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I often write out short poems to get a sense of my own emotional complexities and to feel something in times where I feel somewhat numb. I'd like to get a poetry topic going, I searched for one and couldn't find any. So this will be a topic for those who want to share poetry and comment on each other's. Pain Everyone I've ever known Has left me to be alone I'm desperate for connection Of virtuous reflection All I really wanted was love And I was always left with a lack thereof My head pounding with rage heart aching in this cage Rejected, neglected, and played Dissected, elected and made To feel as if I could trust Completely blinded by lust How do I escape this mental prison Where are those with the keys? To be from the dead risen Is all I ask please.

Hello all. I've recently been doing some thinking about how to discuss feelings with another person. I listened to the RTR audiobook and I get as far as 'I feel X' without immediately putting the blame on them (ex. You pissed me off). I get a lot of 'Why are you sad/angry/mad/irritated (insert feeling here)' after that and I'm at a bit of a loss as how to respond to it in an appropriate manner. I'm not sure if it would be right to say 'Well I'm irritated because I don't think I'm being listened to' but without doing that I'm not sure how to discuss my feelings beyond what I am feeling. How can you discuss why you have a certain feeling that you might think is related to the other persons actions without blaming them (leading down to a chain of bashing each other rather than actually talking about the feelings and finding a productive solution). If anyone has a good example that might help too. Thank you very much in advance.

I just met an awesome dude. It turns out that he recently completed a book/audio package called "Bedtime Adventures for the Authentic Self" so I bought a package. Yay! I figure it wouldn't be a bad idea to share his website here... http://authenticselfkids.com/ “Imagine…Not just one, not just a few but a whole generation of children fortified with a foundation of practical truths and applicable techniques to access their own inner sanctuary and ultimate potential. A generation grounded in principles which allow them to find a way to be in harmony with nature, themselves and others. A generation of enlightened ones otherwise known as “Generation Authentic”. — Bedtime Adventures for the Authentic Self

I now think that sociopaths do exist and they are maybe 5% of the population, they do want to harm others, they indeed have no empathy. I have argued the opposite before*, but I can see now how I had missed something, that it's possible to "be" a sociopath. And then change to no longer be one. So I think a lot of people do the things that sociopaths do, and whereas before I considered them not sociopaths because the way I see it they can change, I now accept that it is valid (if you like putting labels on people, which I find brings me nothing useful) to think of them as sociopaths. I think the people labelled sociopaths can develop their empathy, the reason they haven't done so and the reason they don't care for others is because of the life they've had, that got them to disconnect from their feelings. I was like that. A few years ago I thought that 99.99% of people were so dumbed down by society and school and by childhood trauma that they just couldn't help doing stupid things like destroy the environment through senseless over-comsumption and irrational behavior, and that unfortunately it was so difficult and so time consuming to get them to heal, that it made more sense to let them die. I wished for a mass catastrophe that would kill most people. For the past 3 years I've been slowly reconnecting with my feelings and developing my empathy. With the latest progress I've made over the past month, I think I'm now connected to my feelings enough that I can empathize with people most of the time. So, I recognize now that it can be true that somebody has been acting like a sociopath, is acting like a sociopath now. But to me this does not mean that they cannot change, I am convinced that giving them the empathy they need can get them to calm down and to begin to reconnect with their feelings, and learn to make sense of the world in a way that won't lead them to cutting off again. * FDR 2221 Stef's mother's table, Rehabilitating Very Violent People (not always a lost cause), To Judge or Not to Judge?" A conversation on Mor... , dry-chicken-incident

I explore how it might be possible to betray yourself in this new video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qS0Y0rufbQ