National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-8255 Edit: Apologies for those who are confused. I made a critical typo on the other version of this video. Normally I would let small typos like that slide, but I figured it’s kind of important being it was the above number. And since UA-cam doesn’t let you actually fix your freaking video I had to reupload. Sorry for that.
I am glad someone is talking about how awful the weird culture about being a writer (or artist in general) is and how it promotes self-destructive behaviour as a normal way of coping with trying to create something.
Same here, it's easy to think that your suffering is your primary source of fuel to be creative, leads to people not doing anything about their problems out of fear that they won't be as creative any more
And unfortunately, those people who would voluntarily put themselves in that burden for the craftwork itself is pretty much inevitable from self destruction. As the nature of creating and artwork itself is already hard though, there's really not a lot of attention to it sadly, because it mostly serves as entertainment, thats why most artists have alot of hard times to catch up with the system and have little to no choice but to destroy themselves in order to meet the demand. Maybe I'm just rambling here with not much knowing about the industry itself, though one thing for sure that I know, and I quote from the Japanese Mangakas. Most of the time, it's rather.. "Voluntary enslavement".
And remember kids, NEVER leave your computer and NEVER EVER leave your home. Inspiration wells from staring at that blank page, and surrounding yourself with the same setting, same routine, and same distractions day to day is sure to pump that spring at maximum efficiency. If you absolutely must leave, use the time to obsess over your project.
I was okay during the whole video, but now I feel called out ! I manage to write anyway, but there's less authenticity compared to the time I had friends and a crush to see weekly
Considering the pandemic and how some places are still doing lockdowns, not leaving home or your computer is one of those "You don't have a choice" things. I mean, yeah, you could go outside in your backyard or take a walk, but who does that anymore?
So much this. Get rid of the home set up, find a job you can work remote and live to travel. I've been able to get a couple short stories published that I wrote on my phone while at work. COVID made it more annoying but its still doable even if you cant afford to leave your country.
Oddly enough, I do actually find that the more cripplingly bored I am, the more creative I become. It is as though my tortured subconscious is desperately seeking an escape from the mundainity by providing it's own fanciful ventures without me having to put any work into it at all!
"[Sarcastically] Best to assume that therapy will fix my deep-seated personality issues rather than simply provide me with a new perspective that might allow me to better manage my conditions." This. More people need to understand this. More often than not, I see people treat the act of getting professional help as the endgame rather than the halfway mark at best, and that just doesn't sit right with me.
It n important step to agnowledge youneed help and anoth r perspective to get on whatever and ho youcan live better and better car for yourself and healthy coping mechanisms.
With how stigmatised and difficult to access therapy is, it benefits from an idolised treatment because otherwise a lot of people who need it and have to be talked into it wouldnt try it.
True like a big endless black whol sucking up everything positive and give it time the rest too. An like a black hole its like a force of nature and hard to treat. Doing anything to like to combat is good, it just a tiring battle, but try that, just dont let it be used as fuel for self loathing if possible, whic is hard, but try forgiving youself.
Thank god I'm a gamer and video games are disigned to activate certain neurons to release the happy chemical in order to be addictive. This makes the void feeling dissapear, just like the 7 hours I yesterday spent in Simcity. No eating, no drinking, no toilet breaks, just green line go up and expand industry.
@@christiegreenwood2642 For me, anhedonia (the lack of joy you described) was the worst part of depression, I could handle the mood stuff eventually, and I could keep myself from most self-destructive behaviour, outside of comfort eating (arguably the least bad of the bad coping systems). Getting through the day was tough, but through strict regimenting my day and planning everything to get as much distraction as possible for the least amount of willpower required, I did make it progressively easier to keep going. If you want to know I can explain in detail how I did that, thanks to proper counselling and my psychiatrist's advice on the matter, I did develop decently effective strategies to keep going while I tried out new meds. And after 10 years of chronic depression, of which the last 4.5 were severe, I found the right medication for me, and I've now been symptom-free for over a year, compared to a month at maximum before. So I will urge people to keep trying medication and therapy, while it's not easy in any way, it's most likely to help in the long run. And not sitting it out isn't a good option, especially when it's Persistent Depressive Disorder instead of Major Depressive Disorder (or any other episodic form of depression), since it won't pass on its own.
People love to say that everything is over, went to shit, end is near etc. etc. As humans we are in this cycle for like few thousands years already, like c'mon Man since beginning of WW2 everyone keeps saying that end is just few steps from now but most stuff actually improve. We may not be living in best version of the world as Laplace's Optimism says, but it's still good.
Starbucks doesn't make coffee worth a damn. The only times I have had coffee from there it tasted burnt or watery. If I was lucky. Before Starbucks, I did not know it was possible for a drink to taste burnt, watery, and rancid, all at the same time. And then they're gonna smother that godawful stuff with all kinds of sugar to hide just how bad it is.
Commented this on the last one but: JP is right, guys! Almost didn't write several times this week because of anxiety attacks and every time I actually did I felt so much better. Creating IS self-care, it is productive and it does help! Do something, even if it's something small, like making sure you eat or take a shower. Baby steps!
@@plague_doctor0237 For me it was tough, I suffered writer's block for several years only trying to create on and off. I found some solice in other kinds of creating, like drawing and cooking, and it took dropping my current project to work on something new for a little while. Something to change things up a bit. I highly recommend trying to focus on a current obsession or love of yours, because that always inspires me to create. Maybe I'll get back to my original project some day, lol. 😅
@@plague_doctor0237 Personally, every little creative outlet helps me. Writing a story or an adventure game -- but even a small doodle makes me feel good. Or editing a photo with text and stickers. Sometimes the little things help. 👍
And don't forget, comparing yourself to others who are already successful at what you do is a great way to get yourself to do anything and totally won't just make you feel terrible and want to give up because you feel like you are inherently inferior, all while ignoring that those successful people took a long road to get there and probably still also doubt themselves too.
And don't forget that, in many instances, the already long road to success was shortened by any combination of: - Luck - Inherited wealth - Nepotism - Education - Geography/race (a Pakistani or Sudanese writer is unlikely to make it big in the West) - Privilege, which is all the above
I'm both a writer and a starving comic artist going through this. This video pretty much feels like a much needed callout. Thankfully I'm seeing professional help and encourage others who are in this predicament to do the same.
Yeah, I’m also a comic artist/writer, I’m probably not old as you bc im still in high school, i have trouble managing my time for drawing/writing and school in the morning i rely on coffee to stayed awake, at night I work until it late and have to use coffee, my mental health takes a dive as well as my school performance
@@tight_delay3545 yeah, I'm kinda old. Probably twice your age. My word of advice here is to do your best to manage your time. Set a specific schedule for school work, then some time for art when you can while going to bed at a consistent time. There'll always be readers out there to see your stuff, but your school grades and health are what should take priority. Build good coping habits, not destructive ones. Best of luck to you dude.
@@Inutitant12 im taking a break to think about this, thank you for the advice. You don’t have to answer me but what your comic is about? I want to hear about it
@@amostlypeacefulmassshooting For some reason YT keeps deleting my responses so I'm just testing this comment out. If it stays up, please reply and I'll hopefully be able to give you the name of the comic on webtoons.
I have never paused a video series like I have with TWA; not just to read the hilarious animated dialogue, but to sincerely ponder and absorb JP's wisdom. Thank you. May we all try to be better, and do better.
That FOOL JP has uploaded twice on the same day, allowing me to view his content early double the amount of times so that I can extract his secrets for my own nefarious uses.
Are you ok JP? Just checking. Seems like this video came from a negative personal experience where you forgot about self care. It’s a good warning to give others since this is a pretty common problem with creators but I just hope that those dark times are behind you.
I have good hope he uses that a outlet and therapy tolet his feelings out through self deprivating sarcasm and art. In short i think he has healthy coping mechanims
You know, this video’s topic is pretty applicable no matter what field you’re in… and it’s something I need too given the future I see coming. Thank you JP for continually putting so much effort and introspection into your videos. Also works as a nice self demonstrating article for self care given it’s letting you express yourself, your struggles and views, and how you’re handling things. Gives me a few ideas for stories honestly.
Yep, especially now that so many of us are working from home, 90% of this video is relevant to other fields too. The easy slide from "I can work in my sweatpants" to "I haven't stepped outside in days". Or from the "Night is a good time to focus on work" to completely messing up your sleep schedule. Even the toxic way to romanticize bad coping mechanisms has its equivalents at least in careers like software development.
Amen. I just wrote pretty much the same thing just a minute ago. I'm pretty damn sure 100 % people have experienced (almost) all of these things mentioned in the video at least at some point, regardless of if they're in the "creative industry" or not. This video applies to everyone
I have gotten back to my terrible writing finally after years of depression that made me unable to concentrate. Medication does not necessarily kill creativity, that is a myth. For me it can make creativity possible.
True! I had to learn this myself. Medication's effects may vary (and you should try to be informed), but a dysfunctional and distracted life can kill creativity just as easily, and more likely.
Agreed. I wasn't able to really write at all from 2020 to the begining of 2021, which happens to be the moment in which school was online and I suddendly had no schedule at all to force me to work at regular times, which made me horribly stressed all the time as I was constantly obsessing over the work I still need to do.
Also, there are several different categories of antidepressants, and each one works on a different brain circuit. If the one you're on isn't doing it for you, you can ask to try something from a different medication class.
As someone who's currently struggling to do proper self-care, this video hits close to home. I feel trapped in a downward spiral of depression, and struggle to find the motivation to do even the simplest things.
Honestly, same. I'm talking with my doc about it, and have to try reaching out to a therapist, but to go that step is incredibly hard. Luckily, they could make an appointment with a psychiatrist, and I got prescribed some anti-depressants. I hope they'll kick in soon, so that I can at least get myself to reach out for therapy. I wish you the best for your own fight. Know you are not alone in it.
JP: *releases a new video* Me, a worker in an Emergency department: JP, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE TEACHING ME ABOUT HOW TO WRITE, NOT REMINDING ME HOW MISERABLE BEING A HEALTH CARE WORKER IS!!!
O.o i... think it might not be a coincidence... it seems pretty specific... but it also seems to refer to a lot of habits that I personally have... and humans do tend to judge what's "normal" in relation to themselves... it took me years to realize that apparently not everyone has certain dark thoughts. So... he may be mostly drawing from his own experiences but it hits hard for those of us who have experienced similar things. Our are maybe experiencing then currently. I've been in a dark place myself lately and despite not writing recently this hits hard.
@@joanagomes1898 : It effectively means that for somebody to win, somebody else has to lose. There is no scenario in which everybody wins or where cooperation between parties is beneficial to all. The implication of the line is that for me to be mentally stable, I have to make somebody else feel worse. Or vice versa, the reason I feel bad is because somebody else feels good.
@@sdrawkcab_emanresu yes and no. I love the job and it is amazing, but jist like writing it doesn't pay a ton and you have to do far more than what others think you do.
Two rules I have about responsibly drinking alcohol: 1. Never drink to feel better. 2. Never drink alone. And for the love of personally preferred deities, never ever combine the two! Sure. One can have a glass alone if things are allright and you feel happy and content with the situation. But alcohol is an emotional enhancer... If you feel like shit... Alcohol is not the way to feeling less of that in the long run. Now, if you excuse me, I need to continue my search for a job that doesn't require me to have continuous jetlag 7 days a week 365 days a year.
Amen to that! I used to drink to cope and thankfully once I got pregnant 9 months of sobriety and of course mother courses pulled my shit together. And now I only drink after 5 pm and only one to 2 glasses of wine. While the husband Is home with me and we are eating dinner. Weekends I still go by the same rules only allowing myself one extra glass. I also workout ans take walks outside with the baby. And keep the windows open during the day to allow for natural light.
I was fortunate to be taught this early. Glad I always followed it, my uncles were always an example to me of how much a person can hurt themselves with excessive drinking.
That can be applied to a lot of bad habits and not enough people talk about it. I did this with smoking in high school and it made it very easy for me to quit doing smoking. Finding a healthy coping mechanism is hard and can take a while but it's definitely worth it. Also imo it's better to not have any coping mechanism for a while than to rush and pick up a bad one that could ruin your life in the long run.
JP is right, I realized that I was over exerting myself this week, so I took time off and I realized just how much anxiety I had and how much I was overworking myself. It’s good to remember that you’re not a robot and that you need time to be a person. Taking a break is an act of self love
Ahhh...the joys of forgetting to eat all day so you'll be hungry late into the night and oversleep because despite what you tell yourself every night, you never manage to go to sleep before 4 AM.
I think this video applies to all creative fields, including art music video editing, and is a good reminder on reminding me on my own self denial that IU need to take a second look at myself in the mirror. What did you changed in this reupload?
Gentle reminder that being kind to yourself is a very important part of self care. You'll never get out of the cycle of self abuse if you don't believe you deserve to.
How am I supposed to be kind to myself when every time I wake up, eat food, work, break, drive home, comes back home and try to sleep I am being reminded of my guilt from the actions that I have committed in the past?
@@johanmikkael6903 You know how when you forgive other people, you pretty much say to them: "other person, you have hurt me, and caused damage that I'm am going to have to live with going forward. I am taking steps to handle the situation and to protect myself from further harm, *but I have not lost my desire to love you because of what you did*. I choose to continue to treat you well and to want the best for you." It's kind of the same thing for forgiving yourself. You have to tell yourself: "self, you have hurt me, and caused damage that I'm going to have to live with. However, I choose still to love you, regardless, and to believe that you can do better." You can't magically make your past go away... But you can be that kind person who sees more in you than just your failings, and who believes in you to do better, even when that doesn't look likely. We really are more than we think we are.
Honestly, having a full time job, travelling there and back, doing the chores is sometimes more than enough to be constantly tired. It can be just as soulcrushing to descend into the madness of routine as having none at all. Any time something breaks that cycle (like a sick leave or vacation) the depression I usually don't have the time to care about get it's fangs in me. Then it recedes back into the shadows when responsibility calls. Then it attacks again, poisoning whatever free time I have. Go figure humans.
5:03 In all fairness that one can depend on someone's situation, my sleep schedule was the most fucked up during the height of my college years when I had classes and 2 odd jobs at different hours (sometimes one shift in the morning and another at night ON THE SAME DAY) along with a relationship to uphold and little actual home time to dedicate to cleaning up the place forcing me to stay up like 30 hours just to do house chores and some days I would only get a couple hours of sleep while I would get 5+ on others. Since I left college I just settled into a night owl pattern (more in line with my natural circadian rhythm) and these days I prefer to go to bed between 3-5 AM and find I'm most productive between 9PM-3AM. Unfortunately I think the "college lifestyle" and general societal culture promotes the self-destructive behaviors seen in "intellectual" pursuits such as writing and art. College culture is intertwined with self-destructive behaviors and people are told it's to make them "successful" and a lot of people think that being a self-loathing drunken workaholic is healthy even after they leave college. The overall view by society is that being successful means engaging in these habits as well, there is some sort of weird self-destructive culture around "success" in our society in general and frankly I never understood it.
Really needed this! I’ve written 2 books, and I have OCD. From personal experience, I can tell everyone that I’ve never written my best when I was deep in OCD’s grip. I’ve always written my best when treating my OCD through therapy and support from my family. Romanticizing mental illness, especially in writers, is not only unhealthy, but extremely dangerous. Keep doing what you’re doing, JP! You’re doing great!
I'm 2 classes shy of finishing a B.S. in cybersecurity, and I can say wholeheartedly, I wish I had seen more daylight in the last two years. Was the 4.00 GPA worth it!? I don't know. *shrugs* Still could have seen more daylight in total than more sunrises before falling asleep!
I'm one of the people who wants to be a writer but doesn't have the confidence to do it. Your video wasn't just how to be a better writer, but a better person. I have to do better in life. Thank you dude!
Writing has actually helped improve my mental health greatly because I enjoy it, but to keep writing I need to be in a good headspace. This has given me motivation to tackle several deep-seated traumas and harmful internalised beliefs in order to optimise my capability to write. For the same reason, I have also become better at self-care. It was fucking hard and I relied heavily on my support system, but dear god was it cathartic and worth every tear I shed
This video made me think of a funny idea. What if a cynical youtuber decides to make fake self-care videos to get rich, but time and again people keep coming up to him how his (made up) advice in videos have helped them turn their life around. Over time he begins to doubt whether his advice could actually be helpful, and maybe he should try it out for himself? Which ironically turns his own life around and see how his cynicism was just a bad self-defense mechanism that harmed him (along with many others) and turns his youtube channel into an actual legit self-help channel not out to exploit his viewers. Now excuse me while I stop myself from using my habit of writing weird ideas down into the comment section as an escape/self-defense mechanism to avoid my problems. Hasta la vista, baby.
Sounds great, i doubt many will do that becaue its hard leaving, but also as story , yeah thats sounds a great redemption story. Dont forget the dark humor.
Believe it or not, this video DID help me. As I could see EVERYTHING I could do wrong. In that I did so much that your "Terrible Advice" suggests. I'm not even being sarcastic when I say, thank you.
“It’s not like my entire life is a shallow façade that could crack under even the most casual glance! No, I can hide all of that behind a thin veil of false confidence!” *Is it possible to learn this power?*
This seems like a very informative and accurate source of knowledge on self care. I don't see any reasons why I wouldn't take this man's advise to be completely truthful and not sarcastic. (commented again cause reupload lol)
Here are some life savers that keep you from getting into writers block: -> Some people are in a room and there is unresolved and unexplainable tension? - Give one of them a gun. -> Your MP is really close to getting into a relationship. - Has somebody said love triangle? -> The exposition you wrote is crap. - Make all characters you introduced, besides the MP, die. -> Plot hole - amnesia -> Plot hole at the end - what a good cliff hanger! -> The super smart syndicate that planned for everything lost the war. - But wasn't this part of the plan all along? -> You have no villain for your third sequel, because your colleague killed your villain in the second one? -Revive Palpatine. And also split the damn thing. Every triology does twice as good, when there are 4 movies because that is what the people want.
This should be a set and standard guide to self-care because this is applicable almost to all parts of life. This video is legitimate advice and genuine wisdom; truly incredible, for me anyway since it's hard to find something so compact and containing almost everything you'd need if you get me.
Thank you, TWA. In 9 minutes you helped me better than any psychologist session. I'm now in some kind of self-destruction circle, suffering from university problems, bad (maybe even terrible) luck with Girls and of course, lack of inspiration for my story. But now I think I know what to do with this stuff, and I'll try my best to get out of this shitty situation, in which I drove myself, kind of. Thank you for your videos. Realy, thank you.
not sure if JP did this on purpose or not (I'd bet on the former) but I love how his voice sounds more downtrodden rather than the upbeat tone in his other videos, I just think that's a neat detail
10:47 Damn, that third one basically describes me most of the time, and I don’t even have a job yet. Starting to wonder if I’m just Lazy or actually depressed. Thanks for bringing attention to it.
I know people that blame their disorders on their bad actions and it sucks really bad, cuz while yeah they contribute massively to the problem, denial and avoidance are not gonna make them any less present or destructive (mostly cuz its used as a permanent excuse that makes you look like you have never heard of what a psychologist is)
I think a big thing is also that personality traits that are typical for people who get into creative writing (social introversion, high emotional sensitivity etc.) tend to also correlate with people who are more prone to develop self-destructive habits. Speaking as someone who got into writing really recently as a side hobby (I work as a programmer) and had a lot of issues before I even considered writing
This video honestly helped me a lot today! It was exactly what I needed, and seemed to read my mind to an almost creepy extent. I felt like it saw right through me and called out every single one of my unhealthy behaviours, and the sarcastic reverse psychology in this video got me fired up to change things. So I cleaned and organized everything, made healthy meals with my family, called my loved ones, got fresh air, and now I am about to go to bed earlier than I have in at least a month… and I think I subconsciously did it all out of spite! Thank you reverse psychology! Things are really looking up for the first time in years and it’s all because your sarcasm and my rebelliousness set off the perfect chain reaction 😂
7:59, big mood. And unfortunately the complete numbness is an improvement in my depression. At least I'm like, mostly stable. Something that's helped me already in the single week I've had it is an in- home care giving service. Depression isn't my only issue, not by a long shot, and whether insurance would cover it or not for particular condition(s) I'm sure varies state to state. But it can't hurt to check, see if you can get an evaluation for it.
The average person needs roughly 63 hours a week for eating, sleeping, and hygiene. If we get 8 hours of sleep a night, that increases to 77 hours of self-care a week. Include recreation and de-stressing and that number goes up to 91 hours a week.
“Is this because drugs and alcohol often remove inhibitions and thus dull my inner critic?” Inner critic, rampant self-loathing, what’s the difference? They both keep me from venturing out into a creative field, I think! :D
10:47 The description of Quit Complaining and do Something hit hard. I cried. That line about "It's not fair to them when you don't take care of yourself hit hard, cause my family has told me this before. I'm kicking myself in the butt go take care of myself, and keep my room good, but man that line hurt. Also, hope you're doing well J.P!
Overworking is a real Issue. I risk being mistaken for a Bot but this Issue is so dear to me that i WILL 'spam' into the comments that the Video 'The Past, Present and Future of Work' by "Some More News" as well as the Channels Salari and Mentalhealthgamer have covered this.
You know, in all seriousness, one could write a fictional setting that explores deflecting the blame away from themselves, not only on a personal level, but also a societal one, along with how it effects said individual, along with said society. Consider how many of the evils that have happened throughout history were influenced by such blame-deflecting behaviors.
If you have depression, KEEP WRITING. I tried to quit writing while I had depression (in an effort to get a bunch of work done in a short timeframe) and it was 100% the worst decision I've ever made
Honestly, something that has gotten me through depression is simply not giving a fuck, seriously, from the time I realized this I got a lot better, no joke (by not giving a fuck I don't mean that you should give up on everything and everybody, it means that you take things as they are and be like: "eh, this happened, moving on" without getting crushed by negative emotions and people, positive emotions might be temporary, but so are negative emotions, take everything as it is and go on with your life, accept everything that happens, even if it's bad, you'll get through it eventually)
Important to note is that this is not a one-size-fits-all solution, though. It completely backfired with me. Too easy to slip into an attitude of "eh, that happened, moving on" with even the good things. If it helps you, that's good. But it's not for everyone.
Oh, I can relate to this. I generally don't get depressed easily, but sometimes things can pile up a bit, like when I get home from work after a stressful day at work after having a bad sleep the night before and then get a bad review on my work. At these times, it usually turns into a tug of war between my frontal cortex saying "Eh, bad days like this happen from time to time, let's not dwell on it" while my endocrine system screams "No, you should totally freak out! Here, I know what you need! Have this dose of cortisol, it's on the house!", and I end up lethargic and void of interest all evening. My usual coping mechanism when this happens is to force myself to play a game that constantly occupies my attention with small dilemmas and choices (usually a Paradox game or management game like Rimworld), put on a podcast in the background, and after half an hour or so I'm too preoccupied to dwell on these things, and a good night's sleep lately I'm usually back to normal and don't give a damn about yesterday's woes anymore.
@@Horvath_Gabor I don't mean to downplay your experiences but there is a huge difference between being depressed ond occasionally feeling down an afternoon. As shown in the video ( 8:05 ) depressiv episodes can last for weeks at a time and are often repeated in intervals, although it is different for everyone. In case I misread your comment or situation i apologise in advance.
Pretty much. Acceptance is not despair. When you accept that bad things happen, you stop stressing about them and soon figure out what really matters to you and what does not.
@@arioncarlsson7486 The thing is, if someone's depression lasts long and is a returning phenomenon, it's by definition clinical and probably requires professional help in the form of therapy or medication. My case is more about recognizing the early stages of slipping into the non-clinical version, realize that it's just your hormonal system misfiring, and just let your brain chemistry ride it out and stabilize on its own before you enter into a self-perpetuating downward spiral that could potentially make it worse over time. This, of course, presumes that your brain *can* return to its baseline on its own. If it can't, then that's when one should look for professional help, but as far as I'm concerned, this works well for me, and I never had a depressed period last longer than a couple of days. I just thought I'd share my own experience and coping mechanism.
This video coming out now of all times... This just happens to have been one of the worst months of my life in terms of mental health. I can't really express just how this hits me.
Me: My life sucks *watches the video* Me: *scheduled 9 hour sleep, healthy vegetarian mealplan, daily sport routines, healthy relationships inside and outside the family* ... Yeah, I don't think life suck that much...
@@khatunamezvrishvili6211 Mostly the generic stuff. Worrying about the future, being afraid of the final exams, trying to find a girlfriend, nothing to start a big conversation about
@@YatzeeWillWearAGreenHat It's okay to be worried about the things in your life. Others will have it worse and others will have it better. Your own ambitions and fears do not lessen because of that. There might arise a problem when one looks towards someone who has it worse: because at least you're doing better than them, right? That can lead to an unhealthy ignorance of your own issues. It can also be a bit problematic when all worries are called equal. Fearing for your life is not the same as stressing over schoolwork. But worrying about both are still valid. Some things are able to be helped. You can study for exams (in theory) but no one can take away the validity of your fears and worries.
As a barely functioning trying to recover (my self respect and sobriety) alcoholic it annoys the absolute shit out of me when characters take a bunch of pulls from the bottle then go to work. Like there is a routine, you brush your teeth afterword's so your breath doesn't smell like wild turkey mouth wash, you make sure your old spice deodorant is rubbed into every pore of your body before the alcohol sweats start, you down energy drinks for that spike in cognition because you just weighed it down with a 25 pound chain that screams "IM ADDICTED SEND HELP" and a bunch of other unhealthy habits that arise because of it. What do alcoholics and meth addicts have in common. Oh yea I should probably eat something. It's a living fucking hell, there is nothing romantic about it, the people that you love well dump you immediately, the people that love you well turn around and leave you alone cause say what you want about train wrecks, no one actually wants to watch someone they love be in one. Get help.
Can you do an episode on writing text-books too? I got a stipend at a Chinese top university and they suggested a Chinese name for me that translates to "Promise to write a book". I like to write a textbook or two ... back to topic I will start self care as soon as I am in China ...
That's going to take some extra research on JP's part since he primarily deals with fiction, but one on writing to educate does seem like an interesting topic with a lot of potential.
"Sports is just Soap Opera for men" I like that quote, seems an apt description of watching sports on tv to me. though nothing wrong with that if you enjoy it. but I never have.
I have a friend that was like this and it was draining to me to deal with. This sounds like everything I wanted to say to him if I had the guts to espescially the mental breakdown part. He is doing better now though
At least twice so far I've encountered problems that I thought were emotional depression, but actually turned out to be physical illnesses that were causing physical depression via sleep deprivation and other symptoms. I'm getting treatment for both now, and slowly getting better. So my advice is: your problem may indeed be behavioral or psychological, but don't rule out the possibility that it's actually a chronic physical problem. Maybe you don't even notice it directly because the symptoms escalated so slowly and you're "used to" the symptoms as if they're "normal" for you. Check with your doctor, check with your dentist, check with any medical professional you're seeing on a regular basis.
Serious note on something talk about at around 9:30, -yes, writing can function as self-care. A few months ago I had an experience where I instantly broke down into a level of depression I had never known before. I've got some responsibilities, like work and helping at my church, but whenever I wasn't doing those things, I was just sitting on my couch at home alone depressed. On my days off, I would just get up to go sit on my couch. After some time, I began doing some soul-searching, and found a lot of emotions that I had suppressed for several years, but I knew I needed to start allowing myself to feel them. As they began to come out, they were too painful. I then began picking up an old book idea I've had in the past and began working again on the book. Writing made processing the emotions much easier to cope with, and I actually changed my perspective on those memories. I still don't fully understand it, but now I think with great fondness and joy on my past, because there's been a lot of joy and a lot of soul-crushing disappointment. But I learned that it is okay to take delight in the joys of the past, and not just revel in the things you've lost.
To be honest, I think you hit this subject right out of the ballpark. The subjects of doom scrolling, sleep schedules and keeping a watch on mental health hits me right where it counts.
Don't know why the reupload, I still had the original open in a tab waiting to be watched, so I can see that you didn't private it or take it down but unlist it.
This is the most accurate description of my coping mechanisms and disorders have wreaked havoc on my life, but also the choices I made to change my behavior and actions to net a more positive outlook. It's hard work, but I'm so glad I escaped the self destructive spiral I used to be trapped in. Thanks terrible writing advice for the insight, I'm sorta okay with myself now.
Steve does a really good job! I work in first level support service and i often don't know what to say. Steve really knows what to say, i whish i will be as good as him 🤩
Well, I am kinda of surprised that this ended up being one of the best video you made. Even beyond the realm or creatives, this represents way too many people active online. Including my past self, of course. Everytime I look back and realize how close I was to actually care about social media, I feel a chill going down my spine
Nothing says self-care like dealing with your problems. The best way to deal with is binging alcohol. I find it easier is suppress all my problem under an alcoholism rather than deal with them in a inconvent way like "talking about my feelings" *shivers*
I feel like the timing of this-- barely a week before the start of nanowrimo-- isn't an accident. Thanks for tackling this issue in an actually productive way-- both my personal experience & professional psychology say that positive platitudes don't tend to work on depressed people. But your platform is perfectly suited to addressing it in a funny & combative way, and to utilizing the "fuck you, I'll do the opposite" impulse. Also thanks for covering the newer types of self harm that the internet has provided. Obviously you're an online ""content"" creator, and it sure sounds like you're starting from personal experience w this one, but all the same it's something I see addressed too rarely tbh
Realized you're a terrible person? It's okay, because eventually you'll find yourself too exhausted to maintain enemies, just as you're unable to maintain friendships. Soon everything will just be a void with nowhere to go, and the great thing about feeling nothing is never feeling sad again!
Thank you for another excellent video. It touches on a lot of important points, including mistaking unfiltered ideas for being more creative, draining all of those around you and using your mental state or psychological condition as an excuse for not trying. Although is it true that some things like chronic anxiety and depression can make it very difficult to function and live as satisfying of a life as someone not dealing with those conditions, it doesn't mean one should just give up. Your life will be more difficult living with these conditions but it is still possible to achieve some fulfillment in life.
Video in "The Character that was obviously designed to die"! I made my research and found none in the internet Please Mr Terrible Writting Advice, and awesome video as always
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-8255
Edit: Apologies for those who are confused. I made a critical typo on the other version of this video. Normally I would let small typos like that slide, but I figured it’s kind of important being it was the above number. And since UA-cam doesn’t let you actually fix your freaking video I had to reupload. Sorry for that.
Thank you for that - it had to be really annoying to go through the entire process again.
Too little too late... My friend killed himself after he wasn't able to get ahold of the hotline.
@@cde3003 and that's TWA's fault, how, exactly?
@@ponponpatapon9670 dude, the guy's friend just fucking died
@@cde3003 I'm so sorry...
I am glad someone is talking about how awful the weird culture about being a writer (or artist in general) is and how it promotes self-destructive behaviour as a normal way of coping with trying to create something.
This line of thought has destroyed and is currently destroying countless people as of today, the ones that were brought to fame were no exception
This is destroying me since I was 12
Same here, it's easy to think that your suffering is your primary source of fuel to be creative, leads to people not doing anything about their problems out of fear that they won't be as creative any more
And unfortunately, those people who would voluntarily put themselves in that burden for the craftwork itself is pretty much inevitable from self destruction.
As the nature of creating and artwork itself is already hard though, there's really not a lot of attention to it sadly, because it mostly serves as entertainment, thats why most artists have alot of hard times to catch up with the system and have little to no choice but to destroy themselves in order to meet the demand.
Maybe I'm just rambling here with not much knowing about the industry itself, though one thing for sure that I know, and I quote from the Japanese Mangakas. Most of the time, it's rather.. "Voluntary enslavement".
Yes, in my graphic novel there's a writer who lost inspiration so he goes putting himself in dangerous situation to feel pain.
And remember kids, NEVER leave your computer and NEVER EVER leave your home. Inspiration wells from staring at that blank page, and surrounding yourself with the same setting, same routine, and same distractions day to day is sure to pump that spring at maximum efficiency. If you absolutely must leave, use the time to obsess over your project.
I was okay during the whole video, but now I feel called out ! I manage to write anyway, but there's less authenticity compared to the time I had friends and a crush to see weekly
Considering the pandemic and how some places are still doing lockdowns, not leaving home or your computer is one of those "You don't have a choice" things. I mean, yeah, you could go outside in your backyard or take a walk, but who does that anymore?
So much this. Get rid of the home set up, find a job you can work remote and live to travel. I've been able to get a couple short stories published that I wrote on my phone while at work. COVID made it more annoying but its still doable even if you cant afford to leave your country.
Perfect! Then I'm doing everything right.
Oddly enough, I do actually find that the more cripplingly bored I am, the more creative I become. It is as though my tortured subconscious is desperately seeking an escape from the mundainity by providing it's own fanciful ventures without me having to put any work into it at all!
The things living in your soda cans will develop aluminum tools, that's what they have available. Your soda can universe needs better worldbuilding.
WORLDANVIL!!!!
That would be a fun story. Like a whole fantasy world in a pop can
The can's tab isn't the same metal as the rest of the can... I wonder what it is.
I don't think he's in a good headspace right now, but I'm guessing he will when he CAN
used to be soda, used to be cigarettes', used to be alcohol, used to be chocolate, used to be toothpicks.
currently hot green tea.
The real character development
Wait, toothpicks?
@@TheDiazDarkness Likely an oral fixation resulting from quitting smoking.
Next: Plastic Straws
@@TheDiazDarkness *grotesque crunching sounds*
"[Sarcastically] Best to assume that therapy will fix my deep-seated personality issues rather than simply provide me with a new perspective that might allow me to better manage my conditions."
This. More people need to understand this. More often than not, I see people treat the act of getting professional help as the endgame rather than the halfway mark at best, and that just doesn't sit right with me.
It n important step to agnowledge youneed help and anoth r perspective to get on whatever and ho youcan live better and better car for yourself and healthy coping mechanisms.
I’ve always heard it said that “therapy is the solution”
With how stigmatised and difficult to access therapy is, it benefits from an idolised treatment because otherwise a lot of people who need it and have to be talked into it wouldnt try it.
