Scientology

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rischott
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Post by rischott »

When I was 17, my mother's husband committed suicide randomly. It occured during the first or second week into my senior year. After this occured, my mother was in shock for several months, i think still even to this day. Anyway, even though I did not have many feelings for the man, and quite frankly, I was happy he was no longer with my mother, although not in the manner that he left. My family wanted me to see a psychologist/psyciatrist/counselor, so upon their wishes I did. I basically talked about my school, relationships wth friends and family, but almost talked nothing about the death. It did not effect me in any sense except that my mother was ill. My mind was only focused on helping her.

Well, the counselor believed that I was under too much stress to handle on my own, so she prescribed me Effexor, a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor.
I think this drug is mild in comparison to some of the others, but the effects it had on me were quite strong. First things I noticed was my dependence on it. I had to take 1 pill a day. If I forgot to take a pill, which I did quite frequently, I would get dizzy, nausous, agitated, my sight would go blurry. I felt like my whole body was tingling.
When I did take my pill everyday, I actually became an asshole. I was rude, overbarring, controlling, pompous, yet I couldn't see myself being any other way. I thought my way was the only way. I didn't have the ability of self reflection.
About 8 months after I went on the medication, I turned 18, and when that happened my father took me off of his health care plan, so I no longer had coverage for the counselor visits or the medication. So, I said screw it, I wanted to get off of the medicine. Well, for 2 weeks straight I went cold turkey. Had all the symptoms i named before times 100. I couldn't drive, I stayed in my room for 3 straight days at one point.

From then on, I have been against anti-psychotic drugs. Why are we prescribing synthetic morphine to children!?!? I think 2.5 million children are on these death pills. Individuals are serving life sentences for possesion of marijuana (which at worse causes short term memory loss and the munches) yet doctors are PRAISED in medical journals, by schools, parents, for doping up these kids into robots and drones. In fact, some schools restrict some children from entering school grounds unless they are on anti-psychotic medicine. That is disturbing, immoral, and should be out right illegal.
Thank you RRM and CG for taking a stand against these pills as well. The wai diet combined with yoga/meditation/exercise will free anymind from anxiety, depression, add, adhd, and so on. We are organic creatures, we must reach equalibrium in our minds through organic avenues, all else is falsehood.
huntress
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Post by huntress »

Until I came to University, I was taught to follow orders like some mindless sheep but then one day, as though God came down from heaven, my Professor taught me to defy,question, and challenge authority because as he puts it "it is the ONLY way where things will get much more interesting and meaningful". Kudos to you! 8)
They dont cure. They just dominate your neurotransmitter metabolism, in different ways.
By dominate, do you mean aggravate?

Any form of drugs (steroids, esp.) will make people gain weight. I know someone who is taking drugs to help 'control' the symptoms of hyperthyroidism gained about 50kgs and is 1) is still gaining weight, 2) symptoms went from bad to worse.
Yes, a few.
These drugs, what are they specifically(if you know) and what are they meant to control, i.e what is the patient suffering from?
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Oscar
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Post by Oscar »

Thanks for your story, Rich, I think you're absolutely right. :)

Great professor, huntress! :)
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Post by CurlyGirl »

RRM wrote:And education is also based an learning what you are told, instead of questioning what you are told.
How would your school teach questioning what you are told?
There is a danger, of course, of creating a 'post-modern' school where kids are encouraged to question everything to such an extent that even morality becomes subjective (which could lead into dubious amoral territory). But various things in society absolutely demand to be questioned and subjected to consistent scrutiny, including: scientific evidence, other people's opinions, politicians' statements, advertising copy, and mainstream dogma in various other forms. Of course, you want children to question their teachers, but not to the extent that the teachers themselves are rendered obsolete and you just have classrooms full of mutinous kids without any healthy guidance. So, in a school environment, care should be taken nonetheless to establish the teacher as an authority figure (to the extent that the teacher has more life experience and - hopefully - has plenty more practice in questioning the common 'wisdom' of his/her culture than the children do), so that children still feel as though they are being encouraged to discover their universe by someone trustworthy and experienced. I also think that, when children are placed in an environment where their own 'instincts' and ideas about things are nurtured, they will naturally question everything that doesn't immediately resonate with their inner voices. It's difficult to describe this, but I was once in a Montessori-type class full of 3-year-olds, who were all being encouraged to think about where their food (i.e. eggs, bread, etc) actually comes from. It was fascinating to see these teachers foster enthusiasm for learning in these children, and the children were literally 'brought out' of themselves - after all, the word 'educate' comes from educare, meaning 'to bring out.' These toddlers will probably grow up not believing (as many other children frighteningly do) that milk just comes out of a bottle and is good for you.

