Quote:
Originally Posted by Lly
America, the most affluent nation in the world, is also the most depressed- to the point that antidepressents are the drug prescribed by doctors above all others. Pessimism isn't just a prevailing state of mind- it's a disease that people feel the need to pop the pill to fix, whether they need it or not. Citizens of the western world are so impressed with the ideal lifestyle- through the media, television, advetsiting- that their own semi-charmed lives just aren't enough. Success is engrained in the psyche, and especially the American one (after all, America was the land of opportunity- and although some of the American ancestery came for religious and political freedom, most came to make money) so when it is not achieved to the standards of media's picture-perfect expectations, there's no hope and no success.
So what do we do? We pop a pill, and then we moan about how awful our "sub-standard" lives are, groaning as an afterthought that it doesn't really matter, because we're all going to burn from UV radiation or eat ourselves to death anyway.
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I take antidepressants for my anxiety disorder, not because I feel bad because my life doesn't match up with the standards of my country's ideological perfectionism. It's my own perfectionism that comes with my Asperger's Syndrome, along with childhood exposure to mental abuse that got me where I am.
So, don't generalize. Antidepressants have a variety of uses, some for what you mean, others for coping with psychological illnesses from family problems and the like.
As for Optimism, it pretty much means naivete if the meaning is coming out to you guys like it is me. I am optimistic as far as I try to keep my cool by focusing on the good things, and yet I have the outlook of a pessimist. If you expect nothing, you will never be disappointed.