do you ever feel like there's something intrinsically wrong with life/the world?

[yes]

i get through the hours,days,weeks,etc - i find things to do that i enjoy, i find ways to help others, i study, i date around, i make plans, i even pretend i know what the hell i'm doing (and sometimes feel like it!) ... but i keep on coming back to the feeling that there's something intrinsically wrong with all this, that i'm missing the point, that i'm just closing my eyes and running straight ahead because i have no choice but to run, and i'm so afraid of running the wrong way that i close my eyes.

 

you know when you're outside and it's cold, you can make yourself feel warmer for a while but just telling yourself IT'S NOT COLD!!? but later, you go back to feeling the cold again. that's how i feel about my life - i distract myself, i feel warm(i.e. involved, confident, full of plans, tough) - but inevitably it passes and i feel the freezing cold. like sitting in a cold cell with bare walls and imagining palm trees... and then opening your eyes and seeing the bare wall again.

 

can anybody relate?...

 

-yes

[dreamyluv7]

I am not sure how you may take this response, but I can totally relate. I lived a great life (or what I thought too), dating around, working hard for money and status, studying hard for classes. And I too kept myself busy- but somehow something didn't feel right. I DIDN'T feel like I was getting the most out of my life.

 

Then, I started to wonder- what more is out their. I felt that I lived selfishly and for myself. Then I discovered, the only way to feel complete was to submit myslef to God's plan for me, and that brought meaning to my life. I felt for the first time that I could make a difference by loving people and helping people out in everyway possible!

 

HAve you seen the passion yet? It is really an experience that recommend all to see, even if you are not Christian. It demonstrates the meaning of our existence in life so well.

 

or maybe you may try other religions to see where you seem to fit in the best- good luck!

[Karlise]

Religion can be a good way for some people to find meaning in their lives.

 

For other people who are not religious, it may be more about finding a satisyfing career path.

 

Are you doing work that is meaningful to you?

 

WHen you consider how much time is spent getting to and from work, thinking about work and doing actual work, it really is a huge part of youf life.

Many people come to the realization that HEY...you know what? I need more than just trying to make a million before I'm 40. I need to feel connection to the earth, other people, something more.

 

You may not need to just walk away from you current job....but try volunteering at different places to see how you feel. Try taking classes you never thought of taking before; psychology, art, counseling, photography, etc.

 

Talk to people who seem happy and content. What is their life's philosophy?

 

 

Spend time doing favors and being helpful.

 

SPend time listening to someone else's problems.

 

Talk to a therapist about your inability to feel real satisfcation in life (there is a condition called 'anhedonia' that you might suffer from)

 

Start doing some things out of character for you; go to a ball game if you're not into sports, or the theater if you've never gone. Start tweaking your life in unexpected ways. You may simply need a breath of fresh air, some new ideas

[yes]

Religion is a great way to feel like you belong to the world, but I doubt my existentialist self can ever be religious. I should meditate more, however, thansk for reminding me about that.

 

In reply to your questions: I don't work yet, I'm a student, about to graduate and go on to grad school. I'm not crazy about my subject, but I like it. I think I'd like to complete a Master's in it, and then I'll see. I keep on thinking about doing another undergrad in psych, but i don't think i'm up for such a start over, after all.

 

I do enjoy helping people - I'm on cloud nine every time somebody thanks me Perhaps I should start volunteering somewhere ... I will look into that as soon as I know if i'll be in town for the summer.

 

I will surely mention all this to my therapist (and my physician, moimeme ).

 

I also like the idea of trying things I've never done before. Will do! I recently took up painting (not seriously, not for fun & for my room), and am very glad I did. I also tried snowboarding, and stopped liking it after a few times. Hmm, I wonder if I can get an old-style camera off e-bay... black&white film would be nice... considering how much i like walking through my city, i imagine i'd love to take pics of it as well.

 

off to e-bay,

-yes

[saintfrancis]

I just got through reading the book "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom. It speaks to what you are talking about, in a big way. I cried as I read parts of it. And I was in a public book store. I highly recommend that book, it will help put things in perspective.

[Tony T]

Don't bother looking for a point because there are only the points that you make for yourself. The world is set up so you are the architect of your feelings, opinions and your destiny. There's nothing more to it than that. All you get at the end of a great football game is a score that people soon forget. That's the nature of the world.

 

The second you realize that all the joy and heartbreak, births and deaths, good days and bad days, construction and destruction...all of it contributes to the fauna and flora and ecoscape of life...that's when you begin to live and accept that you can only look into yourself to create the life you want. But don't wait too long. It doesn't last. One day you find yourself in ill health, you can't go back and in time, and it's too late then to formulate the things that will make you happy.

 

Start with adjusting your perception of things. But keep in mind that YOU are the creator of your life...it doesn't do it for you.

[yes]

I feel very well that I'm the architect - and that's why when I feel like smth's very wrong with my life, I begin to give up, to hate everything about it, which leads me to a short suicidal period ... at that time, I think - hey, if i'm gonna kill myself, let me have some fun first - so off I go, and by the time i come back from clubbing or a party, i'm more or less back to normal, enjoying life again.

 

You're right in that it's a matter of changing perceptions though - if i didn't suddenly perceive my life and myself as 'wrong', i wouldn't go into such an episode...

 

-yes

 

PS thanks for the book recommendation, SF! i will look for it.

[moimeme]

yes

 

Tony's right - you are the architect of your life, however you're not the chief engineer. That role belongs to your grey matter, and sometimes you have to have a major talking-to with the chief engineer because it can go way off base. Whatever seems wrong with your life should not affect you to that extent.

 

if i didn't suddenly perceive my life and myself as 'wrong', i wouldn't go into such an episode...

 

That is correct and by all means do attempt to change that thinking, but if your engineer is getting unruly, you may find that it's not that easy. When that's the case, it's time to seek assistance. I'm glad you're going to