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PaperclipPerfector  4hr ago (text post)   120 thread views

Wellness Wednesday for May 13, 2026

The Wednesday Wellness threads are meant to encourage users to ask for and provide advice and motivation to improve their lives. It isn't intended as a 'containment thread' and any content which could go here could instead be posted in its own thread. You could post:

  • Requests for advice and / or encouragement. On basically any topic and for any scale of problem.

  • Updates to let us know how you are doing. This provides valuable feedback on past advice / encouragement and will hopefully make people feel a little more motivated to follow through. If you want to be reminded to post your update, see the post titled 'update reminders', below.

  • Advice. This can be in response to a request for advice or just something that you think could be generally useful for many people here.

  • Encouragement. Probably best directed at specific users, but if you feel like just encouraging people in general I don't think anyone is going to object. I don't think I really need to say this, but just to be clear; encouragement should have a generally positive tone and not shame people (if people feel that shame might be an effective tool for motivating people, please discuss this so we can form a group consensus on how to use it rather than just trying it).

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New Year's resolutions check-in:

  • Posted my eleventh blog post of the year last Thursday (technically a few minutes after midnight). Expanded from a comment I posted here in response to @ThomasdelVasto looking for guidance on dealing with depression – thanks for the inspiration.
  • Went to the gym three times last week. On Wednesday I just did some core exercises which I found here. Friday was squat and overhead press. On Saturday, I decided to warm up with some stretches and core exercises before deadlifting. During deadlifting I used my belt (having not used for the last few weeks), then for good measure I did some stretches afterwards as well. This seemed to work: my disc isn't bothering me as much as it was. Yesterday I did a 5k run on my lunch break, planning to go to the gym this evening. Can deadlift 1.84x my bodyweight for 3 reps, squat 1.2x for 7 reps and bench press .87x for 6 reps.
  • Have not consumed any pornography since waking up on January 1st.

How goes it, @thejdizzler, @self_made_human, @bird_cromble and @falling-star?

I'm back on track with my goal. Spending is now $172.96 less than this time last year, despite dental bills and home repairs.

I know I have a few more big expenses coming up, but it's nice to see it for now.

  1. Work. Going to resubmit second manuscript this week as soon as protein database gets approved. Very excited to be done.
  2. Fitness: Did a DEXA scan yesterday and found out all the extra weight I've gained in the past few years has been fat. I am up from 14 % body fat (the healthy hunter gatherer percentage) to 25%. This alone explains many health issues and lack of running performance. Will keep the forum update as to my progress, but planning on losing this gradually over the course of 6 months. Goal is to get back to 150.
  3. Intellectual Stuff: Meditating consistently at least once a day now for 5 minutes. Reading Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Stories and am thinking about getting into film more!
  4. Finances: Third roommate is still not locked down. Spending on track for a pretty conservative month. I will have some European travel this summer, but that should only set me back a few months.
  5. Dating. Really would like to stop watching porn. Going on a date on Sunday afternoon.
  6. Tarot. Great session on Monday night. My old roommate seems to be doing much better now!
  7. Socializing: visited my friend Dhruv in Florida for the weekend.
  8. Screen time: 1.33 hours phone! Would like to be consistently under 1: the only thing holding me back is travel and porn.
  9. Mental health: feeling excited and motivated.

The only gym I'm going to for the next week and change is for the mind. Paper B season, pray it doesn't give me too many mental papercuts. I'll try and exercise at home, even if I all I really want to do is curl up in bed and cry.

gym I'm going to for the next week and change is for the mind

Time to plug my favorite cultivation novel!

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/41330/virtuous-sons-a-greco-roman-xianxia

I would threaten to shoot you, but you're an American doctor and probably wouldn't be fazed.

I have literally already had a patient threaten to shoot me today!

...and that's not counting the nonsense on my commute.

You should go ahead and marry self_made already so we can get him in here. Not sure if a doctor's medical license transfers with marriage, but perhaps it should!!!

If I ever stop posting it is because I relayed this idea to the missus.

3-10x pay differential detected, opinion rejected. We can trade places if you like, as long as you're not a surgeon. Psychiatry prepares me to deal with psychotics on public transit, and if I made as much money as you likely do, I wouldn't take the bus.

psychotics on public transit,

Who said anything about the mentally ill? Threats of murder are how Americans say hello.

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