(27-04-2014, 03:34 PM)SarahSchilling Wrote: It's basically the opposite of empathy, but instead of trying to put yourself in someone else's shoes, you try to cram others into yours....and then act like there is something wrong with them when they don't fit.
I should be really upset by how far off you are. You could not possibly be more wrong about me. But it occurs to me something fuels your anger, so I'll explain instead.
This is the part that relates to the reason I do what I do. And it's the giant elephant in the room:
Post-op suicides.
It is patently obvious, with studies, anecdotes and all, that your path isn't for everyone, either.
Someone should at least point out that fact once in a while, don't you think?
I'm watching two more post-op acquaintances circle the drain, because they feel they've made the biggest mistake of their lives. But you know what? Not one person ever told either of them they might be making a mistake. No, all they got was SUPPORT. They got fuckin' gobs of support. Everyone told them it was the best thing for them, SRS...
And it wasn't. But it's a bit too late now.
While it's nearly certain I couldn't have changed their course, I still feel bad for not speaking up and presenting another option. I might have saved someone from depression or suicide, but I didn't, because it wouldn't have been "supportive".
Listen to me carefully: I have never once told YOU that YOU shouldn't do what you're doing, have I? In fact, before you decided to rip on me, I never said one word to you. I don't give a flamin' fuck what you do. I don't know you; you're a random person on the internet. Frankly, I'm tired of your snark and insults.
I'm writing (on this subject) from a painful dark place where I've seen friends die. One of my best friends from high school ate a bullet from his .45. I don't want any more friends to die. So I will continue to speak up. I will continue to tell my story, in the hopes that someone may someday be helped by it. Someone did that for me; I feel a karmic obligation to pay it forward.
Put that in your pipe and smoke it. If you still can't think of anything decent to say, then at least have the simple human courtesy to ignore me.