For me, the situation was similar to huntress's story about her encouraging professor. I met an amazing professor who became (and still is) my mentor and guide in life, who lectured a course on the origins of the contemporary global crisis when I was a fresh(wo)man. It totally blew my mind - suddenly I was finding out about the myth of the 'liberal' media, about economic globalisation, about McDonaldisation, about dangerous ideas within U.S. foreign policy (and this was before 9/11 and the Iraq invasion), etc etc. I became a different person - much less selfish, far more motivated to do something extraordinary with my life, much more concerned about the environment and also about what I put in my mouth, far more critical of the books I read and media I consume, and so on. It was an amazing experience... I think my parents still don't recognise me! So for me, I had my eyes opened at 18, but for some people that's already too late - they need to be exposed to dissident views much earlier in life to prevent full 'calcification' of the brain (as is evident in so many youngsters today). Hence the idea of a school where children are much more strongly encouraged to engage actively with the things they are being taught. Children aren't 'empty vessels' into which teachers just 'pour' things, yet the modern education system seems to be premised on this false notion of the tabula rasa (blank slate).

Rich... your story is most enlightening. Thanks for sharing it with us.
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RRM
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Post by RRM »

huntress wrote: By dominate, do you mean aggravate?
By changing the metabolism; changing the balance; a little more of this, a little less of that, so that our natural balance is dominated by the drugs we take, changing the status quo.
Any form of drugs (steroids, esp.) will make people gain weight.
Not necessarily; some make you actually lose weight.
I know someone who is taking drugs to help 'control' the symptoms of hyperthyroidism gained about 50kgs and is 1) is still gaining weight,
Slowing the thyroid down will indeed cause gain weight, but that is not because all drugs do, but that is specifically because slowing down the thyroid actually slows down your energy metabolism.
These drugs, what are they specifically(if you know) and what are they meant to control, i.e what is the patient suffering from?
We were talking about antpsychotics, meant to make the 'patient less psychotic'.
These antipsychotics hower dont actually decrease / eliminate psychosis, but aim at decreasing / eliminating the symptoms of it. That is also why many drugs serve multi purposes; many 'diseases' share the same symptoms, so that drugs for ADHD, psychosis, schizofrenia etc are used to treat any of these.

Basically this is what happens in modern medicine in general; drugs are not designed to cure diseases, but to eliminate the symptoms. A fundamental difference.
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RRM
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Post by RRM »

CurlyGirl wrote: There is a danger, of course, of creating a 'post-modern' school where kids are encouraged to question everything to such an extent that even morality becomes subjective
Yes, I agree.
It needs to be in balance; temporarily questioning something may actually make moral 'believes' stronger in the end; learning to see it both ways, from someone who can give real insight.
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Oscar
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Post by Oscar »

Only teaching kids to question everything of course isn't enough. They have to be taught to draw their own conclusions from all the available facts. When they are used to that, even morality can be questioned. Morality is subjective, after all. If kids are brought up this way from an early age, then there will be no danger of mutiny at all, because they will want to learn and question, so the authority of the teacher will never be an issue. This is the case in Montessori schools. I've had all my education from 3 yrs old all the way up 'til university in this system.
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Post by CurlyGirl »

I found this at the Montessori International School's website:
The Montessori Approach

Elementary (6 - 14 years)
In an exciting research style of learning, elementary children work in small groups on a variety of projects which spark the imagination and engage the intellect. Lessons given by trained Montessori teachers direct the children toward activities which help them to develop reasoning abilities and life skills. the appetite of children, at this age, to understand the universe and their place in it, directs the elementary work toward all aspects of culture. Elementary studies include geography, biology, history, language, mathematics in all its branches, science, music and art. Exploration of each area is encouraged through trips outside the classroom to community resources, such as a library, planetarium, botanical garden, science center, factory or hospital. This inclusive approach to education fosters a feeling of connectedness to all humanity, and encourages their natural desire to make contributions to the world.