@cara-seyun Therapy can be the solution, but only if you actually use it. Just going to therapy will not help you, you have to *participate* in it
The description of actual depression hits hard.
Worse than feeling sad is feeling nothing at all. Not wanting to do anything nor enjoying anything as the world turns gray.
True like a big endless black whol sucking up everything positive and give it time the rest too. An like a black hole its like a force of nature and hard to treat.
Doing anything to like to combat is good, it just a tiring battle, but try that, just dont let it be used as fuel for self loathing if possible, whic is hard, but try forgiving youself.
@@icarue993 Yeah, that's really tough. I think it's the worst aspect, being unable to find joy in things you actually love(d) doing.
Thank god I'm a gamer and video games are disigned to activate certain neurons to release the happy chemical in order to be addictive. This makes the void feeling dissapear, just like the 7 hours I yesterday spent in Simcity. No eating, no drinking, no toilet breaks, just green line go up and expand industry.
@@christiegreenwood2642 For me, anhedonia (the lack of joy you described) was the worst part of depression, I could handle the mood stuff eventually, and I could keep myself from most self-destructive behaviour, outside of comfort eating (arguably the least bad of the bad coping systems). Getting through the day was tough, but through strict regimenting my day and planning everything to get as much distraction as possible for the least amount of willpower required, I did make it progressively easier to keep going. If you want to know I can explain in detail how I did that, thanks to proper counselling and my psychiatrist's advice on the matter, I did develop decently effective strategies to keep going while I tried out new meds.
And after 10 years of chronic depression, of which the last 4.5 were severe, I found the right medication for me, and I've now been symptom-free for over a year, compared to a month at maximum before. So I will urge people to keep trying medication and therapy, while it's not easy in any way, it's most likely to help in the long run.
And not sitting it out isn't a good option, especially when it's Persistent Depressive Disorder instead of Major Depressive Disorder (or any other episodic form of depression), since it won't pass on its own.
But NGL, Writer's Tear is a pretty good whiskey. Highly recommend for those who likes Irish whiskey and is willing to pay a tiny bit more.
Wow, it's actually a real whiskey.
It doesn't look too expensive though. The price is on par with most mid tier whiskey.
Meh, best thing about writers tears is the name
Glad someone got here before me.
@@matthewparker9276 I mean, comparing to your normal Jameson.....
I'll give it a try. I usually like scotch better, but I'm always open to try new things
That globe on fire in a dumpster labeled 2021 inside a dumpster labeled 2020 is the best political cartoon I've seen in a while.
Mostly because it isn't even political, it just state facts that in themselves are not political.
And it's gonna be very easy to update it each year 😅
2022 will be another dumpster but instead of being inside, is now instead falling on the sky towards the last two years.
It's too funny to be a political cartoon.
People love to say that everything is over, went to shit, end is near etc. etc. As humans we are in this cycle for like few thousands years already, like c'mon Man since beginning of WW2 everyone keeps saying that end is just few steps from now but most stuff actually improve. We may not be living in best version of the world as Laplace's Optimism says, but it's still good.
My self prescribed for my writing days are Star Bucks coffee. Side effects are diabetes, anxiety, insomnia, and burns a hole in my bank account.
Plus shame knowing you support Starbucks
Same bro lol 😆
Drink green tea and get rid of .. some of that, at least
Starbucks doesn't make coffee worth a damn. The only times I have had coffee from there it tasted burnt or watery. If I was lucky. Before Starbucks, I did not know it was possible for a drink to taste burnt, watery, and rancid, all at the same time.
And then they're gonna smother that godawful stuff with all kinds of sugar to hide just how bad it is.
Mood
Commented this on the last one but: JP is right, guys! Almost didn't write several times this week because of anxiety attacks and every time I actually did I felt so much better. Creating IS self-care, it is productive and it does help! Do something, even if it's something small, like making sure you eat or take a shower. Baby steps!
Hey sometimes a little change can be the best for the future, but then again this is coming from someone that is still struggling with impulses.
Bro, how do you start creating something? Because i'm stuck. Have you got any suggestions?
@@plague_doctor0237 Open up text edit and write something.
@@plague_doctor0237 For me it was tough, I suffered writer's block for several years only trying to create on and off. I found some solice in other kinds of creating, like drawing and cooking, and it took dropping my current project to work on something new for a little while. Something to change things up a bit. I highly recommend trying to focus on a current obsession or love of yours, because that always inspires me to create.
Maybe I'll get back to my original project some day, lol. 😅
@@plague_doctor0237 Personally, every little creative outlet helps me. Writing a story or an adventure game -- but even a small doodle makes me feel good. Or editing a photo with text and stickers. Sometimes the little things help. 👍
And don't forget, comparing yourself to others who are already successful at what you do is a great way to get yourself to do anything and totally won't just make you feel terrible and want to give up because you feel like you are inherently inferior, all while ignoring that those successful people took a long road to get there and probably still also doubt themselves too.
Pretty accurate
Can you quit describing half my personality?
And don't forget that, in many instances, the already long road to success was shortened by any combination of:
- Luck
- Inherited wealth
- Nepotism
- Education
- Geography/race (a Pakistani or Sudanese writer is unlikely to make it big in the West)
- Privilege, which is all the above
"The bottle says no" really makes me laugh. Thank you.
It feels like the card says moops
I'm both a writer and a starving comic artist going through this. This video pretty much feels like a much needed callout. Thankfully I'm seeing professional help and encourage others who are in this predicament to do the same.
Yeah, I’m also a comic artist/writer, I’m probably not old as you bc im still in high school, i have trouble managing my time for drawing/writing and school in the morning i rely on coffee to stayed awake, at night I work until it late and have to use coffee, my mental health takes a dive as well as my school performance
@@tight_delay3545 yeah, I'm kinda old. Probably twice your age. My word of advice here is to do your best to manage your time. Set a specific schedule for school work, then some time for art when you can while going to bed at a consistent time. There'll always be readers out there to see your stuff, but your school grades and health are what should take priority. Build good coping habits, not destructive ones. Best of luck to you dude.
You're a comic artist? Do you have a link to your comic
@@Inutitant12 im taking a break to think about this, thank you for the advice. You don’t have to answer me but what your comic is about? I want to hear about it
@@amostlypeacefulmassshooting For some reason YT keeps deleting my responses so I'm just testing this comment out. If it stays up, please reply and I'll hopefully be able to give you the name of the comic on webtoons.
I have never paused a video series like I have with TWA; not just to read the hilarious animated dialogue, but to sincerely ponder and absorb JP's wisdom. Thank you. May we all try to be better, and do better.
yeah, same
That FOOL JP has uploaded twice on the same day, allowing me to view his content early double the amount of times so that I can extract his secrets for my own nefarious uses.
thinking like a true evil genius
I read this in Dark Lord's voice hahaha
1) This is deeply relatable even if you aren't a writer.
2) This is way too real.
3) I think you need a hug.
4) I think he might need more than a hug
@@RozeLight 5) Beer?
6) Beer
Are you ok JP? Just checking. Seems like this video came from a negative personal experience where you forgot about self care. It’s a good warning to give others since this is a pretty common problem with creators but I just hope that those dark times are behind you.
8:00 Read carefully, it happens for a week roughly every 2 to 3 months
This issue is more common than you may think
I have good hope he uses that a outlet and therapy tolet his feelings out through self deprivating sarcasm and art. In short i think he has healthy coping mechanims
@@marocat4749 ...wait what was that about a therapy toilet?
@@WildBluntHickok I think it was "to let" not toilet
This says how much this guy cares about the subject
You know, this video’s topic is pretty applicable no matter what field you’re in… and it’s something I need too given the future I see coming. Thank you JP for continually putting so much effort and introspection into your videos. Also works as a nice self demonstrating article for self care given it’s letting you express yourself, your struggles and views, and how you’re handling things. Gives me a few ideas for stories honestly.
Yep, especially now that so many of us are working from home, 90% of this video is relevant to other fields too. The easy slide from "I can work in my sweatpants" to "I haven't stepped outside in days". Or from the "Night is a good time to focus on work" to completely messing up your sleep schedule. Even the toxic way to romanticize bad coping mechanisms has its equivalents at least in careers like software development.
Watching this in 4am in my sweatpants after correcting shit hits hard and I only work part time while studying
Amen. I just wrote pretty much the same thing just a minute ago. I'm pretty damn sure 100 % people have experienced (almost) all of these things mentioned in the video at least at some point, regardless of if they're in the "creative industry" or not. This video applies to everyone
Marty McFly: "I've seen this one! This is a classic!"
Marty: "Doc! We did it! We've gone back in time!"
Doc: "No Marty, it's just a repost."
I have gotten back to my terrible writing finally after years of depression that made me unable to concentrate. Medication does not necessarily kill creativity, that is a myth. For me it can make creativity possible.
