Monday, December 12, 2011
Damage THE END
Monday, December 5, 2011
Wanting the DAMAGED goods.......
Monday, November 28, 2011
Lolita......
Monday, November 14, 2011
Love and Limerence (Individual Experience of Limerence)
Monday, November 7, 2011
obsession sex and love........
Monday, October 31, 2011
The possession
This was the perfect title for the reading because it was as if the author-annie ernaux-, was possessed by a being with vengeful tactics she created. She played out all aspects of this womans lifestyle without ever meeting her.
She envisioned a would-be relationship that W would or may have with this other woman. She had no solid facts, other then the profession.
Simple conversations that annie had with W turned into a session of america's most wanted. If he mentioned to her, "tippy just crossed my mind" she thought to herself, hmmmm when was the last time you even thought about me, or so me just crossing your mind confirms I'm no longer your primary go to person for companionship. Annie began to analyze everything about W's life without realizing she was living her life through his possible actions, without actually living Annie's life without W. She even admitted to falling prey to the attacks of an outside world reminding her of their common past.
The structure of having one paragraph per page kept me excited to know what else she would do, in order to relieve herself of the misery.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Specialists and Ocd
Specialization as a cause for OCD, for a statement I tried hard not to agree with initially when reading this book. Davis' account on why he feels specialists are prone to having obsessive habits, never made much sense until I read chapter three. Golton's behavior explained by himself as well as David presented a first hand account on not why, but how specialists' behavior exhibits obsessive traits. Chapter three page 92, Golton describes his "necessity of obtaining a multitude of exact measurements relating to every measurable faculty of the body or mind, for two generations at least, on which to theorise". He goes on to admit, whenever he met people he would classify them based on how he perceived them. Usually on a scale of three classes ' good medium, and bad'. He would also classify women into three categories attractive, indifferent, and repellent. His obsessive behaviors became apart of him as well as his daily activities. He was monitoring the two rows of people and how many times they would figit in their seats. He even went as far to mathematically determine why the Africans posterior was uniquely larger than most women. His obsessive behavior in turn made him the scientist who he was, which society benefited from. This is and may be the case for many doctors, lawyers, psychologists, etc. Their crafts become them. In my major, you have to eat, breath, and sleep through information in order to retain it to memory, so much that the slightest problem I may encounter I assume its the cause of some factor I've learned in school. I'm not saying that I am a specialist, but I deeply understand the uncontrolled obsessive thoughts and actions one may have engaging in their specialties.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Triangulating love *smiles*
He goes on to classify love into different categories, with my favorite being the fatuous love! For the life of me, I cannot fathom how two individuals can meet, like, love, then marry without even considering the thoughts of potentially living with the "I shoulda, coulda, woulda disorder". This disorder involves individuals living with regrets because they didn't think about the future. It happens all the time from celebrities, to your neighbors up the street.
Sternberg's other categories were empty love, infatuation, consummate, companionate, romantic, and liking. Empty love is striking because you have couples who marriages have crumbled, but they still stay together either for the kids or religious beliefs. The author described it as losing the mutual emotional involvement and physical attraction that once characterized them. Its kind of sad, when you witness it first hand.
My two favorite are romantic and companionate. I find mushy times to be cute and intimate, and who wouldn't want to marry or be in love with someone who was and still is your friend first.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Emergence of Obsession (chapter 2)
Hmmmm, I guess now it all makes sense. Its interesting to see the originated definition and awareness of being obsessed and its development. In this chapter we have witnessed well within the nineteenth century, people have displayed characteristics of what we now view as obsessions. Referred to as monomania - these cases at times placed the individuals in asylums. But today we treat patients with more therapeutic remedies as opposed to classifying them as insane in addition to, institutionalizing them regardless of profession. Making comparisons to those before as well as those today, bridges the connection of OCD being a disorder of inevitable conclusions that followed a current theory. Monomania's hospitalizations -as discussed in this chapter- increased drastically during the era of "the idea of insanity". I like the distinction Davis has made between mania, and the new monomania which he has desribed as, combining the awareness and the distraction into one entity. He also recognized the lack of rationality. Another factor that has remained consistent during this era in comparison to now is, Monomania was a disorder evident in works of art at the time. Examples of such works are the author of "Insanity-My Own Case", and Frankenstein by May Shelly. Davis' mention of these particular arts showed the movement of this fad, and evolution/spread of the awareness. Its the same concept of reality shows and such works displaying ocd, in a wider spectrum. I.e hoarders, true life, survivor, etc. This is not to say that a reality show is a work of art, this only exemplifies a changes coveyed through a medium appropriate during a certain time. Davis said on page 74, it is no surprise that the concept of monomania, therefore, took to literature and spread like wildfire. I believe it is the same concept we witness today. This chapter continues to add in my belief that OCD is an remains a disease entity.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Davis: Chapter 1 Origins of Obsession
