#nofilter

An image (taken on Samsung S6) from the forrestry near where I grew up. Copyright Sandra Quinn, Quinn's Quandries. 

#nofilter #Speakingmymind #Thinkonlyofmyself #Hurtingothersbutstillblaseaboutit

These are just some of the self-centred and ridiculous hashtags, which make their way into things like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram regularly and yet because there is a hashtag, it seems ok to be a bit of a plonker.

Why is it that everyone has decided that the little hashtag is suddenly magical and allows you to say whatever pops into your head and you don't have to filter, be nice or considerate or think about how the awful things you are saying might affect others.

The snipey remark about how an outfit makes someone you don't know all that well, look a little frumpy or fat, could be the comment that makes them fall into a pit of self-pity and despair.

The mean comment about how a couple aren't suited to each other could be the reason that one of the them spends their night crying, while the other has just walked away from their life together.

The cruel hashtag about people being too honest and divulging too much on their page could be a callous response to someone's cry for help and you have just very horribly shut the door on their public plea for someone to listen to them and truly care.

Now, don't get me wrong, I am not slamming social media, as I am an avid user of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (I'll admit that I'm a recent convert to this one, but loving it so far) and most of you will actually see that this blog is available through those very mediums.

Social media is great and it has its uses, but it also shouldn't be used as an excuse, to be, as I said above, a plonker (I can think of much worse terms, but they are not blog friendly, to be fair and would, I fear, lower the tone of Quinn's Quandries and we can't have that).

However, I do feel that at the end of the day, we are all people and as Mam used to say when we were kids, if you can't think of anything nice to say, don't say anything and I think that's a piece of advice that should go back into general circulation.

Rant over, please like, share, retweet and spread the love, if you enjoyed reading this :-)

When lightning strikes...

Just before Christmas, Niall Breslin, more commonly known as Bressie, the heartthrob and generally nice guy from The Blizzards and more recently a judge on The Voice of Ireland, broadcast his new series aimed at getting people to focus on their mental health by overcoming physical fitness challenges.

‘Bressie’s Ironmind’ is precisely the kind of programme that is needed on mainstream State TV to remove the stigma, across the age groups, around the topic of mental health, depression and those who are at risk of suicide.

Ireland is a terrible country for fostering the mentality of ‘If I don’t mention it, then it’s not happening and the problem will simply go away’.

This couldn’t be further from the truth – just like a harsh word can mutilate into a cutting monologue if left to fester, ill feelings can manifest into depression, mental ill health or even suicidal ideation, if they are left to bubble away under the surface.

This is one of the things that Bressie aimed to address with his new series and his frank and open way of talking about his own difficulties is honestly quite refreshing, not only on television and in the media, but in a new series, aimed at people of all ages from all walks of life.

The first episode introduced us to Jade, Colm, Mark and Orla.

“This challenge was one that I took on myself [...] it’s not a physical challenge but a mental challenge,” Bressie explained and the idea is to arm people with coping tools for life’s more difficult moments.

Using the expertise of health and fitness experts, as well as those who specialise in mental health, mindfulness and wellness, Bressie pushed people to their maximum without going too far or risking injury, while also using exercise and physical fitness to combat the onset of mental problems and issues.

The stories of the four people who took part in the show are very real and quite raw and they will no doubt have helped people to relate to the show and will perhaps help them to shine a light on a problem they are having themselves that they hadn’t given due consideration to before now.

The hope is that this will get people talking openly about their feelings, emotional well-being and to talk to people if they are struggling. Suicide is something that can be prevented, but that cannot be done if we are not open, transparent and talking to each other about what is going on inside our heads.

Problems will not go away if they are brushed under the carpet – instead they will manifest themselves in physical  symptoms such as bowel problems or IBS, headaches, vomiting, self-mutilation in the form of pulling out hair or mildly hurting oneself, as well as things like putting yourself down, having low self-esteem or even exhibiting signs of self-loathing.

If you broke your leg, you would not hesitate in telling somebody what had happened, how much pain you are in and what the recovery time will be.

On the polar opposite end of the scale, if you were feeling down or were having an off day, a lot of Irish people in particular, tend to hide those feelings and feel ashamed.

As people get older and particularly people of my generation (late twenties and almost thirty, well I'm 28, I’ll begrudgingly admit), they begin to realise that everyone else is the same as them.

Everyone worries, everyone stresses out over ridiculous things and everyone has those irrational fears and woes.

It is how we deal with those problems that set us apart and makes some people the strong people and others those who crumble and fold under the pressure and strain.