Overcoming Limits (or not)

[ysabetwordsmith]

Here's a post about overcoming limits, or not.

What it does not mention are limits that one could, but should not,  push past.  That is, a body/mind has things it can do safely, things that can be done but are unpleasant or harmful, and things that cannot be done at all.  That middle range is where most people get into trouble, and they are far more likely to do so with other people yapping, "Go on, try!  You can do it!"  

It's like mad science.  Just because you CAN do something, does not always mean you SHOULD.  Always think about the cost-benefit balance.  Don't hurt yourself on account of other people urging you forward where it's not safe, or because you really want to do something that is not safe for your body/mind.  Know yourself.  Know your limits.  Understand which ones are soft limits that you can push sometimes but not routinely, and which ones are hard limits that will do real damage if you smack into them.  Treat your limits with respect and your self with compassion.

Comments

[sylvaine]

Yes, this. I've been trying for a while now to figure out which limits I should push past and which ones I shouldn't - at the moment I feel like I'm erring on the side of caution, "being lazy". But also I'm wary of pushing pasts limits in that middle range, so I figure I'd rather be "lazy" when I can!

[brushwolf]

How to say this.

The thing about exceptional people is that they're just that - the exception, not the rule. Most amputees don't run marathons, and most child abuse survivors don't turn their lives around and become fabulously wealthy/respected whatevers. There are good reasons for that, losing a leg or most of your childhood is not an easy thing to hack. It isn't supposed to be. No amount of dualistic success/failure stories, positive thinking, society monetizing the idea of success, or whatever, can change that difficult things are difficult to deal with.

[matrixmann]

Kind of reminds to social workers and people of state entities that have to do with youth welfare service. Always have a problem if someone's not going for social interaction and doesn't like to spend his time among humans - as well as if someone's not the one to go for the "carreer"-thing too.
Surely also applies for all other services coming after that for more adult ages.

[westrider.livejournal.com]

I've been dealing with that balance a lot as I've been coming to terms with depression over the last few years. There are lots of things that I can do on any given occasion, but there's a cost, and it's unsustainable to do as much of those as most people do.

It's getting better with the Sertraline, but that's causing its own problems in turn, as I overestimate how fast it's getting better, and set myself back by pushing faster than I'm really ready for, and not catching the signs until too late, because I'm not paying as much attention to them on account of generally feeling much better.

[zeeth_kyrah]

One of the biggest causes of spiritual disability is forcing power through when it shouldn't be pushed so hard. You burn things out, rather like over-volting an electronic system. And recovery can take way too long, with lingering symptoms that can be gentle or intermittent at times until one is overdrawn (at which point the symptoms take over).

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

Heh. This is an interesting thing for me to ponder. My fatigue issues are such that sometimes pushing to do something means I'm less able to do something the next day. This isn't uncommon, I'm told - a lot of people find that if they over do it, they'll be wiped out, and, like me, they have no warning during the activity.

Now, on the one hand, for *me*, I want to find the limits of my activity - I want to live life as best as I can. But trying to do that can mean ending up doing a lot more and being miserable every minute of the way.

And my experience is that if I'm at the state where I'm not-fatigued, and happy, I might not do "as much" by most raw numbers, but what I do tends to be much more effective. So "overcoming my limits" is actually counterproductive.