True! I had to learn this myself. Medication's effects may vary (and you should try to be informed), but a dysfunctional and distracted life can kill creativity just as easily, and more likely.
Agreed. I wasn't able to really write at all from 2020 to the begining of 2021, which happens to be the moment in which school was online and I suddendly had no schedule at all to force me to work at regular times, which made me horribly stressed all the time as I was constantly obsessing over the work I still need to do.
Also, there are several different categories of antidepressants, and each one works on a different brain circuit. If the one you're on isn't doing it for you, you can ask to try something from a different medication class.
The fact this was posted at like midnight makes it even better
As someone who's currently struggling to do proper self-care, this video hits close to home. I feel trapped in a downward spiral of depression, and struggle to find the motivation to do even the simplest things.
Honestly, same. I'm talking with my doc about it, and have to try reaching out to a therapist, but to go that step is incredibly hard. Luckily, they could make an appointment with a psychiatrist, and I got prescribed some anti-depressants. I hope they'll kick in soon, so that I can at least get myself to reach out for therapy.
I wish you the best for your own fight. Know you are not alone in it.
@@olafgurke4699 Thanks buddy. Same to you :)
Are you doing okay?
update???
JP: *releases a new video*
Me, a worker in an Emergency department: JP, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE TEACHING ME ABOUT HOW TO WRITE, NOT REMINDING ME HOW MISERABLE BEING A HEALTH CARE WORKER IS!!!
Creating is a form of therapy. Hence why JD’s always got the long, funny sponsorship wars at the end as a much needed break.
I’m not a writer, but a few these sarcastic tips feel like I’m getting called out.
I think he's calling me out too. We should sue him for plagiarism.
He forgot to include the disclaimer that any resemblance to other people (real or fictional) is purely coincidental.
O.o i... think it might not be a coincidence... it seems pretty specific... but it also seems to refer to a lot of habits that I personally have... and humans do tend to judge what's "normal" in relation to themselves... it took me years to realize that apparently not everyone has certain dark thoughts. So... he may be mostly drawing from his own experiences but it hits hard for those of us who have experienced similar things. Our are maybe experiencing then currently. I've been in a dark place myself lately and despite not writing recently this hits hard.
I'm going to steal your "My mental stability is a zero-sum game" line for my personal use.
what's a zero-sum game?
@@joanagomes1898 :
It effectively means that for somebody to win, somebody else has to lose. There is no scenario in which everybody wins or where cooperation between parties is beneficial to all.
The implication of the line is that for me to be mentally stable, I have to make somebody else feel worse. Or vice versa, the reason I feel bad is because somebody else feels good.
Not even a writer, but I am a professional game master for dnd and this feels far too personal
Pro GM?
GMs are writers too.
The only difference is that your cowriters control the dialogue and the plot is decided by committee
@@martthesling A person who runs Tapletop RPG's for money. Debated getting into it myself.
I think pro GM sounds more awesome than it actually is, does it?
@@sdrawkcab_emanresu yes and no. I love the job and it is amazing, but jist like writing it doesn't pay a ton and you have to do far more than what others think you do.
Two rules I have about responsibly drinking alcohol:
1. Never drink to feel better.
2. Never drink alone.
And for the love of personally preferred deities, never ever combine the two!
Sure. One can have a glass alone if things are allright and you feel happy and content with the situation. But alcohol is an emotional enhancer... If you feel like shit... Alcohol is not the way to feeling less of that in the long run.
Now, if you excuse me, I need to continue my search for a job that doesn't require me to have continuous jetlag 7 days a week 365 days a year.
"Personally preferred deities"
I'm taking this phrase👍
Amen to that!
I used to drink to cope and thankfully once I got pregnant 9 months of sobriety and of course mother courses pulled my shit together.
And now I only drink after 5 pm and only one to 2 glasses of wine. While the husband Is home with me and we are eating dinner.
Weekends I still go by the same rules only allowing myself one extra glass.
I also workout ans take walks outside with the baby. And keep the windows open during the day to allow for natural light.
I was fortunate to be taught this early. Glad I always followed it, my uncles were always an example to me of how much a person can hurt themselves with excessive drinking.
HEY! How dare you?! I did not wake up this early just to get called out on my destructive behaviors by UA-cam comments!
That can be applied to a lot of bad habits and not enough people talk about it. I did this with smoking in high school and it made it very easy for me to quit doing smoking. Finding a healthy coping mechanism is hard and can take a while but it's definitely worth it. Also imo it's better to not have any coping mechanism for a while than to rush and pick up a bad one that could ruin your life in the long run.
NewsSpeak is the best damn pun I’ve ever seen… Well played.
doubleplusgood wordmaking
Works for both the left AND right. "The world is doomed because of these guys!" "No, the world is doomed because of THESE guys!"
Self care is when you watch a UA-cam video about self care, clap and agree and then go back to doing what you're normally doing.
JP is right, I realized that I was over exerting myself this week, so I took time off and I realized just how much anxiety I had and how much I was overworking myself. It’s good to remember that you’re not a robot and that you need time to be a person. Taking a break is an act of self love
Ahhh...the joys of forgetting to eat all day so you'll be hungry late into the night and oversleep because despite what you tell yourself every night, you never manage to go to sleep before 4 AM.
I think this video applies to all creative fields, including art music video editing, and is a good reminder on reminding me on my own self denial that IU need to take a second look at myself in the mirror. What did you changed in this reupload?
Suicide hotlne number was wrong.
Gentle reminder that being kind to yourself is a very important part of self care. You'll never get out of the cycle of self abuse if you don't believe you deserve to.
True and the primary reason that many people don't get out of it.
How am I supposed to be kind to myself when every time I wake up, eat food, work, break, drive home, comes back home and try to sleep I am being reminded of my guilt from the actions that I have committed in the past?
@@johanmikkael6903 You know how when you forgive other people, you pretty much say to them: "other person, you have hurt me, and caused damage that I'm am going to have to live with going forward. I am taking steps to handle the situation and to protect myself from further harm, *but I have not lost my desire to love you because of what you did*. I choose to continue to treat you well and to want the best for you."
It's kind of the same thing for forgiving yourself. You have to tell yourself: "self, you have hurt me, and caused damage that I'm going to have to live with. However, I choose still to love you, regardless, and to believe that you can do better."
You can't magically make your past go away... But you can be that kind person who sees more in you than just your failings, and who believes in you to do better, even when that doesn't look likely.
We really are more than we think we are.
Honestly, having a full time job, travelling there and back, doing the chores is sometimes more than enough to be constantly tired. It can be just as soulcrushing to descend into the madness of routine as having none at all. Any time something breaks that cycle (like a sick leave or vacation) the depression I usually don't have the time to care about get it's fangs in me. Then it recedes back into the shadows when responsibility calls. Then it attacks again, poisoning whatever free time I have. Go figure humans.
You're telling me people aren't supposed to burn themselves out by working nonstop day in and day out? Who knew?
This is so true, especially when it comes to editing!
My kitchen, bathroom and balcony got so clean the last time I had to edit my work.
5:03 In all fairness that one can depend on someone's situation, my sleep schedule was the most fucked up during the height of my college years when I had classes and 2 odd jobs at different hours (sometimes one shift in the morning and another at night ON THE SAME DAY) along with a relationship to uphold and little actual home time to dedicate to cleaning up the place forcing me to stay up like 30 hours just to do house chores and some days I would only get a couple hours of sleep while I would get 5+ on others. Since I left college I just settled into a night owl pattern (more in line with my natural circadian rhythm) and these days I prefer to go to bed between 3-5 AM and find I'm most productive between 9PM-3AM.
Unfortunately I think the "college lifestyle" and general societal culture promotes the self-destructive behaviors seen in "intellectual" pursuits such as writing and art. College culture is intertwined with self-destructive behaviors and people are told it's to make them "successful" and a lot of people think that being a self-loathing drunken workaholic is healthy even after they leave college. The overall view by society is that being successful means engaging in these habits as well, there is some sort of weird self-destructive culture around "success" in our society in general and frankly I never understood it.
I already commented this on the last one, but;
Writing self care is about the only category of self care I actually succeed in.
Really needed this! I’ve written 2 books, and I have OCD. From personal experience, I can tell everyone that I’ve never written my best when I was deep in OCD’s grip. I’ve always written my best when treating my OCD through therapy and support from my family. Romanticizing mental illness, especially in writers, is not only unhealthy, but extremely dangerous. Keep doing what you’re doing, JP! You’re doing great!
Not a writer but as someone who is still in online school, this hits hard, especially the exercise part.
