Shennety

“Our "increasing mental sickness" may find expres­sion in neurotic symptoms. These symptoms are con­spicuous and extremely distressing. But "let us beware," says Dr. Fromm, "of defining mental hygiene as the prevention of symptoms. Symptoms as such are not our enemy, but our friend; where there are symp­toms there is conflict, and conflict always indicates that the forces of life which strive for integration and happiness are still fighting." The really hopeless victims of mental illness are to be found among those who appear to be most normal. "Many of them are normal because they are so well adjusted to our mode of existence, because their human voice has been si­lenced so early in their lives, that they do not even struggle or suffer or develop symptoms as the neurotic does." They are normal not in what may be called the absolute sense of the word; they are normal only in relation to a profoundly abnormal society. Their per­fect adjustment to that abnormal society is a measure of their mental sickness. These millions of abnormally normal people, living without fuss in a society to which, if they were fully human beings, they ought not to be adjusted, still cherish "the illusion of indi­viduality," but in fact they have been to a great extent deindividualized. Their conformity is developing into something like uniformity. But "uniformity and free­dom are incompatible. Uniformity and mental health are incompatible too. . . . Man is not made to be an automaton, and if he becomes one, the basis for mental health is destroyed.”
― Aldous Huxley, Brave New World Revisited

“Part of becoming a mother is learning the fine art of dispassion. This is the ability to step back and evaluate what is going on with your child. It is a particularly useful skill to develop and will come in handy when your child is 6 and whining and crying over that toy she really wants in the grocery store or the cute kitten she wants to adopt. In a sense, you learn when to take the crying seriously and when to let it roll over you even as you provide a steady source of support and comfort. It requires the art of knowing your child’s cues and having confidence in your own judgment.”
― Aviva Romm, Natural Health after Birth: The Complete Guide to Postpartum Wellness

“The Best Teachers teach from the heart and not from the Book”
― Annonimous

“Problem #1: Winners and losers have the same goals.”
― James Clear, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones