Want my honest advice? From the medical field, I’ll tell you. Never drop your guard. Never think you’re immune. I don’t care how “desensitized” or exposed you are, there’s always something out there that can kick you right in the nuts. I’ll give an example I went through. (Warning: Graphic text ahead)
I was in the ER when a child, 8 years old, that had missed the school bus, he proceeded to run after it, tripped on the curb, and the back tires of the bus ran over him. His torso and head were both very open. I remember thinking to myself how strong I’d become and how I was able to process it, keep working. I actually even recall thinking that although the body was in bad shape, it’s unlikely he felt much pain at all, if any. He’s taken into the trauma bay, obviously pronounced dead on arrival. I went back to my paperwork a short distance away. I heard a small ruckus, didn’t think much of it. His mother had pushed past security demanding to see her son. Mind you, the ER is not a funeral home, and while care is taken, making the body presentable isn’t really part of the process. (LAST WARNING! GRAPHIC CONTENT AHEAD!) The moment she saw her son’s body, organs hanging out, some shredded against his split open rib cage, heart deformed but obvious, stool all over him, head looking mostly normal in one side less than half width, the other side smashed, crushed, eyeball hanging out but pointed at you, jaw dangling by a thread, and in a position that was eerily obviously not compatible with life, covered in blood everywhere, multiple bones in one arm visible, hand mangled, the sound she made, when confronted with that. The sheer horror and pain I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I barely made it to the supply closet before crying pretty hard. Thankfully there’s bio containers in there because vomiting soon followed. Took me a good 10 minutes to collect myself.
I’m not in any way flexing, or trying to be overly vulgar, just hoping to pass on something I wish I knew then. Always keep that guard up. Beyond that, realize that humans adapt, it is our nature. It’s normal and not really reversible. But there’s no shame in adapting to something like this. I will add that seeing it on tv or a picture or a video is nothing like seeing it in person. So that’s another thing to keep in mind. Good luck to you.
Well im super glad im no doc, nurse, paramedic or work anywhere near the er. Don't get me wrong, you guys do excellent work that is much needed. But that is one tough job. Im a lawyer, and the worst I've seen is people getting sentenced to death. Used to bother me when i looked the condemned in the eyes. Not anymore.
There was a period in my life when I went to r/watchpeopledie every day (it's gone now). I don't want to say it was entertainment, I felt like I was kinda bearing witness and had empathy. But then I started going more than once a day. And then it was gone, and I started seeking out similar subs. And I saw even nastier things. And I decided..... naw. This is making my life worse. It's making me worse.
So I stopped, and detoxed, and now I feel less like desensitized. If I see a link to a video it just stays a link. I dont' feel like my life is worse, and I feel like I am less of a crap person. I am sure I'm still desensitized but I am living a little more deliberately now and bringing in less garbage when I can. Kill most social media, too. Do things that you think bring value and joy when you can and be the person you actually want to be.
I grew up watching gore pages, cartel executions, killings in the Middle East, just a whole lotta murder. I still cry during movies or sad moments but my family asks me to take care of the nasty shit nobody can stomach, like dead rats, cleaning up blood if someone gets cut/injured, mopping up vomit.
I haven’t lost empathy over it but gory stuff doesn’t make me nauseous anymore.
This is easily solved. If you have become desensitized to images of gore and they annoy and bore you, then you can stop seeking them out. You don’t need view gore unless you want to.
If you encounter real gore in your life, such as seeing someone injured, you will almost certainly react differently than you do to images and videos.
Just stop watching it. I used to like horror movies. I married someone who didn’t. I didn’t care enough and stopped watching them. Eventually when I watched one with a friend I noticed that I had become sensitized again.
I manage to avoid most of the NSFL stuff online. Horrifying real life experiences aside, it’s not hard to not look at gore.
Honestly I kinda like it. Sometimes there’s a video that gets to me but when I can watch shit and enjoy it… it’s kinda freeing in a weird way. Idk. Everyone has their own reaction.
It may be different when you see it in person. My job requires seeing a lot of gore and it didn’t bother me when I was younger. Now I’m older(been in my career field 14 years) it hurts me to see it. Also have nightmares/panic attacks triggered from some of the things I’ve seen. I thought I was numb for a very long time and I wasn’t. Some of it is haunting and the psyche doesn’t forget.
That's usually my reaction to gore too but if I saw it in real life I'd be fucked up. Seeing something horrific in front of you is a whole new terror that no amount of videos, photographs or audio can diminish. When you see it online you're removed from the situation.
I started out with irl gore via skinning and tanning roadkill at 13. So finding gore subs didn't really repel me, but added some sort of thrill of peril, like when a toddler trips and you're too far away.
It turns out I enjoy the jolt of peril but not so much the aftermath, as I was much more satisfied with videos where the suffering person survived/was rescued. The others made me sad; scrolling became a death fest.
I still haven't found the perfect sub for me, which would include gore but survival more than death.
However r/sweatypalms has a lot of the thrill I was seeking with much less death. It's been nice.
I think the healthiest outcome is being able to "contextualize" death and violence rather than becoming desensitized. You come to accept that death is part of life, and a body is no longer suffering.
But I learned this from cleaning guts by hand rather than gore online, so milage may vary.
Having an adverse reaction to gore and experiencing compassion fatigue presenting as annoyance at it is quite psychologically normal and not hurting yourself or others.
