Tuesday open thread: Your occasional reminder to breathe

This thread came across my interwebs yesterday.

As I've written before, I on occasion am prone to catastrophizing. Something relatively minor will send me off down a deep rabbit hole. I always snap out of it, but the trip is no fun.

The thing is, I know this isn't healthy, and lately I've been able to pull myself out before I do much, if any, psychic damage to myself.

I know the times seem uncertain. I know that things seem to be up in the air. The bad guys stubbornly hang on, giving us no peace. But here's the dirty secret: those bad guys are, likewise, doomers. The thing is, that is all they have. They don't have hope. They don't have compassion. They don't have love.  All they have is their apocalyptic hellscape. Even if they achieved their fascist utopia—which, I will repeat now, they won't—it would be as ash in their mouths.

When you feel the doom coming in—when the New York Times comes out with yet another ludicrous poll—stop. Breathe. Recognize what's going on in your mind. Realize that you are your mind's master. Focus on something else. Do something which brings you joy. Don't give in to the darkness. The darkness is their lot in life; we have the light.

There are many reasons to feel doom. But they're not real reasons. They're impositions from the outside. Listen to that voice inside which tells you everything will work out. And it will. You're here, having survived everything the universe has thrown at you. You're here, doing great things, even if that great thing is getting out of bed in the morning. You're here, and no troglodyte is going to change that.

Breathe, and be at peace.

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