It feels like such a miserable time to be alive

[ocean-man]

All I seem to see on the news nowadays is either bad stuff, REALLY bad stuff, or convenient distractions from the variants of bad stuff. The climate is poisoned, the animals are dying, the landfills keep piling higher. Inflation's soaring higher by the millisecond, our currency is frail and weak and our houses are growing ever more expensive. Oh, but don't worry - the Matildas are playing tonight!

I was expecting to leave high school with my head held high and a smile on my face, looking out over a world of opportunity and possibility. However, I now expect to leave high school with microplastics choking my lungs and a million mortgage papers in my arms. I may very well go homeless at some point in the next few years.

And even if I do make it out of this deathtrap okay I'll probably be screwed over later down the line. The only jobs I've got talent/passion for are being snatched up by AI left, right and centre. Good luck to me I guess.

I really do wish I could just tune out from everything and run off somewhere society won't find me - where I can throw all my tech away and just enjoy my life as is, which is what we were all born to do. Yet as nice as that sounds that yields its own plethora of problems. No healthcare, no assistance, no supplies - you truly do have to rely on your own. It feels like there's no way out.

It'll probably get better at some stage but I'm having a very hard time picturing it doing so.

[Sophie_M]

Hi ocean-man,

Welcome to the forums. We hope you find some comfort in sharing here, and in hearing from the lovely community members, many of whom will be able to relate to what you’ve been feeling. With all of the news around what is happening in the world, it can leave a lot of us feeling pretty despondent about it all. We hope that connecting on here can ease some of that feeling, even just a little bit. 

If you ever want to talk this through with one of the Beyond Blue counsellors, feel free to give us a call on 1300 22 4636, or reach out through Online Chat here.  

Thank you for sharing this and giving this community a chance to offer you their understanding and advice. We’re here to listen and offer support.

Kind regards,  

Sophie M 

[quirkywords]

Ocean-man

The world can be very challenging at times.

i stopped watching or listening to news as it is so upsetting.

is there anything you have a passion for something that gives you joy.

when I am overwhelmed by bad things happening I read or look at books as they give me pleasure. Little things help me. 

[Willowtree_21]

I kind of get what you mean. At other times, I feel like I forget about it being bad because I think I'm kind of used to it. I also feel guilty because my parents have supported me through this insane cost of living issue, when so many of my young friends have had to deal with it on their own.

I find it odd when I hear people talk about rental prices being so high. They don't seem that way to me because I came into the 'adult world' when this had all begun and I guess I'm just used to things being ridiculous.

What does terrify me though is climate change and the environment. I feel like we all need to get together to get through this century.

[white knight]

Hi, welcome

I hope you dont take this too sensitively. I do know where you are coming from and at 26yo it all changed for me in 30 minutes (a link below explains it)

But when I was a boy my pop told me something that stuck. He told me he was born in 1899 and during his life there was- the spanish war, ww1, ww2, the great depression where most people starved, the Korean war, the Vietnam war... then he told me- that there was humans flying, antibiotics, cures for so many illnesses, selection of food in shops, man on the moon, satellites (later to give us mobile phones and www), sewerage, piped clean water, heating and aircon and MRI's.

Now in 2023 we take for granted we dont have to walk in the middle of the night to the pan toilet at the back corner of our yard, cook food in a stove without lighting a fire in it, attend the local supermarket for... anything we can afford.

In my 20's I left my parent home 5 times to ride my motorbike to the mountains with no plan except to reject society and that could have included ditching the motorbike. At the end of the 5th time (I usually only lasted 4-5 days at a time) I realised, there is a half way point from the city to the mountains where I could be suited. I've lived in the regional areas ever since, close enough for supplies and work and far enough away from the fake life of the city.

So here is two thread to read but only the first post is needed. Cheers.

https://forums.beyondblue.org.au/t5/staying-well/want-to-be-a-hermit/td-p/273204

https://forums.beyondblue.org.au/t5/staying-well/30-minutes-can-change-your-life/td-p/154525

TonyWK