Yes thats all I was going to say, is I knew they were going to be brought up...
Again the thread topic is article by Rollins and his first point was Williams should not have committed suicide due to affects on his children. So I didn't bring it up.
ever wonder if robin had schizophrenia? i have wondered this for years. i have a neighbor with schizophrenia & i've known others with this mental disorder/disease. ever see a schizophrenic person so drugged up on meds they are walking zombies. robin w. would not be robin w. with a system full of medications. fuck that
schizophenia, bipolar, depression, drug & alcohol addiction/issues.... this is a train wreck this is my neighbor down the way & a guy or two i knew many years ago & could have been robin w.
how much sleep did robin normaly need? were his disorders episodic or more constant? roller coaster bullshit - extremely happy/ suddenly extremely sad? he seems very adhd/add to me anyway (ever been a drug user & or boozer when having adhd/add or any other ? fuck.shit. piss..#$%^&*()(*&^%$#$%^& zing fart zang_)(*&^%$#@#$%^ dong*^89 ding ) mental disorder)
a lot to this stuff
I always thought he was manic / schizophrenia and most likely a hell of a lot of energy to be in the presence of. No doubt that kind of person counters it with severe lows to counter the severe highs...
It makes you worry about them people like that...
And it's cool that Henry apologized, but as any written piece that's brutally honest, people tend to single out what they're offended by and focus on just that (not picking on anyone particularly here though, just a group psychology observation).
Post edited by backseatLover12 on
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,761
ever wonder if robin had schizophrenia? i have wondered this for years. i have a neighbor with schizophrenia & i've known others with this mental disorder/disease. ever see a schizophrenic person so drugged up on meds they are walking zombies. robin w. would not be robin w. with a system full of medications. fuck that
schizophenia, bipolar, depression, drug & alcohol addiction/issues.... this is a train wreck this is my neighbor down the way & a guy or two i knew many years ago & could have been robin w.
how much sleep did robin normaly need? were his disorders episodic or more constant? roller coaster bullshit - extremely happy/ suddenly extremely sad? he seems very adhd/add to me anyway (ever been a drug user & or boozer when having adhd/add or any other ? fuck.shit. piss..#$%^&*()(*&^%$#$%^& zing fart zang_)(*&^%$#@#$%^ dong*^89 ding ) mental disorder)
a lot to this stuff
I always thought he was manic / schizophrenia and most likely a hell of a lot of energy to be in the presence of. No doubt that kind of person counters it with severe lows to counter the severe highs...
It makes you worry about them people like that...
And it's cool that Henry apologized, but as any written piece that's brutally honest, people tend to single out what they're offended by and focus on just that (not picking on anyone particularly here though, just a group psychology observation).
Good observation. If what we who post on AMT here were read as widely as someone like Rollins, sooner or later we would almost all get mail boxes full of angry letters.
I wonder if Robin Williams was manic depressive (I know the p.c. term is bi-polar but I think the earlier term is a better descriptor). Many highly creative people are.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.
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hedonist
standing on the edge of forever Posts: 24,524
It's not just about being honest - which I always prefer, and appreciate - but if you're (anyone) going to put something out there which IS frank and possibly harsh, be prepared for all ranges of responses. That'd go for Rollins or any of us.
People also cheer on or give kudos to what resonates. It's just opinions about other opinions, not necessarily bristling.
(and I have gotten a couple of angry pm's over time! Go figure )
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hedonist
standing on the edge of forever Posts: 24,524
As to Robin, doubt we'll ever know. His mind was something else.
As you might imagine, I got a few letters about my recent column about suicide. Actually, it was a lot of letters. For days. I read them. No matter how angry or instructive, I appreciate them all because they were written with complete sincerity, even if some had only two words, the second being “you.” After reading carefully and responding as best I could, it was obvious that I had some work to do in order to educate myself further on this very complex and painful issue. I am quite thick-headed, but not so much that things don’t occasionally permeate.
In the piece, I said there are some things I obviously don’t get. So I would like to thank you for taking the time to let me know where you’re coming from. None of it was lost upon me.
I cannot defend the views I expressed. I think that would be taking an easy out. I put them out there plainly and must suffer the slings and arrows — fair enough. I won’t attempt to dodge them. However, that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve. Again, thank you.
