People like Robin Williams can make you laugh. We might think that they have it all but we really know nothing about their demons, their problems, their issues. Someone might be funny on the outside but be totally depressed from within.
It's True: You Never Really Know What A Person Is Going Through
by minimus 17 Replies latest jw friends
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Jeannette
Does anyone know if he was not one of Jehovah's Witnesses at one time? I heard he was, but don't know how to find out.
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Fernando
And the more judgmental, self-centred, or self-righteous we are, the more wrong we can be about another person.
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zeb
I loved the guy. I have only cried at two films; The Dead Poets Society and the much later one by Clint Eastwood, Grand Tourino. In the first one i saw my youth taken away and the second manhood dispossessed from society.
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galaxie
What a person is GOING THROUGH...From a distance most people see very succesful global celebrities as having it all.
Who would not wish even a fraction of their wealth, ability, creativeness and subsequent rewards.
I for one would hope I could use it for the good of my family, but GOING THROUGH is the sting in the tail.
Perhaps a lot of the fundemental elements of true happiness is sacrificed.
Robin Williams appears to be another in a long list to succumb,
Sympathies.
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minimus
Looks can be very deceiving.
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frankiespeakin
I would like to see some psychologist views on this subject. Also concider the amount of mental activity that actors and comedians have to use to make their acting and jokes effective,:
method acting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_acting
In the dramatic arts, method acting is a group of techniques actors use to create in themselves the thoughts and feelings of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performances. Though not all Method actors use the same approach, the "Method" refers to the method of teaching the craft of acting, which was created by Constantin Stanislavski in order to teach concepts of acting to his students. Later, Stanislavski's method of teaching acting was adapted by Lee Strasberg for American actors. Strasberg's method emphasized the practice of connecting to a character by drawing on personal emotions and memories, aided by a set of exercises and practices including sense memory and affective memory. Stanislavski's system of acting was the foundation of Strasberg's technique. Rigorous adherents of Strasberg's technique are now commonly referred to as "Method Actors", although the "Method" refers to Stanislavski's original system.
A psychological perspective:
The sad and untimely death of iconic comedian and actor Robin Williams has left the world with a painful void and many questions. We will miss his non-stop comedic genius and the way he could bring laughter into our lives and make it appear effortless. As we struggle to make sense of this terrible tragedy, many will wonder how it could be that the man who constantly made people laugh and smile was struggling with depression. Those who are unfamiliar with mental illnesses will question how someone surrounded by fame, career success, public adoration, and respect could experience depression. As we celebrate the enormous and rich legacy of Robin Williams, we should also be celebrating Williams’ ability to discuss his medical challenges with the world. It is the dialogue he bravely began that now might help educate the world and change the public perception of stigmatized medical conditions.
Like cancer and multiple sclerosis and lupus, depression and substance abuse are medical problems. None of them look at our personalities, bankbooks, or celebrity status before they strike. And yet, those who are affected by mental illness often face a societal stigma that doesn’t exist (at least to the same degree) in other medical conditions. There are still those who believe controlling psychological conditions is all about will power. The anorexic should just eat. The alcoholic should just stop drinking. These same misinformed people would rarely suggest a cancer patient was responsible for creating their cancer cure. If psychological conditions could be easily fixed by just being logical, we’d all be stronger people. Unfortunately, battling health conditions typically requires more than logic. Logical thinking and great intentions don’t always result in positive health behavior or results.
Hobbes and Plato took the playground perspective, suggesting that making fun helps us feel superior to others. Kant and later psychologists though it was abouta cognitive shift that moves a serious situation into playful territory. In 1905, Freud suggested that humor was the fun-loving id making itself known despite the protestations of the conformist superego.
A few years ago, psychologist Daniela S. Hugelshofer suggested that humor acts as a buffer against depression and hopelessness. And evolutionary psychologists have suggested that humor is a way to subtly outshine our competitors for mates. Nothing says “pick me” like having an entire office/bar/dorm double over at your imitation of Shosh from Girls.....
One of McGraw’s favorite quotes is from Mark Twain: “The secret source of humor itself is not joy, but sorrow. There is no humor in heaven.”
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Last year, the comedian Stephen Fry publicly discussed his bipolar disorder and suicide attempt. In describing his quiz show, QI, Fry has said, “There are times when I’m doing QI and I’m going ‘ha ha, yeah, yeah,’ and inside I’m going ‘I want to fucking die. I ... want ... to ... fucking ... die’”
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Last month, a group of British scientists found that comedians are more likely than regular people to exhibit psychotic traits, or the characteristics associated with people who have schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
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Writing in the British Journal of Psychiatry, the authors describe how they administered a questionnaire to 523 comedians, 364 actors, and 831 people with non-performance jobs. The survey asked about experiences with magical thinking, antisocial behavior, distractibility, and “introverted anhedonia,” or not deriving pleasure from others.
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Comedians and actors alike scored higher than the non-performers across almost all of the traits. The only difference was that comedians were more likely to experience a reduced ability to feel social and physical pleasure, but the same wasn’t true of actors. Comedians, more so than the regular folk or even actors, were more likely to have a mild distaste for humanity.
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pronomono
It's truly sad. I had a friend a while ago in a similar frame of mind (not a JW). He was a well liked guy, loved by everyone, made everyone except himself laugh and smile. He had his demons. He kept searching for happiness, but it became too much. He planned his suicide in the Arizona dessert taking in the beauty of nature.
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Phaedra
We can only know what is inside of ourselves.
This is a poignant reminder of the value of compassion and understanding and remembering that everyone is on a personal journey and many are fighting layers and levels of internal challenges with varying degrees of circumstances.
May all of us healing former JWs find support and wholeness through our interactions with one another and allow each their own steps along the path.
Phae