The Montessori Teacher
The role of a Montessori teacher is one of guide and observer, whose ultimate goal is to intervene less and less as the child develops. The teacher builds an atmosphere of calm, order and joy in the classroom and encourages the children in all their efforts, thus promoting self-confidence and discipline. With the younger students at each level, the teacher is more active, demonstrating the use of materials and presenting activities based on an assessment of the child's needs. Knowing when to observe and when, and how much, to intervene is a skill the Montessori teacher develops during a rigorous, specialized course of training at training centers throughout the world.
You are lucky to have been taught according to these principles, Oscar! Most of us had to suffer the slings and arrows of mainstream school... :-(
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Oscar
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Post by Oscar »

It sure was the perfect schooltype for me, even though I think there is still a lot of improvement possible within the system, especially highschool.
Corinne
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Post by Corinne »

I did my kindergarten and first grade in a Montessori school...But then was promply moved to France by my parents: There I suffered a very rigurous and authoritative "we are right because we are the teachers; you just better shut up and listen as you don't know anything!" treatment that I only just recently accepted and am working on regaining trust in my own judgement, and learning to question!
In Europe France is pretty limited in the different educational systems/options it offers to it's children...But somehow (maybe therefore) french know how to protest and go on strike in very aggressive ways! I mean, it has to come out at some point!
If teachers could be questioning enough themselves, they for sure set an example and they would be capable, given a basic subject -say history- to present it from several different perspectives and then invite the students to make a decision themselves as to what their reaction would be in such and such a situation. Questioning history is something we rarely do in schools...In europe WWII is taught in different ways from country to country, yet all of these are codified by now.
Also in France for instance the school programs are closely controlled by the goverment and this is why there are only a couple of Montessori elementary schools (no highschools because one doesn't learn anything in these schools!) and one Waldorf/Steiner school that stops at grade 11 for the same reason.
I don't know enough about the Waldorf system to discuss it but only that it's based on nourishing a child' creativity, independnace and spirituality.
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Oscar
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Post by Oscar »

Corinne wrote:I don't know enough about the Waldorf system to discuss it but only that it's based on nourishing a child...
With a salad maybe? :wink:
Corinne
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Post by Corinne »

Why of course!
:wink:
Chin-Chin
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Post by Chin-Chin »

Chick Corea was also an active member. I met him last summer and he seemed perfectly fine. All the French people were like: watch out, he's going to pass out his Scientology pamphlets (of course, he didn't). As if we can be contaminated by a pamphlet! :roll:

I find the allergy to organized religion just as dogmatic as organized religions in themselves. I'd like to think there's much more to an individu than his religious denomination or the lack thereof. That said, Don Hubbard was apparently a very insprirational spiritual leader/profiteer. I found a research book on his organization's finances, although I didn't read it in its entirety. I have a hard time believe that Chick Corea is easily manipulable though (maybe Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, but not someone like Corea). Hubbard's writing apparently really resonated with him...

And yeah, the courses are damned expensive! Just look at their website. I don't know who's in charge now that Hubbard is dead.
mesay
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Post by mesay »

euh made the same statement else were:

I really thing that people not only are driven by the force of the will but also by the suffer. They are in a survival mode.
dionysus
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Post by dionysus »

mesay wrote:euh made the same statement else were:

I really thing that people not only are driven by the force of the will but also by the suffer. They are in a survival mode.
By "force of will" do you mean the will to find meaning?
Negativity is the cult of the weak
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