I'm 2 classes shy of finishing a B.S. in cybersecurity, and I can say wholeheartedly, I wish I had seen more daylight in the last two years. Was the 4.00 GPA worth it!? I don't know. *shrugs* Still could have seen more daylight in total than more sunrises before falling asleep!
I think i got depression during lockdown, and just realized it yet. (it was still worth it, please don't use me as argument against lockdown)
This is extremely valuable, and not just to writers. It's like a ray of sunlight
I'm one of the people who wants to be a writer but doesn't have the confidence to do it. Your video wasn't just how to be a better writer, but a better person. I have to do better in life. Thank you dude!
Writing has actually helped improve my mental health greatly because I enjoy it, but to keep writing I need to be in a good headspace. This has given me motivation to tackle several deep-seated traumas and harmful internalised beliefs in order to optimise my capability to write. For the same reason, I have also become better at self-care. It was fucking hard and I relied heavily on my support system, but dear god was it cathartic and worth every tear I shed
This video made me think of a funny idea. What if a cynical youtuber decides to make fake self-care videos to get rich, but time and again people keep coming up to him how his (made up) advice in videos have helped them turn their life around. Over time he begins to doubt whether his advice could actually be helpful, and maybe he should try it out for himself? Which ironically turns his own life around and see how his cynicism was just a bad self-defense mechanism that harmed him (along with many others) and turns his youtube channel into an actual legit self-help channel not out to exploit his viewers.
Now excuse me while I stop myself from using my habit of writing weird ideas down into the comment section as an escape/self-defense mechanism to avoid my problems. Hasta la vista, baby.
That would make an awesome story, ngl
Sounds great, i doubt many will do that becaue its hard leaving,
but also as story , yeah thats sounds a great redemption story. Dont forget the dark humor.
If you can find your inspiration to write this, please do! I think this is a great idea 🎉🎉
Believe it or not, this video DID help me. As I could see EVERYTHING I could do wrong. In that I did so much that your "Terrible Advice" suggests.
I'm not even being sarcastic when I say, thank you.
“It’s not like my entire life is a shallow façade that could crack under even the most casual glance! No, I can hide all of that behind a thin veil of false confidence!”
*Is it possible to learn this power?*
3:39 "NewsSpeak"
I award you one (1) internet point for being a clever person(s).
This feels like it applies for a lot more people than just writers...
Well he never said it had to apply to only writers
It applies to everyone with a passion, I think
1. JP are you okay? Like for real
2. Thanks so much, I was getting into some bad habits and I struggle with anxiety so this helped loads!!
This seems like a very informative and accurate source of knowledge on self care. I don't see any reasons why I wouldn't take this man's advise to be completely truthful and not sarcastic.
(commented again cause reupload lol)
Here are some life savers that keep you from getting into writers block:
-> Some people are in a room and there is unresolved and unexplainable tension? - Give one of them a gun.
-> Your MP is really close to getting into a relationship. - Has somebody said love triangle?
-> The exposition you wrote is crap. - Make all characters you introduced, besides the MP, die.
-> Plot hole - amnesia
-> Plot hole at the end - what a good cliff hanger!
-> The super smart syndicate that planned for everything lost the war. - But wasn't this part of the plan all along?
-> You have no villain for your third sequel, because your colleague killed your villain in the second one? -Revive Palpatine. And also split the damn thing. Every triology does twice as good, when there are 4 movies because that is what the people want.
Ngl I didn't realise this was sarcasm until the last one lmao
I like that the first one actually works lmao
This should be a set and standard guide to self-care because this is applicable almost to all parts of life. This video is legitimate advice and genuine wisdom; truly incredible, for me anyway since it's hard to find something so compact and containing almost everything you'd need if you get me.
"What do you think bottle?... ...The bottle says no."
-Me, talking to my imaginary ocs sometimes.
Thank you, TWA. In 9 minutes you helped me better than any psychologist session.
I'm now in some kind of self-destruction circle, suffering from university problems, bad (maybe even terrible) luck with Girls and of course, lack of inspiration for my story. But now I think I know what to do with this stuff, and I'll try my best to get out of this shitty situation, in which I drove myself, kind of.
Thank you for your videos. Realy, thank you.
not sure if JP did this on purpose or not (I'd bet on the former) but I love how his voice sounds more downtrodden rather than the upbeat tone in his other videos, I just think that's a neat detail
He honestly sounds unhinged, it kind of worries me.
I'm not a writer, I'm in grad school, but this hits me so freaken hard
10:47 Damn, that third one basically describes me most of the time, and I don’t even have a job yet. Starting to wonder if I’m just Lazy or actually depressed. Thanks for bringing attention to it.
Quite possibly one of your most important videos yet, and you still managed to put in some humor, much appreciated.
I know people that blame their disorders on their bad actions and it sucks really bad, cuz while yeah they contribute massively to the problem, denial and avoidance are not gonna make them any less present or destructive (mostly cuz its used as a permanent excuse that makes you look like you have never heard of what a psychologist is)
I think a big thing is also that personality traits that are typical for people who get into creative writing (social introversion, high emotional sensitivity etc.) tend to also correlate with people who are more prone to develop self-destructive habits.
Speaking as someone who got into writing really recently as a side hobby (I work as a programmer) and had a lot of issues before I even considered writing
This video honestly helped me a lot today! It was exactly what I needed, and seemed to read my mind to an almost creepy extent. I felt like it saw right through me and called out every single one of my unhealthy behaviours, and the sarcastic reverse psychology in this video got me fired up to change things. So I cleaned and organized everything, made healthy meals with my family, called my loved ones, got fresh air, and now I am about to go to bed earlier than I have in at least a month… and I think I subconsciously did it all out of spite! Thank you reverse psychology! Things are really looking up for the first time in years and it’s all because your sarcasm and my rebelliousness set off the perfect chain reaction 😂
7:59, big mood. And unfortunately the complete numbness is an improvement in my depression. At least I'm like, mostly stable.
Something that's helped me already in the single week I've had it is an in- home care giving service. Depression isn't my only issue, not by a long shot, and whether insurance would cover it or not for particular condition(s) I'm sure varies state to state. But it can't hurt to check, see if you can get an evaluation for it.
5:54
Wow, his set of dominos has three 4-4 tiles, he really HAS gone off the deep end!
Oh hey i know you from Jebus video
@@Адам-ъ3в Hello fellow Madness fan
The average person needs roughly 63 hours a week for eating, sleeping, and hygiene. If we get 8 hours of sleep a night, that increases to 77 hours of self-care a week. Include recreation and de-stressing and that number goes up to 91 hours a week.
“Is this because drugs and alcohol often remove inhibitions and thus dull my inner critic?”
Inner critic, rampant self-loathing, what’s the difference?
They both keep me from venturing out into a creative field, I think! :D
10:47 The description of Quit Complaining and do Something hit hard.
I cried.
That line about "It's not fair to them when you don't take care of yourself hit hard, cause my family has told me this before. I'm kicking myself in the butt go take care of myself, and keep my room good, but man that line hurt.
Also, hope you're doing well J.P!
Overworking is a real Issue. I risk being mistaken for a Bot but this Issue is so dear to me
that i WILL 'spam' into the comments that the Video 'The Past, Present and Future of Work' by "Some More News" as well as the Channels Salari and Mentalhealthgamer have covered this.
You know, in all seriousness, one could write a fictional setting that explores deflecting the blame away from themselves, not only on a personal level, but also a societal one, along with how it effects said individual, along with said society. Consider how many of the evils that have happened throughout history were influenced by such blame-deflecting behaviors.
If you have depression, KEEP WRITING. I tried to quit writing while I had depression (in an effort to get a bunch of work done in a short timeframe) and it was 100% the worst decision I've ever made
Honestly, something that has gotten me through depression is simply not giving a fuck, seriously, from the time I realized this I got a lot better, no joke (by not giving a fuck I don't mean that you should give up on everything and everybody, it means that you take things as they are and be like: "eh, this happened, moving on" without getting crushed by negative emotions and people, positive emotions might be temporary, but so are negative emotions, take everything as it is and go on with your life, accept everything that happens, even if it's bad, you'll get through it eventually)
Important to note is that this is not a one-size-fits-all solution, though. It completely backfired with me. Too easy to slip into an attitude of "eh, that happened, moving on" with even the good things.
If it helps you, that's good. But it's not for everyone.
Oh, I can relate to this. I generally don't get depressed easily, but sometimes things can pile up a bit, like when I get home from work after a stressful day at work after having a bad sleep the night before and then get a bad review on my work. At these times, it usually turns into a tug of war between my frontal cortex saying "Eh, bad days like this happen from time to time, let's not dwell on it" while my endocrine system screams "No, you should totally freak out! Here, I know what you need! Have this dose of cortisol, it's on the house!", and I end up lethargic and void of interest all evening.