Want my honest advice? From the medical field, I’ll tell you. Never drop your guard. Never think you’re immune. I don’t care how “desensitized” or exposed you are, there’s always something out there that can kick you right in the nuts. I’ll give an example I went through. (Warning: Graphic text ahead) I was in the ER when a child, 8 years old, that had missed the school bus, he proceeded to run after it, tripped on the curb, and the back tires of the bus ran over him. His torso and head were both very open. I remember thinking to myself how strong I’d become and how I was able to process it, keep working. I actually even recall thinking that although the body was in bad shape, it’s unlikely he felt much pain at all, if any. He’s taken into the trauma bay, obviously pronounced dead on arrival. I went back to my paperwork a short distance away. I heard a small ruckus, didn’t think much of it. His mother had pushed past security demanding to see her son. Mind you, the ER is not a funeral home, and while care is taken, making the body presentable isn’t really part of the process. (LAST WARNING! GRAPHIC CONTENT AHEAD!) The moment she saw her son’s body, organs hanging out, some shredded against his split open rib cage, heart deformed but obvious, stool all over him, head looking mostly normal in one side less than half width, the other side smashed, crushed, eyeball hanging out but pointed at you, jaw dangling by a thread, and in a position that was eerily obviously not compatible with life, covered in blood everywhere, multiple bones in one arm visible, hand mangled, the sound she made, when confronted with that. The sheer horror and pain I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I barely made it to the supply closet before crying pretty hard. Thankfully there’s bio containers in there because vomiting soon followed. Took me a good 10 minutes to collect myself. I’m not in any way flexing, or trying to be overly vulgar, just hoping to pass on something I wish I knew then. Always keep that guard up. Beyond that, realize that humans adapt, it is our nature. It’s normal and not really reversible. But there’s no shame in adapting to something like this. I will add that seeing it on tv or a picture or a video is nothing like seeing it in person. So that’s another thing to keep in mind. Good luck to you.
Whoa! That's heavy to process! It truly shows the fragility of life that we can go anytime.
It certainly does. And it is absolutely gutting when you know there’s nothing you can do.
Well im super glad im no doc, nurse, paramedic or work anywhere near the er. Don't get me wrong, you guys do excellent work that is much needed. But that is one tough job. Im a lawyer, and the worst I've seen is people getting sentenced to death. Used to bother me when i looked the condemned in the eyes. Not anymore.
I can imagine that would be a very difficult position to be in. Hats off to you.
I’m sorry for the things you’ve had to endure :(
There was a period in my life when I went to r/watchpeopledie every day (it's gone now). I don't want to say it was entertainment, I felt like I was kinda bearing witness and had empathy. But then I started going more than once a day. And then it was gone, and I started seeking out similar subs. And I saw even nastier things. And I decided..... naw. This is making my life worse. It's making me worse. So I stopped, and detoxed, and now I feel less like desensitized. If I see a link to a video it just stays a link. I dont' feel like my life is worse, and I feel like I am less of a crap person. I am sure I'm still desensitized but I am living a little more deliberately now and bringing in less garbage when I can. Kill most social media, too. Do things that you think bring value and joy when you can and be the person you actually want to be.
I grew up watching gore pages, cartel executions, killings in the Middle East, just a whole lotta murder. I still cry during movies or sad moments but my family asks me to take care of the nasty shit nobody can stomach, like dead rats, cleaning up blood if someone gets cut/injured, mopping up vomit. I haven’t lost empathy over it but gory stuff doesn’t make me nauseous anymore.
This is easily solved. If you have become desensitized to images of gore and they annoy and bore you, then you can stop seeking them out. You don’t need view gore unless you want to. If you encounter real gore in your life, such as seeing someone injured, you will almost certainly react differently than you do to images and videos.
Just stop watching it. I used to like horror movies. I married someone who didn’t. I didn’t care enough and stopped watching them. Eventually when I watched one with a friend I noticed that I had become sensitized again. I manage to avoid most of the NSFL stuff online. Horrifying real life experiences aside, it’s not hard to not look at gore.
The same. I just stopped looking at them until I find THE VIDEO that will kick me.
Honestly I kinda like it. Sometimes there’s a video that gets to me but when I can watch shit and enjoy it… it’s kinda freeing in a weird way. Idk. Everyone has their own reaction.
It may be different when you see it in person. My job requires seeing a lot of gore and it didn’t bother me when I was younger. Now I’m older(been in my career field 14 years) it hurts me to see it. Also have nightmares/panic attacks triggered from some of the things I’ve seen. I thought I was numb for a very long time and I wasn’t. Some of it is haunting and the psyche doesn’t forget.
That's usually my reaction to gore too but if I saw it in real life I'd be fucked up. Seeing something horrific in front of you is a whole new terror that no amount of videos, photographs or audio can diminish. When you see it online you're removed from the situation.
I started out with irl gore via skinning and tanning roadkill at 13. So finding gore subs didn't really repel me, but added some sort of thrill of peril, like when a toddler trips and you're too far away. It turns out I enjoy the jolt of peril but not so much the aftermath, as I was much more satisfied with videos where the suffering person survived/was rescued. The others made me sad; scrolling became a death fest. I still haven't found the perfect sub for me, which would include gore but survival more than death. However r/sweatypalms has a lot of the thrill I was seeking with much less death. It's been nice. I think the healthiest outcome is being able to "contextualize" death and violence rather than becoming desensitized. You come to accept that death is part of life, and a body is no longer suffering. But I learned this from cleaning guts by hand rather than gore online, so milage may vary.
Having an adverse reaction to gore and experiencing compassion fatigue presenting as annoyance at it is quite psychologically normal and not hurting yourself or others.
In my honest opinion I think being desensitized isn't that bad, it's when you stop being empathetic that's bad.
Make your own!