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Friend/Ships 2020 is here and we're partnering with Seize the Awkward


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  • ArenaNet Staff

For the third anniversary of Friend/Ships, we’re partnering with Seize the Awkward to help encourage friends to reach out and start the conversation about mental health, particularly if a friend is struggling or going through a tough time. Seize the Awkward is a national campaign created by the Ad Council, The Jed Foundation (JED), and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) to promote mental health awareness and suicide prevention.

Read here to learn about everything we're doing with Seize the Awkward and for Friend/Ships throughout the month of February: hear stories from Guild Wars 2 staff and community, learn about our Friends Forever in Tyria contest and how to share your own stories, and get a free Seize the Awkward Clothing Outfit in Guild Wars 2.

We know it can be difficult to reach out and get help when you're struggling. One of the reasons this campaign is so important to us is that we want to help bring attention to resources people might not be aware of. If you need help right now or want to talk to someone, you can visit https://afsp.org/ and click "Find Support." You're an important part of our community and we look forward to exploring Tyria with you for many years to come.

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I know you guys have been getting a lot of flak lately for this and that.

But I just want to say this is a really great thing you're doing.

I'm suffering from PTSD, and my symptoms are so bad that I'm at risk of losing the best job I've ever had because I can't perform up to expectations.

It's infuriating, embarrassing, heart-breaking.

Thank you for calling attention to issues like these.

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  • ArenaNet Staff

@justsoelmo.7068 said:I know you guys have been getting a lot of flak lately for this and that.

But I just want to say this is a really great thing you're doing.

I'm suffering from PTSD, and my symptoms are so bad that I'm at risk of losing the best job I've ever had because I can't perform up to expectations.

It's infuriating, embarrassing, heart-breaking.

Thank you for calling attention to issues like these.

Thank you for speaking up, and for being a part of our community. These issues are difficult to talk about and even more difficult to experience. I'm sorry you're going through this. If you haven't yet, please look at some of the resources linked above and see which ones could be helpful for you.

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is the pegasus as well part of this?

im curious ._.

@justsoelmo.7068

Try to do something diferent in your day, i had a burnout in the past due how much i worked, counter it, wake up go runing before u go to work, if u have alot of redudancy u need to counter with changes.it took me quite a few years to got out of a depressive state(actually lost my job at that time), my body even loosed the track that needs to sleep.

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I suffer from 2 seizure disorders bi-polar disorder for nearly 30 years. I now also have PTSD. the side effects of the medications to treat these conditions causes severe depression and suicidal thoughts and worse. I no longer work or drive. generally avoid any face to face social interaction. It is difficult for many to understand the debilitating effects of mental health issues. Thank you for drawing attention to this issue

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The handful of people who I've seen try to talk about theirself in chat (map or team chat, etc.) just lead to intense mocking and bullying and memes. You should've hired some moderators before encouraging this on your platform. I know you mean well but I don't think you understand how toxic the in-game environment has become for people like us, and how little you do about it.

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Hi Everyone! I am a female living with mental illness for a very long time. I am trying to spread awareness that people living with mental illnesses do not automatically fall into one of three categories - 1. crazy 2. criminal 3. vegetables - you hear it so many times on the news about how a person committed a crime had a mental illness or how a person goes on trial and to get leniency uses the "insanity" defense for a lighter punishment. I am trying to show people that many of us people who suffer from mental illnesses like myself do not fit into those three categories and that we are every day normal people leading normal lives. I manage my mental illnesses with the use of medication and it makes mine much more easier to live with on a day to day basis.

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@justsoelmo.7068 said:I know you guys have been getting a lot of flak lately for this and that.

But I just want to say this is a really great thing you're doing.

I'm suffering from PTSD, and my symptoms are so bad that I'm at risk of losing the best job I've ever had because I can't perform up to expectations.

It's infuriating, embarrassing, heart-breaking.

Thank you for calling attention to issues like these.

May I please hug you?

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Embarrassing is a key word for those of us with mental illness. discussing it ( even with a doctor ) how it effects day to day life work performance shopping ECT. can all be embarrassing. We all know our triggers and do our best to avoid them. But out in the world they can come at you unexpectedly. other people Don't know our triggers. the reaction to that trigger is part of the embarrassment when the event is over. Of course the evil eyes, stares, inappropriate comments by the general public doesn't help. If you do have a reactive trigger then your depressed, upset and embarrassed that you are not in control. My PTSD is caused by a severe car crash (which I went go into.) just to be in a vehicle is a lot of stress. being out in public with all the noise crashing sounds ect. is mind wracking. drawing attention and awareness to mental health issues is a great first step. We need better ways of letting those with mental illness know that they are not alone and no matter how weird or embarrassing it sounds It's ok to talk about. It's ok to say I can't do it alone and need help.

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All of us suffering with mental illnesses need to be aware that we all need to support each other and carry one another through whenever we are going through tough times and just be aware that you are never alone; you are not the only person that goes through this and that is why all of us are here to help each other talk about it and promote understanding and support each other and get through our problems as a whole. The best thing I can recommend is if you don't have a psychiatrist and take medication for your mental illnesss try finding a psychiatrist first and exploring which medicine works best for you before you decide on one to take if necessary. The other thing I would advise is if nothing else seems to help and you have lots of issues, you could always try to get a therapist to help you talk about them and that could really help if nothing else does too.

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