Re: What is to be done?
Enigl@aol.com
Sat, 22 Mar 1997 10:39:22 -0500 (EST)
In a message dated 97-03-22 09:45:16 EST, you write:
<< The lunch ended on a very
sour note and I fear my friendship is mortally wounded. >>
My first impression would be to try and get my friend out of clinical
unipolar depression. It does not matter how educated, scientifically
literate or "smart" the person is. This person is depressed. See Martin
Seligman's book _Learned Optimism_.
My second impression is to let my friend think anything and say anything AND
IF that interferes with my own thinking, which this friend has done: Drop
that person until the clinical unipolar depression subsides and that person
and I see eye-to-eye again. See Harry Brown's book _How I found Freedom In
an Unfree World_. The book exposes traps of intellect that your depressed
friend has sprung on you.
I have a concern for friends like this and will try one but _only_one_
attempt to help them. (This happened recently with a person I have known for
over 20 years in Florida. I sent her one page of information that could have
helped her. She would not even read that one page. I called and tried to
get her to read it and she refused.) After that they must take
responsibility for their own mental or physical health. I am too busy
running my own life to spent time on their problems. I will not drag them to
see a doctor, that's physical force. I just will NOT do it, even for a
friend!
I consider this person so far away from my thinking that I can't spend time
with that person's deathist contamination. . . too many negative memes around
and I could get brainwashed by negativity.
It sounds like you have already been brainwashed by this person's own
clinical depression. Now it's YOUR responsibility not to get dragged into
the same depression.
Dynamically Optimistic,
Davin
March 22, 1997
7:29 am PACIFIC