Is it unhealthy?
Re: Escapism
No.
A little, no
A lot, most definitely
Re: Escapism
^ what if someone's been doing it for 7 yrs.Is it easy to get rid of it ?
Depends on the person. Depends on issue and the level of escape.
From personal experience of not addressing some issues, letting them simmer for years and then finally facing them, I have to say its not easy, but worth it.
Re: Escapism
I think it's much healthier in many situations to just escape. I HATE having a conversation over tiny little stupid arguments. If people are stirring things up, I run away until things are settled. I also run away if too much emotional drama is involved. This is only to save my energy for things that do matter for me.
Also, I have come to learn really hard way that people actually do NOT forget what you say even if you meant it in the best way possible. Even if it is done for someone's better, few years down the road, trust me, they will bring it up again, so now I dont say anything.
Just to clarify, I dont escape through some fantasy lol, like it was mentioned in OP. I just forget about it.
Re: Escapism
Depends on the person. Depends on issue and the level of escape.
From personal experience of not addressing some issues, letting them simmer for years and then finally facing them, I have to say its not easy, but worth it.
IS outside help needed in extreme cases ?Lets say a psychiatrist fo instance?Or is that going overboard?
Also, I have come to learn really hard way that people actually do NOT forget what you say even if you meant it in the best way possible. Even if it is done for someone's better, few years down the road, trust me, they will bring it up again, so now I dont say anything.
True.
Re: Escapism
IS outside help needed in extreme cases ?Lets say a psychiatrist fo instance?Or is that going overboard? .
your life, your wellbeing, your sanity, your quality if life and that of everyone around you means that nothing is going overboard if it would help.
I can openly say that I thought I could handle some grief on my own, and struggled for years, always thinking I was in control and always falling back, finding escape in work, in shopping, online..whatever. If I could have done something differently, it would have been to seek counseling then.
Re: Escapism
I think it's much healthier in many situations to just escape. I HATE having a conversation over tiny little stupid arguments. If people are stirring things up, I run away until things are settled. I also run away if too much emotional drama is involved. This is only to save my energy for things that do matter for me.
Also, I have come to learn really hard way that people actually do NOT forget what you say even if you meant it in the best way possible. Even if it is done for someone's better, few years down the road, trust me, they will bring it up again, so now I dont say anything.
Just to clarify, I dont escape through some fantasy lol, like it was mentioned in OP. I just forget about it.
escapism is not the same as disengaging or walking away from a situation that you dont have to deal with if you dont want to...escapism is typically regarding inability or unwillingness to deal with an ongoing issue which you need to deal with or face up to it and instead divert your focus on something else. in short term it can be fine or if it is a brief respite from having to deal with something right away or something just not in one's control.
Re: Escapism
IS outside help needed in extreme cases ?Lets say a psychiatrist fo instance?Or is that going overboard?
your life, your wellbeing, your sanity, your quality if life and that of everyone around you means that nothing is going overboard if it would help. I can openly say that I thought I could handle some grief on my own, and struggled for years, always thinking I was in control and always falling back, finding escape in work, in shopping, online..whatever. If I could have done something differently, it would have been to seek counseling then.
when i found myself on the brink of drowning/going overboard, and pushing my issues to the back of my mind/"escaping" was clearly not working, i sought the help of a professional, and i can honestly say that going into counseling was the smartest (and hardest) decision I ever made.
Re: Escapism
Some people do underestimate needing someone to talk to, a lot of people I know tend to just bottle everything up and not deal with big problems. In these cases, escapism is not healthy. Unfortunately, asian culture being what it is (or maybe used to be, I think it IS becoming a bit better these days), it's hard to talk about some topics because of fear of blame/anger/etc etc.
If it's just minor stuff like petty arguments or just general daydreaming, I don't think it would hurt anyone to have a fantasy world.
I mean, c'mon, isn't reading books a form of escapism? :D