hadriel | 006 [Video]

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006 [Video]

[So, the event's officially over, everything's back to cave-normal, and Lance has had some time to sort out his thoughts on everything. He's also had time to debate with himself on whether he should address something bothering him or just ignore it.

Although he's decided, finally, on the former, it took quite a bit of mental debate; he probably wouldn't have said anything at all if he weren't a psychologist, and weren't concerned that other people might be seriously negatively affected if the issue weren't brought up. Regardless, he's still not exactly looking forward to this entire thing because he can't see it going over all too well, but then again when does anything go over well here?]

Now that the event is over there's something I wanted to address, regarding it and others in the future. I expect there will be disagreement, which is fine, but it would be nice if that disagreement could be discussed in some sort of reasonable manner.

[In other words, not with yelling or threats or murder. He has high hopes for you all!!!]

I'm not going to go into a lot of psychological details and reasoning unless anyone is actually interested, but to summarize: although the idea of simply resisting a compulsion is theoretically appealing, it's not exactly that simple in practice. It also has no correlation at all with being weak, feeble-minded, a failure, or any other negative descriptor I've seen used so freely lately.

[Which he's none too pleased about, even if it doesn't bother him much personally.]

Considering that so many here have so much to worry about and are under enough mental stress already, adding blame for something caused by an outside influence is not exactly helpful, especially in the long run. I'm also just generally unsure that being angry with each other over something caused by an event is the best use of everyone's time and energy.

[Especially when things done by people while completely in control of themselves tend to be overlooked entirely, but he's not even going to touch that topic right now.]

That said, if anyone who has been here for some time has any sort of advice or strategy for identifying and attempting to control an event-caused mental effect, that would be useful. I don't doubt that there might be some techniques that could help, depending on the individual and the specific nature of the event.

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Still determined to treat the entire cave, I see.

[time for another round of poke the baby-bear]

Your work ethic is impressive.

Edited 2017-10-01 18:55 (UTC)

It just seemed important. People have enough to worry about and feel guilty over without being blamed for things that are not actually their fault.

[He says it seriously, because it is serious, although he's slightly less so in responding to the next comment.]

Thank you, but it's not like spending a few minutes talking is actually that much effort.

[It's also not like he has anything better to do.]

Edited 2017-10-01 18:57 (UTC)

[Rosen eases back in his chair. Fine he'll discuss this seriously. Jeez]

You're fighting against a natural need to find scapegoats for hurt and anger. The 'because God wills it' answer has been unsatisfying for the history of humankind but it was always at least an excuse for many. 'It was out of my hands, God willed it so'. And here that mentality is put within a pressure cooker. There are actually gods here, ones we can interact with, and there Is actually something at stake.

[A sigh]

Of course all of us are vulnerable to the Gods' whims, and in that respect I certainly agree with you that it is at best unproductive to fight over things that were caused by divine manipulation, but I also wonder what you are going to be able to offer people to fill that need for someone, something to be angry at. That need is not going to just go away.

They have a few very obvious targets; they can blame the beings responsible for the event in the first place, or the Null for causing the need for them to gather additional power. Or they can channel their anger toward doing something useful.

[Or they can just deal with the fact that life isn't fair, but he won't say that; he figures he should follow his own rules about civil discussions.]

Ultimately, though, my main concern is more about those here who are already struggling with serious issues; they don't need to blame themselves for something that isn't their fault, and it might be difficult for them to come to that conclusion if all they hear is how they just shouldn't have been so weak.

[So he's stating the opposite publicly, in hopes that anyone who is feeling that way will see at least someone refuting it.]

Perhaps those being influenced by the false gods should reflect upon their actions when told they are being compelled rather than remaining obstinate.

Although that makes sense logically, this is something that's not so simple in practice. Being aware of a compulsion, or any other mental effect, is important and does help in dealing with it, but continuing to be affected isn't a matter of being stubborn. If it were, my profession wouldn't exist.

[He's oversimplifying a little, but not more than he thinks the situation calls for considering this is an external influence rather than a purely internal issue.]

[Rosen nods slowly, mulling that over]

It does bear a concerning resemblance to the types of speech and behavior found in instances of abuse and assault. 'Why wasn't I stronger' 'why didn't i say something'....

