I’ve written before about the importance of hope. Also about how a lack of agency quickly raises my frustration. Reflection has made it clear that there’s a corollary here – feeling I have agency is hugely important in the battle against depression. At least for me. On finishing Johann Hari’s book, Lost Connections, I’ve looked at some of the problems with his work and realise … Continue reading Agency. Me. Myself. And you.

Hope is the worst thing of all to lose. Without it, every moment, every step can feel like the most dreadful road to nowhere. With it, even the most frail can become indomitable. Right now everyone faces a battle of some kind and a great many face invisible battles within their own mind, even as their home is healthy, safe and sufficiently stocked. Beyond any … Continue reading Episode Four

If a person suffers and the world doesn’t notice, is the world a better or worse place? If one person gets mental health help and five people don’t have their broken bones set quickly as a result, is the world a better or worse place? If people function enough to produce and consume because of anti-depressants, but those same people never recover from their issues, … Continue reading If a tree falls in the woods

I’m coming off one anti-depressant and moving on to another at the moment. This is having a number of adverse effects that should pass and then, hopefully, I’ll have an improved overall mood and suffer fewer side-effects than before. Change was needed, thought about, and the new regime is welcome. In the software industry one of the roles I’ve most enjoyed is Service Transition Manager. … Continue reading It’s transitory

Because I rent, I’m not eligible for a three month break in paying my largest single expenditure, which home owners can take under the UK government’s mortgage holiday plans. I’m a loser, home owners are winners. My day job was already done remotely and usually from home, so compared to millions of folks in the economy I’m facing very little disruption. I win, a lot … Continue reading Winners and losers

I don’t recall ever having one, but for a while it was popular to use a mechanical kitchen timer that looked like a pomodoro – the Italian word for tomato. From there, the Pomodoro Technique was born as a way of getting things done. A couple of good friends have seemed a little stuck recently; struggling to focus amid the turmoil that’s going on around … Continue reading Tomato timers

In reading an old-ish article about Instagram making shopping easier, I learned a new term – digital resignation. Rather than poorly summarise the article, I’ll quote the last two paragraphs here: [Digital] resignation can “discourage the larger or collective types of action that might actually have substantial consequences.” That’s exactly the problem: Instagram might be willing to hand me the keys to cultural approval, but … Continue reading Digital resignation

Thursday wasn’t a good day for me. Friday was worse and I ended speaking to the mental health crisis team. It helped. I’m still troubled, but I’m able to function much more like my normal self again. I missed two days blogging. As I got to my feet after the unplanned breather, it’s been tempting to miss more. There’s a good excuse, but that’s not … Continue reading One, two, miss a few…

It’s a word that has a lot of meaning, so many of which we simply take for granted. Understandably, really. If we are constantly marvelling at the magic of connectivity, we’re missing opportunities to build on it and with it. Right now, perhaps, is a period of enforced appreciation. The supply chains that underpin all scales of economies. Networks that bring us closer to those … Continue reading Connectivity

Recent mention of ‘beautiful numbers’ in a coronavirus press briefing reminding me of two very important things about numbers driving progress. The metrics you choose have to be appropriate and objectively measured. Some things aren’t easily reduced to a metric. What might be called ‘beautiful’ at a macro scale can be devastating at the micro scale. Short term GDP percentage changes can diminish personal difficulty … Continue reading Beautiful numbers