EVE General Discussion

For a game full of brutal untrustworthy pirate renegades that are both feared and loathed by the rest of the MMO world we have an amazing ability to donate huge sums of cash to help people.

I'm strangely comfortable with the rest of the MMO world viewing us like that to be honest.
The true nature of the community on here is kinda pretty awesome, and having that be something people find out only after crossing the threshold is something I approve of.

lol had a draft that would make some college proff jealous all typed out an ready to post, then well deleted it

Suffice it to say, i understand how ppl can be thinking, even feeling, so all i will say is i know how hard or even impossible it can be for ppl to talk to others they know/trust/respect in real life an how well going online playing having fun can be the escape an that talking to the ppl there about it all can well be even harder than talking to the ppl from real life, the internet can be a even nastier place after all or seem to be.

Believe me when i say though talking helps, even if the person aint got the answers, sometimes the best thing is just to say the damn problem/s out loud, so if you wannae make a alt or even just rant like hell on your main via chat/mail comms etc just hit me up in game im norm just floating about on this char.

Im no the smartest cookie in the box, heck i probably dont even have any answers for you, bit i'll listen

And yes, +1 for this whole thing. It's easy to feel isolated and alone. But, with EVE being a single server game, it creates a single worldwide community instead of a cluster of villages like other MMO's. This is a good thing, especially being that most of those who play this game are adults who have been kicked in the teeth at least a couple times by life. Bad things happen to good people, and most of us can relate to this.

Those mature enough to understand the nature of the game are able to separate what happens within it from the person on the other side of the screen... the guy who just wtfpwnd your favorite ship and then pod expressed you back to the medbay doesn't necessarily hate you, hell, you may have just made his entire day with that fight. If RL is hitting you hard and you say the word, you might be surprised, that same guy who's still wiping your pod goo off his windscreen may take three leaping bounds into the abyss to help drag you out. Ask.

Denial is a symptom, take care.

This is a feel good thread about feeling bad. I support this.

Because basically just become antisocial. It just makes life a lot easier.

Yeah the professionals should always be the end person, but my training (army) said to find that person if possible (or find someone else who can) and not let then out of your care until you can hand them off to another person/professional.

If someone contacts you in game showing the intent to do self-harm, do whatever it takes to get someone there. File a petition to a GM, let a corp mate who knows him personally know, call a suicide hotline and tell them what's going on, and if necessary call the police or some authority and let them know, even if they are in a different country. It's better to take too many precautions than to not take enough.

I've had depression all of my life, and while I've never been suicidal or one to self harm, the point at which I would have been closest to that was when I had no friends to speak of because I had become so withdrawn - rarely leaving my room or interacting with anyone.

Well said.

FHC has a decent thread for people to talk about mental health issues (actually it has a subforum called Food & Health, which is awesome), and it's good to see reddit create an area where people can do the same. OOPE on these forums is a decent spot for people to chat about personal problems without being trolled to oblivion. The mods are diligent about purging inappropriate remarks and moving threads to spots where they'll get helpful responses, and the residents tend to self moderate to encourage a particular tone.

That said, the second step should always be to advise the person involved to get professional help IRL - and if necessary take steps to ensure they get it if you have to. Basically everything Rowells just said, and Cagali's post is spot on for stating it so clearly. For EvE players I think you could file a petition if you have a serious concern, as they've taken action in the past. Creating a space to chat in is useful, but it won't resolve the underlying issues.

It's worth mentioning that there are so many mental health disorders (and personalities) that not everyone expresses them in ways people will respond to productively. Some people are abusive and 'act out', particularly on forums. The reaction of screaming hateful personal insults or going overboard trolling them is a bit dangerous because you can't judge how they'll react. It's one of those things that is really hard to put the breaks on when it starts - and it's difficult to judge where the line is - but just use a bit of common sense and don't take things too far. I don't care how obnoxious a player is, there's still a person behind the screen and if they are in the middle of a self-destructive mental health spiral, gobbing off at them might tip them over the edge. I doubt anyone wants that on their conscience.