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Comment by ALee | Hacker News Reader

In my 10+ yrs in this industry, it's astounding how many founders we've lost trying to hack Maslow's hierarchy. I'm not against drugs, I'm against addiction because it is terrible, destructive, and so short-term.

Founders, you're not Peter Pan, your shadow stays with you no matter how many lost boys you surround yourself with. Such a tragedy that he was taken away from us too soon

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I'm very interested in the "shadow" concept, am always curious what people really mean when they mention it.

If you could elaborate on your mention of "shadow", (perhaps "Explain Like I'm Five"-style), I'd appreciate it. But I'd understand if you don't care to.

I parsed "shadow" in this context as things that challenge you emotionally as person.

Personal difficulties that you'd rather pretend to not exist like a drug addiction. People who run from their shadow avoid having an honest conversation with their self. An honest conversation requires one to confront personal difficulties head on, in order to final a (lasting) solution to their negative effects.

At the bottom you have suffering and physical pain. At the top you have drug addiction, depression, and psychological pain. There really is no escape no matter which direction you move. It's a cruel world indeed.

There is escape, and there is hope. We can increase our resilience to life's trials. You're right that it is a cruel world. But there is still joy to be had. Lots of it.

Not that I dont believe you, but why dont you share what the options are? The problem is that if you say something along the lines of "family and friends" there are millions of people who for different reasons dont get to enjoy good experiences in that front or any experience at all. Same with health, travel, food, jobs, peace, company, love, justice or hope.

I don't think there's one answer for this. Life on its own is ultimately a tragic story for everyone. So once we have our basic necessities met, it's the job of each of us to try to layer on top of that tragic story a personal story of meaning, a story explaining why the pain mattered somehow.

That layered story can take many forms. The most time-tested one is having children. But there are many other ways to write the story too.

There's also no law saying we have to layer any story of meaning at all, but human brains seem to really crave it and don't seem to do well without one.

You're right but I don't want to put stress on anyone in a difficult situation by adding a "job" of finding meaning. Sometimes the only thing you have to do is survive the night. That's enough.

If you can survive to live another day, eventually joy will find you, or you will find joy. Just keep surviving. One of the hallmarks of suicidal depression and ideation is a feeling of increasingly severe constraints until there's only one way out. In all but the most unlikely situations these are not real constraints but are the product of a malfunctioning mind.

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