Thanks, never listened to Randy Newman before...my spine is still shiverin'...

One reason to stay alive: in the hope a new album will ever be issued. He did a one-off single 'Putin' last year.

That I can't find anything in life worth living for. — Question

That's a classic symptom of depression, and you specifically mention depression further into your post. It sounds like you were attempting to self-medicate your depression. You rather need to see a medical professional about it. Depression is a medical condition.

Medical professionals will not necessarily be able to cure your depression. And even if they can, it might not be easily curable. But, not seeking treatment is certainly not going to make it go away any more than you could expect cancer to just go away on its own via not seeking treatment.

In our culture we have stigmas about seeking help for conditions like this. We need to get past that and realize that this is a medical situation. The stigma needs to be directed towards not getting professional help for it.

Depression is a medical condition.

Medical professionals will not necessarily be able to cure your depression. — Terrapin Station

Right...

The stigma needs to be directed towards not getting professional help for it. — Terrapin Station

Wouldn't no stigma be better?

He did a one-off single 'Putin' last year. — mcdoodle

I listened to that; it's great! >:O

I don't think that no stigma would be better. Too many people would leave it untreated in that case.

No, we don't use logic to determine what's real at all. Logic doesn't tell us ANYTHING about what's real and what's not real. Logic helps us relate different facts of existence. It doesn't tell you if there's a pink elephant in your back garden right now, or if unicorns exist somewhere in the Universe. All knowledge comes from the senses, and is merely processed with logic. Is death real? Yes, at least in an ordinary sense, I've witnessed it, and I know it's real. — Agustino

That was the point, one can't sense death! You can argue one can at the moment one dies but witnessing someone 'not waking up' and 'go away' is not it. Pink elephants and unicorns are beyond the argument, what's real has specific effects and the only way to determine what is that is through logic.

Your goal is whatever you choose. If you choose to be a righteous man, then your goal becomes your duty. — Agustino

So let's say, my goal is to become.. no, my goal is being righteous and therefore I'm obliged to behave myself at all times. It's an indefinite goal that implies an absolute guideline, I see. But the question still stands: "What's the purpose of doing one's duty?". One can be righteous and still have definite goals after all. If the purpose of doing one's duty is doing one's duty, that's just circular reasoning.

I don't understand why you've made the assumption I condemn desire. — Agustino

You said:

What's the point of enjoying yourself BC, you'll end up in the same grave, and it will be as if the enjoyment never existed. — Agustino

Enjoyment implies satisfaction which implies the fulfillment of a desire. Having a desire would be just as pointless as you claim enjoying oneself is if there wouldn't be any intention to fulfill it, therefore condemnation of enjoyment is condemnation of desire.

What? How? — Heister Eggcart

How can something be a tragedy for someone if their actions didn't cause it?

The stigma needs to be directed towards not getting professional help for it. — Terrapin Station

It is already and got on my nerves while I was depressed. What's treatment good for when the cause persists? A professional is not some kind of magician to make angst disappear, as in cease to exist. Professionals may be tactful but they have neither pure reasons for helping nor an universal formula for the 'human soul'.
Maybe there are medical conditions that cause depression but depression is not a medical condition in itself and can take over without an accompanying medical condition. Depression should be treated like any other overbearing mood, through reflection.

It is already and got on my nerves while I was depressed. What's treatment good for when the cause persists? A professional is not some kind of magician to make angst disappear, as in cease to exist. Professionals may be tactful but they have neither pure reasons for helping nor an universal formula for the 'human soul'.
Maybe there are medical conditions that cause depression but depression is not a medical condition in itself and can take over without an accompanying medical condition. Depression should be treated like any other overbearing mood, through reflection. — Noblosh

Mentality is identical to (dynamic) brain states. If you have "major" or "clinical" depression, you have specific things going on in your brain that can sometimes be mediated if not fixed outright. Psychiatrists will attempt to find a medication that helps you at least attenuate your symptoms and/or they'll guide you through things like lifestyle choices (such as diet, where they may have you work with a nutritionist, too) that can help get your brain chemistry back on track.

You rather need to see a medical professional about it. — Terrapin Station

Well, I think we need to get past this truism. Namely, that a medical professional can magically treat the depression him or herself and thus the depression stops. While my depression can or has been decreased in magnitude it still persists.

How can something be a tragedy for someone if their actions didn't cause it? — Noblosh

People's actions don't cause the suffering in their lives? Wot?

Well, I think we need to get past this truism. Namely, that a medical professional can magically treat the depression him or herself and thus the depression stops. While my depression can or has been decreased in magnitude it still persists. — Question

I don't know whether there is anything that can be done to "cure" your depression. You probably (and I would say, correctly) have limits for treatment beyond which you don't want to go. A reasonable question for Question might be: "Depressed as you are, are you able to function reasonably well?" I hope you can function "reasonably well". If you can, then that takes you off the critical list and puts you on the walking wounded list, where a lot of us are, or have been for extended periods of time.

Getting less depressed might not be possible, all things considered, and if it is possible, it might be the case that only you can achieve the improvement. I don't know whether you can, and if you can't, then no body should blame you for not getting un-depressed. If you knew how to get un-depressed, you most likely would have done that a long time ago. (Sort of like asking people where they lost their keys. If they knew where they lost their keys, they would go get them.)

Maybe you can improve your life (if it needs to be improved) by accepting that you are a depressed person, and that is just part of who you are. You aren't the first person, by any means, who has been, is, and will likely remain at least somewhat depressed. It's not the end of the world.

Well, I think we need to get past this truism. Namely, that a medical professional can magically treat the depression him or herself and thus the depression stops. While my depression can or has been decreased in magnitude it still persists. — Question

Did you stop reading at that sentence? The next paragraph spelled this out for you:

"Medical professionals will not necessarily be able to cure your depression. And even if they can, it might not be easily curable. But, not seeking treatment is certainly not going to make it go away any more than you could expect cancer to just go away on its own via not seeking treatment."

People's actions don't cause the suffering in their lives? Wot? — Heister Eggcart

Seeing as life itself is a tragedy — Heister Eggcart

People's actions don't cause their own lives.

How do you deal with your 'monster'? Have any of you defeated it? — Question

I used to get suicidal thoughts almost everyday. My life is very depressing (I've even been diagnosed with schizophrenia). I still get suicidal thoughts, but not as often. What changed? I don't focus as much on how much my life sucks. Instead I focus more on what I can do to make my life better.

I used to get suicidal thoughts almost everyday. My life is very depressing (I've even been diagnosed with schizophrenia). — Purple Pond

In the same boat. It's double the struggle because negative symptoms are rarely effectively treated while the positive ones are at bay. Amphetamines are thought to be good additions to A/AP's if you can find a willing and able doctor. They don't exacerbate the condition; but, supposedly help treat the negative symptoms while leaving the positive's untouched.

Personally, I have a hobby of understanding SZ and how to live with it.

I thought this song reminded me of another but I couldn't place it until now:

Hey, thanks for that. I didn't know the Waits song (which I think is co-written by Kathleen Brennan). Maybe one of them half-remembered the Randy Newman song from twenty years before. Or maybe Cain is always slaying Abel somewhere in someone's imagination :)

Or maybe Cain is always slaying Abel somewhere in someone's imagination :) — mcdoodle

LOL, yes, or perhaps even everywhere in everyone's imagination. >:)

The studio version from Bone Machine is also on Youtube and worth a listen as it has a different ambience.

I'll post it on the 'What are you listening to' thread.