My usual coping mechanism when this happens is to force myself to play a game that constantly occupies my attention with small dilemmas and choices (usually a Paradox game or management game like Rimworld), put on a podcast in the background, and after half an hour or so I'm too preoccupied to dwell on these things, and a good night's sleep lately I'm usually back to normal and don't give a damn about yesterday's woes anymore.
@@Horvath_Gabor I don't mean to downplay your experiences but there is a huge difference between being depressed ond occasionally feeling down an afternoon. As shown in the video ( 8:05 ) depressiv episodes can last for weeks at a time and are often repeated in intervals, although it is different for everyone.
In case I misread your comment or situation i apologise in advance.
Pretty much. Acceptance is not despair. When you accept that bad things happen, you stop stressing about them and soon figure out what really matters to you and what does not.
@@arioncarlsson7486 The thing is, if someone's depression lasts long and is a returning phenomenon, it's by definition clinical and probably requires professional help in the form of therapy or medication. My case is more about recognizing the early stages of slipping into the non-clinical version, realize that it's just your hormonal system misfiring, and just let your brain chemistry ride it out and stabilize on its own before you enter into a self-perpetuating downward spiral that could potentially make it worse over time.
This, of course, presumes that your brain *can* return to its baseline on its own. If it can't, then that's when one should look for professional help, but as far as I'm concerned, this works well for me, and I never had a depressed period last longer than a couple of days. I just thought I'd share my own experience and coping mechanism.
This video coming out now of all times... This just happens to have been one of the worst months of my life in terms of mental health. I can't really express just how this hits me.
Me: My life sucks
*watches the video*
Me: *scheduled 9 hour sleep, healthy vegetarian mealplan, daily sport routines, healthy relationships inside and outside the family*
...
Yeah, I don't think life suck that much...
Well there must be a reason why you think your life sucks right? What is it? Theres many other problems people can face outside of self care and stuff
@@khatunamezvrishvili6211 Mostly the generic stuff. Worrying about the future, being afraid of the final exams, trying to find a girlfriend, nothing to start a big conversation about
@@YatzeeWillWearAGreenHat It's okay to be worried about the things in your life. Others will have it worse and others will have it better. Your own ambitions and fears do not lessen because of that.
There might arise a problem when one looks towards someone who has it worse: because at least you're doing better than them, right? That can lead to an unhealthy ignorance of your own issues. It can also be a bit problematic when all worries are called equal. Fearing for your life is not the same as stressing over schoolwork. But worrying about both are still valid. Some things are able to be helped. You can study for exams (in theory) but no one can take away the validity of your fears and worries.
"2021 is a dumpster fire inside of another, slightly older dumpster fire"
Currently self-editing my novel for self-publish, I really need this.
Only terrible writers use whiskey or alcohol, True writers only use pure depression, Writers block and Late bills to cope
As a barely functioning trying to recover (my self respect and sobriety) alcoholic it annoys the absolute shit out of me when characters take a bunch of pulls from the bottle then go to work. Like there is a routine, you brush your teeth afterword's so your breath doesn't smell like wild turkey mouth wash, you make sure your old spice deodorant is rubbed into every pore of your body before the alcohol sweats start, you down energy drinks for that spike in cognition because you just weighed it down with a 25 pound chain that screams "IM ADDICTED SEND HELP" and a bunch of other unhealthy habits that arise because of it. What do alcoholics and meth addicts have in common. Oh yea I should probably eat something. It's a living fucking hell, there is nothing romantic about it, the people that you love well dump you immediately, the people that love you well turn around and leave you alone cause say what you want about train wrecks, no one actually wants to watch someone they love be in one. Get help.
Can you do an episode on writing text-books too? I got a stipend at a Chinese top university and they suggested a Chinese name for me that translates to "Promise to write a book". I like to write a textbook or two ... back to topic I will start self care as soon as I am in China ...
That's going to take some extra research on JP's part since he primarily deals with fiction, but one on writing to educate does seem like an interesting topic with a lot of potential.
I work as copywriter and currently put myself in a mess plus I feel overwhelmed by almost everyone and everything, so I appreciate this kind of video.
"Sports is just Soap Opera for men" I like that quote, seems an apt description of watching sports on tv to me. though nothing wrong with that if you enjoy it. but I never have.
I have a friend that was like this and it was draining to me to deal with. This sounds like everything I wanted to say to him if I had the guts to espescially the mental breakdown part. He is doing better now though
At least twice so far I've encountered problems that I thought were emotional depression, but actually turned out to be physical illnesses that were causing physical depression via sleep deprivation and other symptoms. I'm getting treatment for both now, and slowly getting better.
So my advice is: your problem may indeed be behavioral or psychological, but don't rule out the possibility that it's actually a chronic physical problem. Maybe you don't even notice it directly because the symptoms escalated so slowly and you're "used to" the symptoms as if they're "normal" for you. Check with your doctor, check with your dentist, check with any medical professional you're seeing on a regular basis.
Serious note on something talk about at around 9:30, -yes, writing can function as self-care. A few months ago I had an experience where I instantly broke down into a level of depression I had never known before. I've got some responsibilities, like work and helping at my church, but whenever I wasn't doing those things, I was just sitting on my couch at home alone depressed. On my days off, I would just get up to go sit on my couch.
After some time, I began doing some soul-searching, and found a lot of emotions that I had suppressed for several years, but I knew I needed to start allowing myself to feel them. As they began to come out, they were too painful. I then began picking up an old book idea I've had in the past and began working again on the book. Writing made processing the emotions much easier to cope with, and I actually changed my perspective on those memories. I still don't fully understand it, but now I think with great fondness and joy on my past, because there's been a lot of joy and a lot of soul-crushing disappointment. But I learned that it is okay to take delight in the joys of the past, and not just revel in the things you've lost.
The stars have aligned, my hunger is sated no later than it manifests
To be honest, I think you hit this subject right out of the ballpark.
The subjects of doom scrolling, sleep schedules and keeping a watch on mental health hits me right where it counts.
Don't know why the reupload, I still had the original open in a tab waiting to be watched, so I can see that you didn't private it or take it down but unlist it.
On Twitter, he said it was because of a typo.
This is the most accurate description of my coping mechanisms and disorders have wreaked havoc on my life, but also the choices I made to change my behavior and actions to net a more positive outlook. It's hard work, but I'm so glad I escaped the self destructive spiral I used to be trapped in. Thanks terrible writing advice for the insight, I'm sorta okay with myself now.
Steve does a really good job! I work in first level support service and i often don't know what to say. Steve really knows what to say, i whish i will be as good as him 🤩
Well, I am kinda of surprised that this ended up being one of the best video you made.
Even beyond the realm or creatives, this represents way too many people active online. Including my past self, of course.
Everytime I look back and realize how close I was to actually care about social media, I feel a chill going down my spine
Nothing says self-care like dealing with your problems. The best way to deal with is binging alcohol. I find it easier is suppress all my problem under an alcoholism rather than deal with them in a inconvent way like "talking about my feelings" *shivers*
This is perhaps the most important video you've made for writers
I feel like the timing of this-- barely a week before the start of nanowrimo-- isn't an accident. Thanks for tackling this issue in an actually productive way-- both my personal experience & professional psychology say that positive platitudes don't tend to work on depressed people. But your platform is perfectly suited to addressing it in a funny & combative way, and to utilizing the "fuck you, I'll do the opposite" impulse.
Also thanks for covering the newer types of self harm that the internet has provided. Obviously you're an online ""content"" creator, and it sure sounds like you're starting from personal experience w this one, but all the same it's something I see addressed too rarely tbh
0:44
This is LITERALLY the basis for my Mettaton (yes, from Undertale) angst so I love he shared that
I'm perfectly fine at writing my books and I totally don't cringe when I become sober after a shot of creativity vodka.
Realized you're a terrible person? It's okay, because eventually you'll find yourself too exhausted to maintain enemies, just as you're unable to maintain friendships. Soon everything will just be a void with nowhere to go, and the great thing about feeling nothing is never feeling sad again!
I'm so glad I'm just an artist and not a writer! I don't have to deal with any of this!
Thank you for another excellent video. It touches on a lot of important points, including mistaking unfiltered ideas for being more creative, draining all of those around you and using your mental state or psychological condition as an excuse for not trying. Although is it true that some things like chronic anxiety and depression can make it very difficult to function and live as satisfying of a life as someone not dealing with those conditions, it doesn't mean one should just give up. Your life will be more difficult living with these conditions but it is still possible to achieve some fulfillment in life.
Video in "The Character that was obviously designed to die"!
I made my research and found none in the internet
Please Mr Terrible Writting Advice, and awesome video as always
Given how Seasonal Affective Disorder is a very real thing, this came out pretty spot on time.