In the short amount of space afforded here, hear me out. Like a lot of people, I have battled depression all my life. It’s nothing special, in that it’s too common to be considered unique. This state has made me have to do things in a certain way to remain operational. There have been some truly awful stretches, as I am sure there have been for anyone who deals with depression, that have at times rendered me almost paralytic. Hours pass and I slow-cook on a cold spit. I have likened it to being a peach in a can of syrup yet fully conscious. In an attempt to keep moving along, I must stay in the immediate present tense, acutely aware of everything happening, like driving a car on a highway. If I conclude that I am not citizen grade, I do my best to avoid people so I do not act unpleasantly. No one deserves it. This has kept me in hotel rooms, my kitchen and the corners of gyms. When I have a show that night, it’s minute-to-minute.
One of the only things that gives me a breather is music. I medicate with it.
What has perhaps kept me from seeing things differently about severe depression is that I am sure I don’t have it.
But the power of severe depression was brought up quite a bit in the letters I received. Your anger toward me on this, believe me, I got it.
I serve. That is what I do. It is, to me, the most fortunate position to be in. I have an audience. It is because of them that I get to eat, move — everything. Each member of this audience is better than I am. Braver and more real than I see myself. The only thing I fear besides being misunderstood, which would be my fault anyway, is failing these people.
For decades I have talked to and gotten letters from people who tell me that something I did helped them, or saved them from killing themselves, helped them get clean, stay clean or come out. Never once do I really think that I had anything to do with anyone staying alive, but I get where they’re coming from. All of them are better than I am and it is them I serve.
In my mind, all of this is mine to screw up. While I don’t take myself seriously, I take them with a frightening degree of seriousness. They can take or leave me at any time; they have options. They are all I have and, beyond that, I feel I have a duty to serve them because they have made me better.
I guess this is what makes me wrestle with the issue of suicide, when it pertains to those who have an audience, or kids, or both. I feel nothing but debt to my audience. I will try my hardest, but I will never be able to even the books. If I checked out, I would be running out on the bill.
Like I said, I am trying to evolve on this. I have a picture in my mind. There is a person — one with a family and a huge audience — who is on one side of a seesaw. The family and the audience are on the other side. This person’s condition makes him heavy enough to tilt all of them up in the air and send him to the ground. He didn’t want to go, but the condition outweighed all of them and even he couldn’t stop it. Is that, albeit crudely drawn, basically it?
I understand it is my task to learn about this. It might take a while, but I will get on it. It is my belief about an ingrained sense of duty that will make this challenging, but I am always up for improvement.
I got several letters thanking me for what I said. However, it was the ones that took me to task that made me think the most.
hedonist
standing on the edge of forever Posts: 24,524
I cannot defend the views I expressed. I think that would be taking an easy out. I put them out there plainly and must suffer the slings and arrows — fair enough. I won’t attempt to dodge them. However, that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve. Again, thank you.
Bravo especially to this. Well-written piece. Thanks for posting it, Norm.
i wish more people who fail to understand depression would be more like henry...but judging from some recent comments here, that ain't gonna happen anytime soon
I cannot defend the views I expressed. I think that would be taking an easy out. I put them out there plainly and must suffer the slings and arrows — fair enough. I won’t attempt to dodge them. However, that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve. Again, thank you.
Bravo especially to this. Well-written piece. Thanks for posting it, Norm.
I also like that quote a lot. THe one that spoke to me, the one that shows me an big area where I need to work harder is this:
...that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
I also like that quote a lot. THe one that spoke to me, the one that shows me an big area where I need to work harder is this:
...that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve.
You gotta dig someone who can eat his pride for breakfast and keep his mind open even when ganged up on. It's really something to be admired.
I also like that quote a lot. THe one that spoke to me, the one that shows me an big area where I need to work harder is this:
...that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve.
You gotta dig someone who can eat his pride for breakfast and keep his mind open even when ganged up on. It's really something to be admired.
Absolutely, I found the way Rollins has handled this to be so truly inspirational, a great lesson in humility.
'05 - TO, '06 - TO 1, '08 - NYC 1 & 2, '09 - TO, Chi 1 & 2, '10 - Buffalo, NYC 1 & 2, '11 - TO 1 & 2, Hamilton, '13 - Buffalo, Brooklyn 1 & 2, '15 - Global Citizen, '16 - TO 1 & 2, Chi 2
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
Forcing someone into therapy. I winder what good that will do. If my friend won't go to counseling, what can be done? The person barely wants to take the meds the doctor prescribed the other day. I can't get a court order mandating this person see a therapist.
