Sunshine makes my body feel better...thus my outlook on life seems brighter.
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I w*rk nights and sleep during the day so I rarely ever see the sun even in the summer. Maybe that's why i'm always lathargic and "achey".
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08-02-2010, 06:55 AM
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#15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dex
I think that is part of it and was thinking about it today. A mind alone or unchallenged can feed on itself and become negative.
thanks
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I think happiness is like the bodies profit margin. In a business, to make a profit, you have to do a thousand things right, and one thing done wrong can wreck a business.
Same with happiness...you have to do many things right, and the challenge is figuring out what is the current stressor. I believe we are constructed to be happy, and that this is the feedback mechanism we need to entrain to.
Paying close attention to small lapses in depression or background stress is huge - my wife's emotional life took a decisive positive turn when I noted her positive reaction to a cat on her lap at a friends house....which led to a life with and obsessed with dogs
Some people are natural "mystics" who thrive on the freedom of living independently, but many are not built that way.
Back to entrainment...so I think unhappiness is often grounded in stubborness and getting fixed with certain ideas or jaded by certain past experiences that limit us from following our feedback to where we need to be to get back to equilibrium.
For people that are eccentric, you have to work really hard at being honest about your true interests, and join up with social groups attached to those interests, and thats where you find your partner or social crowd.
at least, so goes my speculations at this time
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08-02-2010, 07:13 AM
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#16
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: May 2009
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aaronc879
I w*rk nights and sleep during the day so I rarely ever see the sun even in the summer. Maybe that's why i'm always lathargic and "achey".
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you may wish to read up on how unhealthy and dangerous this is and see if you can get back to a regular shift
this is just the one example of tons of stuff written on this....
http://www.ohcow.on.ca/resources/han.../shiftwork.pdf
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08-02-2010, 07:30 AM
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#17
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Southern California
Posts: 489
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Maybe you should try spending $200 on makeup like Redduck's DD did, dex? LOL. I hope you are happy today, no matter the weather, caffeine, or no caffeine. Cheers!
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08-02-2010, 09:42 AM
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#18
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kroeran
I think happiness is like the bodies profit margin. In a business, to make a profit, you have to do a thousand things right, and one thing done wrong can wreck a business.
Same with happiness...you have to do many things right, and the challenge is figuring out what is the current stressor. I believe we are constructed to be happy, and that this is the feedback mechanism we need to entrain to.
Paying close attention to small lapses in depression or background stress is huge - my wife's emotional life took a decisive positive turn when I noted her positive reaction to a cat on her lap at a friends house....which led to a life with and obsessed with dogs
Some people are natural "mystics" who thrive on the freedom of living independently, but many are not built that way.
Back to entrainment...so I think unhappiness is often grounded in stubborness and getting fixed with certain ideas or jaded by certain past experiences that limit us from following our feedback to where we need to be to get back to equilibrium.
For people that are eccentric, you have to work really hard at being honest about your true interests, and join up with social groups attached to those interests, and thats where you find your partner or social crowd.
at least, so goes my speculations at this time
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I think you have my number and I think it is true; to some degree for us all.
Post 38 sums me up.
http://www.early-retirement.org/foru...use-51058.html
Any strength overused becomes a weakness. I know that is part of the issue. It is difficult to overcome decades of a behavior. It is difficult to admit what I thought was a weakness -needing people - is what I need. I know I must try.
__________________
Sometimes death is not as tragic as not knowing how to live. This man knew how to live--and how to make others glad they were living. - Jack Benny at Nat King Cole's funeral
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08-02-2010, 01:28 PM
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#19
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Heck, with the heat were having I'm looking for some clouds. But my dermatologist is glad I'm getting plenty of sun.
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Retired 3/31/2007@52
Investing style: Full time wuss.
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08-02-2010, 06:14 PM
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#20
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: May 2009
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dex
Any strength overused becomes a weakness. I know that is part of the issue. It is difficult to overcome decades of a behavior. It is difficult to admit what I thought was a weakness -needing people - is what I need. I know I must try.
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I think the pattern is to retreat from all the BS and go inside our own head for a period, possibly decades, but after a time, something good happens and a new organic gregariousness emerges - at least thats one idea I picked up from my Buddhist period. Its a good thing, not a weakness.
Dr. Weil is big on dialing down the media exposure and going on media "fasts". When you think about it, most news is a game of who had the worst day on the planet, and sensationalizing everything to get peoples attention and ratings. Nobody says you have to expose yourself to that crapola.
DrWeil.com - Official Website of Andrew Weil, M.D.
I would suggest replacing your regular news with the Wall Street Journal - the only paper that tells the truth - and there is tons of non-financial stuff to read there. Or read Stratfor, which is news for adults.
STRATFOR - Geopolitical intelligence, economic, political, and military strategic forecasting | STRATFOR
Reality is that when there is any sort of scare in the markets the dollar goes up with all those foreigners buying US dollars fleeing to safety...you may think things are bad in the US, but things are downright scary everywhere else.
Anyway, all that does not matter....your world is your bank account and whats going on in your neighbourhood. All that other stuff is someone else's problem. If you feel guilty about that thought, well, all your worrying was not doing anyone any good anyway. If you feel compelled to do something, do something for one of your neighbours or family who are in trouble...let the rest of the planet take care of itself.
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