Escapism? – Mental Health

“Don’t judge me for escaping the stresses and cruelty of the world differently than you do.” ― Dan Pearce, Single Dad Laughing

Back in 2019 I wrote a post, “Distractions Welcome“, for this post I thought I would expand on it.

To keep my mental health stable I like to escape. What I mean by that is this, I find ways to completely unplug myself from everything that resembles life, news, and drama. I disappear into things that will take me out of all stress.

Many years ago there was a story about a man who laughed his way back to health, his name, Norman Cousins.

On the website Laugh Off Life they review Cousins’ novel, “Anatomy of an Illness”, and they write the following;

   In his novel, Anatomy of an Illness, Norman Cousins describes his rigorous recovery from ankylosing spondylitis, a painful collagen illness that rendered him immobile, and at its nadir, nearly incapable of moving his jaw.

In the review they include a quote from Norman;

“Hearty laughter is a good way to jog internally without having to go outdoors.”
   -Norman Cousins – Anatomy of an Illness

You can download a free PDF copy of Cousins book here.

My forms of escapism includes, watching old t.v. series, such as, “Hogan’s Heroes”, “Carol Burnett”, cartoons, and even documentaries of space exploration. I also at times watch shows dealing with conspiracies, not that I believe them. My favorite are the ones surrounding the assignation the late, President JFK. Anything that takes me into a world that is indistinguishable from what I am dealing with in my life. All this allows me escape, provoke daydreams, or just a good belly laugh..

So dear reader, how do you use escapism from what you are dealing with? I would love for you to share your ways and also for others to read!