[And the living conditions in the cave certainly could qualify as many types of abuse, both of the emotional and physical variety]

[Margaery wouldn't call them feeble-minded or weak or a failure. not publicly, anyway]

I'd already had enough of being a plaything of the gods in my world, so I found what I thought was a safe place to hide and stayed there.

I'm not saying they wouldn't continue to be affected, but they should realize that when someone points out that, perhaps, they aren't acting as logically as they should, they should consider why that is. That is the first step to resisting compulsions.

[Said as someone who would know.]

I was all gung-ho for winning until I accidentally shot a kid into a coma. That freaked me out so bad, I didn't shoot anyone else.

[Yeah, he'll just... Do his best not to give away anything to indicate that that's exactly why he thought about this issue to begin with, let alone why he decided it was worth bringing up. Instead he'll just give the professional answer.]

Exactly, and that kind of thinking is easily reinforced both externally and internally.

[Thinking it doesn't hurt anyone, at least.]

That was probably a good way to handle it. I prefer to stay out of events when possible as well; did you successfully avoid the competition the entire time?

Are there individuals that you are particularly concerned for or is this more of a general preemptive action?

[Needless to say Rosen's stepped away from "Here's another opportunity to tease Lance" and towards "what do we do now?" ]

[Her face says she agrees 100% with him long before she speaks.]

This is very important for people to hear and understand. Thank you, Dr. Sweets.

[And then, switching to private--]

Given what I have observed of people's behavior here, I expect your post will be met with resistance. If you should find yourself frustrated over this, you are welcome to come to my apartment and spend time playing with Sandy. I am confident she will enjoy having you over for a visit.

[and it wouldn't be politic to alienate a large number of the cave's populace]

No. Someone else found me. I tried to run, but I wasn't fast enough.

That's true. The main complications there would be in convincing an affected individual that they're actually affected, and that depending on the strength and nature of the compulsion it may not be something that can be willed away even when aware of it.

[Which is... A problem. Things like this where it's caused by something external are completely outside of anything that really happens in his world, which is an added issue in figuring out a way to deal with it that's both reasonable and fair.]

Maybe not blowing off "you're being controlled by an outside influence" and assuming that murder is everyone's solution would be good advice to start, but obviously not everyone is going to listen to reason.

Also don't assume that shit can't be resisted. If you're too stupid not to question why you're acting out of character, that's your own damn fault.

Indeed. But if one is not even willing to try and would rather blame their actions solely on the false gods, then the fault begins to lie with them.

[Someone didn't have a very good time with paintball, apparently.]

That was... Definitely a concern.

[And he's personally really bothered by the fact that, although he had very much been worried about the issue, it still hadn't been enough to override the compulsion. He doesn't even kill spiders normally, let alone something like this.]

Of course, Dr. Brennan.

[And yeah, private he's a lot less professional, and sighs quietly.]

Thank you. I'll probably end up taking you up on that; I'm not sure how long my patience is going to last.

[Which says something, since he has a lot of patience.]

[There are so many things he wants to say, but he firmly reminds himself that he is a grown man who is a professional and he's not going to be petty.

Instead, he'll just be dismissive, because that's a step up right? Right.]

I believe you may have missed the point.

Yeah. It was. I figured it was just, y'know, paintball. Then I get this kid and the coma happens and I feel like an asshole 'cause how was I supposed to know how long it would last?

How did you do?

[George is somewhat used to people dying in gruesome ways right in front of her, but comas are weird and outside of her frame of reference]

There's probably a very fine line somewhere in there regarding where it crosses from uncontrollable to being used as an excuse, yes. That said I'd prefer to err on the side of not blaming someone, especially when they're usually otherwise reasonable, for what happens during an event.

[Sorry for your loss, Carlisle. :c Lance appreciates that he's willing to talk about this, though; it's nice not to be yelled at, at least.]

Edited 2017-10-01 20:32 (UTC)

No, have just been in this damned place long enough to know better.

But if you're really looking for some strategy, here's one for you: How do you normally treat someone who suffers an addiction?

Generally preemptive, although I know several individuals who might need the reminder as well.

[Although hopefully not. But he worries, and who knows who else might be inclined toward that type of thinking that he isn't aware of?]

It also just seems pointless to be focusing so much effort on people who would, at least for the most part, not be any sort of problem outside of the effects of an event. I would say that indicates an issue with priorities, but that's already well-known.

[He's trying to control his sass, but it's difficult.]

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