This chapter is in my opinion an excellent example of disease entity. Davis first discusses religious explanations being the force behind obsessions. It was being characterized by demons taking over the body-it's treatment being exorcisms. A collection of conditions called a quartet made up the forces behind madness, which in the eighteenth century defined the new kind of mental distress of the era. The quartet included hysteria, hypochondria, vapors, and spleen. From the reading I believe the quartet explained the underground reasons behind mental illnesses and disorders of the time. I really liked the following two theories of the eighteenth century-organ theory and nervous disorders. From the examples presented in the book, I can definitely agree with the disease entity belief, that we were not wrong before, just have a different set of definitions. Davis mentioned "humors interacted in creating an out-of-balance system; vapors arose from specific organs and affected other organs, particularly the brain". After reading this statement, I actually said oh my, that makes sense (of course if I lived in that era). I also agree with the idea of philosophers being better suited to treat a disorder of the mind then a physician only because I believe philosophers studies were based on the mind and they are in a better position for a more efficient analysis, as was the case, described by J.J. Belloc on page 44. Over these past centuries cases of mental illnesses were being categorized as more common and larger groups of people which wasnt the case in the earliest of times. Davis then says the condition does not yet have the name "obsession" but it emerges from between two models. This was the defining cause for me to believe that obsession is a disease entity and not disease hence the title, origins of obsession. This chapter was extremely informative as well as interesting to read!!!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
THIN
Friday, September 23, 2011
Freud and the "Rat Man"
With the rat man consulting Sigmund Freud as his personal psychologist I believe was a mistake no offense to Freud, only because I believe his views on people in general were biased. He tends to relate current issues to sexual and candid sexual desires - as is the unwanted case with the "rat man". On the other hand, I have agreed with Freud's impressive capability to avoid possible transferent reactions to his patient. I can continue to add that in reference to what we have learned the rat man's case has presented evident traits of the OCD disorder.As we have described the characteristics of obsession the rat man is the perfect picture: his feelings have expressed all attributes. He has inappropriate (not in his character) thoughts of rats eating away at his anus which I believe originated from his days in the army. He also has recurrent thoughts of cutting himself with razors to the intrusive thoughts of something unfortunate happening to his fiancee, not to mention, all thoughts having a dominant feeling of unwanted-ness.
I also do not believe that the rat man's rat thoughts/dreams were repressed sexual desires, I believe when objects such as this overpowers a person's mind, there is a void that this tangible factor is filling.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Now and Forever ( Lennard J. Davis chp8)
Now and Forever is an accurate title for this chapter because Davis has gone into a detailed explanation of the ambiguity that the obsessive compulsive disorder offers. He has raised a lot of points, in this chapter-many of which I agree with. One profound thought in particular that I have agreed with, is "the broken brain" theory, which is the analysis of the brains model and it's effect on OCD sufferers. Lennard J. Davis mentioned, "we have to be careful not to attribute to the brain single locations for activities that are socially determined, constructed, and complex. The human brain did not necessarily evolve to shop,...there isn't a place in the brain for shopping. There well may not be a place I'm the brain for OCD either". Many of the biological explanations that researches and doctors come up with for theses sufferers have obviously worked for some people and not others. Hormone supplements, or chemical medications may be the answer for one person but not the next. I believe this concept has been proven especially when Davis has mentioned the minor cases of OCD have been easier to suppress compulsions, faster than the severe cases, or even eliminate symptoms all together. If it's taken the 30 year time span for us to determine now, we have every 1 in 40 people experiencing some form of OCD then ultimately this process of reaching the true understanding of what this disorder is controlled by and originates from, has to undergo further in depth research. Hence adding to the disease entity theory which he also refers to in this chapter.
Tormenting thoughts and secret rituals
When individuals are experiencing OCD this article definitely illustrates the picture of what these propre struggle with on a daily basis. I'm glad Osborn has given four different cases for us to take a look at. The media - in my mind - plays a major role in how society views people with this disorder. I can admit I was one who believed OCD was just recurring actions that were uncontrollable, with no apparent explanation as to why these people did what they did. After reading, my view has shifted!!!! I was amazed to see that OCD in some cases as described by Osborn is, "the battle in the mind that can come to rule peoples' lives". The cases of filth, harm, lust, and blasphemy, were all different OCD cases but illustrated a common trait from different sides of the spectrum. Raymond shaking uncontrollably from the his spill fantasies seemed nothing compared to Sherry's thoughts of hurting/killing someone (including own child). Upon further reading, I became even more amazed at the internal struggle that Jeff faced when his thoughts pushed him to think was his gay, a pervert, and wanted to have sex with his dog, ALL UNWANTED THOUGHTS. It's unfortunate to know that this disorder still has no cure, because the evident picture that Osborn has portrayed for me is these people was, are, or have been living in a prison within their own bodies for so long in mere hope of rising themselves of the mental suffering...