humansuit

To be honest, I try not to entertain thoughts about paranormal stuff I might have experienced. If I start believing that I've seen the future or heard someone else's thoughts, I have to be concerned about my mental health. Maybe those experiences are real, or maybe I'm having a manic episode with an approaching psychotic break. It's a risk I can't take, so I round every questionable experience up to "it's not real." Regardless of circumstances. But boy oh boy, would I rather believe in psychic powers than in mental illness.

Savor the mystery. It's a luxury not everyone can enjoy.

I am also bipolar, and yes, it sucks. It is the actual soul of suck, to the point that it feels cruel and purposeful. And sure, you can adjust gradually - but add that to the pile of little easy life hacks that I already do to convince people that I'm "functional" and you've got one giant mountain of mental load.

As long as they eliminate the constant inane switching back and forth. Sleep disruption is harmful in many ways and all this practice seems to actually do, old wives' tales about farmers and circumstantial localized benefits aside, is induce it. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5449130/

Sooo no way to win here, according to this edgy take. This philosophy, where any expression of stress is just a ploy, seems like a great way to prevent people from reaching out to each other for help with the psychological pressures of intense work environments, thus making it all worse.

Assuming the student implanted the device in their own ear, they did learn enough to be dangerous. They'll show up as a transhumanist influencer at best and a back alley surgeon at worst.

Valid point. I'll remove it from the conversation.

[This comment was dumb, and I've opted to remove it.]

Let us not forget that mood stabilizers are notorious for making you put on and retain weight. (Mine makes my body use its muscles for energy before it taps into my fat - hooray!) But honestly, lots of people with mood disorders - like mine, which prior to medication inspired me to periodically drop out of school and quit lucrative jobs - do that math every day. In the grand scheme of things, there are worse ways to be than overweight.