I chew tobacco. I've quit before and started back up again several times. The longest I made it was 8 months. The shortest was a couple hours. I say that because when I quit for 8 months, I was mentally ready to quit. You have to be mentally ready to do anything. If my friend is not, nothing will help.
Hi, Last-12...how is it going on your friend's front and your / his dealing with this? I ask because this situation hit very very close to home and heart today and I'm still trying to process it all.
If you would prefer to reply via pm, feel free.
(and conversely, no pressure to reply at all - this sincerely said)
Attempted suicide three times was almost successful until I was in icu for two days unconscious getting stomach pumped (i took 50 stilnox sleeping tablets) came out of coma and looked my brother in the eye and cried I didnt succeed, people dont see it as harming other lives at the time, they see it as a way to stop the pain which never leaves, its a way out, nobody wants to live in torment, because in torment your no good to anybody especially yourself and you outweigh the pro and cons and see that being missed is better than being tormented and a pain to every body else
Here is another horribly sad angle to all of this ( what's not to be sad about here? :( :( :( )... NPR did a story on this and they spoke with John Lithgow who worked with him on one of his early films (great acting, "meh" film) ... his take will lend some insight in to the true depression of "the funniest man in the world" :( : ------------------------------------------------ http://www.npr.org/2014/08/16/340632490/remembering-the-highs-and-lows-of-robin-williams ------------------------------------------------ John Lithgow, who co-starred with Williams in The World According to Garp and calls him "a dear man and lovely to work with," says Williams was reserved in private conversation.
"But if another person walked up, he quickly switched gears. It took only two people to make up an audience, and he instantly became a frenetic entertainer. ... It was as if he'd been liberated from the heavy burden of being himself.
"At first, everybody ate up Robin's dazzling patter," Lithgow told us. "But as the days passed, many began to steer clear of him. They just couldn't laugh any more. Amazingly, this brilliantly funny man, this true genius, began to seem a solitary and melancholy figure."
Comments
Ah Rollins first point. The thread brought them up. And it's pretty fucked to kill oneself when you created offspring.
I don't know, but I sure feel for him, where he was (and his children).
Anyway, don't think I want to take part in the angry side of this, this evening.
Anyway, moot in the end.
It makes you worry about them people like that...
And it's cool that Henry apologized, but as any written piece that's brutally honest, people tend to single out what they're offended by and focus on just that (not picking on anyone particularly here though, just a group psychology observation).
I wonder if Robin Williams was manic depressive (I know the p.c. term is bi-polar but I think the earlier term is a better descriptor). Many highly creative people are.
People also cheer on or give kudos to what resonates. It's just opinions about other opinions, not necessarily bristling.
(and I have gotten a couple of angry pm's over time! Go figure
Bravo especially to this. Well-written piece. Thanks for posting it, Norm.
...that doesn’t mean that I can’t be taught a thing or two. I have no love for a fixed position on most things. I am always eager to learn something. I promise that I will dig in and educate myself on this and do my best to evolve.
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
If you would prefer to reply via pm, feel free.
(and conversely, no pressure to reply at all - this sincerely said)
NPR did a story on this and they spoke with John Lithgow who worked with him on one of his early films (great acting, "meh" film) ... his take will lend some insight in to the true depression of "the funniest man in the world" :( :
------------------------------------------------
http://www.npr.org/2014/08/16/340632490/remembering-the-highs-and-lows-of-robin-williams
------------------------------------------------
John Lithgow, who co-starred with Williams in The World According to Garp and calls him "a dear man and lovely to work with," says Williams was reserved in private conversation.
"But if another person walked up, he quickly switched gears. It took only two people to make up an audience, and he instantly became a frenetic entertainer. ... It was as if he'd been liberated from the heavy burden of being himself.
"At first, everybody ate up Robin's dazzling patter," Lithgow told us. "But as the days passed, many began to steer clear of him. They just couldn't laugh any more. Amazingly, this brilliantly funny man, this true genius, began to seem a solitary and melancholy figure."
-------------------------------------------------
gawwwd. :( :( :(
He just couldn't turn "off"
(as possibly you have deduced by now with the rather moving Norm MacDonald story: http://thedailybanter.com/2014/08/norm-macdonald-may-just-written-best-tribute-robin-williams-yet/ )
and eventually he turned people off & away for good.
:(
If I opened it now would you not understand?
:( :( :(
If I opened it now would you not understand?