One thing I notice is a lot of the drama and negativity is created by people who are NOT on tx. Just an observation, I am not speaking to any particular individual.
In the year and some months since I was dx'ed and starting visiting here I have had someone imitate my name and be a horrid sh!thead in this room, been called names and accused of really awful things and had what I did say misquoted and mischaracterized, been criticized for how I contracted HCV and basically been called a liar over it just to name a few. I come here for those who do NOT behave that way, there are a lot more good folks than bad. I have a choice, I can ignore the people that act like morons and still benefit from all the good stuff. It is free plus I feel too crappy to physically attend a support group here in town, I figure what do I want for free? Nothing is perfect. It has been valuable to me during this time ad I do try to be supportive and helpful to others. This is my first encounter with a long term illness and it does help me to speak to others in my shoes. None of us on tx need the hostility or aggravation we have enough as it is thank you! I just use my "virtual ignore" button and CLICK they are gone.
I hope the people who have something to offer stay.
I would like to add that if you think someone is "posting too much" because they are right there to welcome people ad offer aswers to their questions well then you should step up and respod rather tha criticizing the ones that DO respond. I remember when I was new how grateful I was to those that answered my dumb questions I kow ow are the same questions over ad over, they should be thanked not criticized. Often the member is just repeating the same info over and over
and as a newbie I sure appreciated it and I bet others do too and Jm does that a whole heck of a lot, so Jm thanks for doing that.
Really, I think that number would be more than half...I just wonder why you, yourself, don't take a break from here. You always stir up trouble. And for someone who continually stresses that you don't have time to read all the threads, you seem to know everything from everyone of them or have a comment. You are one of the reasons i no longer post. This was a great help to me before i started and shortly into treatment but you drive me crazy. you are the biggest thorn in this board's side! IMHO.
Thanks for stopping by infrequently.
thanks you for saying you have falling in love with me i hear that so often in the work i do and i am gateful for my fans.slow
I think the last thing we need is negative, critical tirades 'calling someone out' because they make suggestions or express an opinion. NO ONE is telling anyone what to do, or appointing themselves anything, that I am aware of. I do believe that Jim has established much credibility and also good will in trying to help forum members by answering questions and citing articles, as well as trying to present thoughts in a balanced objective manner.
I do not see the reason for offense here, and I think we all have a right to make suggestions, or point out ways we might improve our discussions. Nobody is obliged to listen, or to obey anyone. I think most of us have a positive attitude, and are looking for input and ideas. We often disagree, and in the past Jim and I have disagreed on numerous issues....but so what! That is what the forum is all about.
I do not want to come across as critical of the comments made, but I think personal attacks, no matter how 'veiled' or blatent, are not at all in the spirit of this group. I think the forum is functioning pretty well myself, and those that disagree can voice their opinions as well, just as I do, Jim does, Cuteus, MikeSimon, Willing, Chevy, etc. Character denigration is not really very helpful to anyone, I believe.
DoubleDose
I have been comming hare for a long long time and I have seen this so many times.a handfull people that come here run this place they have several screen names and get real upset if they loose popularity.they come in under the pretense of a newbie sometimes just so they can get ratings higher for this site over other hep cites.i see people come and i see the smarts one go.i think hep plays with the mind and lets not forget that the majority of us are all junkies anyway so we know how to manipulate and be negative.this is one of the reasons why i always tell people don't take what you see and hear on here as gospel.talk to you doctors.remember none on here has a face and we can be anyone we want to be on the big screen of interent broadcasts.i have a job that takes me away most of the time but most that come here are bored and have time too much time on their hands so when people say they are taking a break you can bet they will be back in an hour with a new name.
slow
I've run a few political forums in my time and finally got tired of it all and shut em down. I don't see any of the major problems that I experienced, here. My largest had close to 1000 members and generally around 50 or so online at any given time. This was at the height of post 911 mania, so that was expected. I got so many emails threatening to sue me I got tired of it.
My experience here, mostly reading, is the people are civil and chocked full of info, but IF I do post I'll be damned if I care what some self appointed board cop thinks of what I have to say. Not calling anyone out here personally, I'm simply stating it's not anyones role to state ANYTHING about the worthiness of someones rantings unless it's just waaaaay out of bounds. In that case, you contact management.
As I stated in my first post I am into sports and spend a great deal of time on sports forums and some on political sites where flame wars and establishing dominance and 'ruining' posters is SOP, part of the game. This is not what this is. This is about my LIFE, which I take a tad more serious than football. ( wait a minute let me think about that.....) yeah, this is more serious.
Because of that, I wouldn't treat this place like I would the ESPN Big XII football forum, where hatred and namecalling IS the entire POINT of it all. No need for pissing contests here. I don't know about you, but I'm trying to stay alive, not win a national championship. And within that even, my participation on the ESPN forum isn't gonna get my team a single yard against Ohio State or Oklahoma. Nor will getting into a pissing contest here lower my viral load.
We all have the same goal here. That's what's important.
I thank you all for your support, though you may not be aware that you have given it to me. Keep up the good work.
Good Luck !!
Good grief! Please, let's not loose the good folks that make such inportant comments to a few negative people! I don't often have much to contribute and my weekends are often spent with hubby. It pains me to come back on Monday and see the bickering. I would much prefer those who are mean spirtited take a break. Lori
Jim, congratulations on your 'cold'! Thank you for all the energy you've given us. If you take a break for yourself, have a good one. Know you will be missed by Lori.
I am not sure what I have missed around here, but I just want to reiterate how important each and every perspective is to this forum. You are all amazing people in your own way and contribute differently to the forum. It is sad that ANYONE feels like they can't post here for any reason. It is certainly not how MH is meant to be. I hope no one disappears permanently from here!
Sure, perhaps the whole email thing isn't a bad idea. lindacal at sbcglobal dot net. Where do you live anyway?
I would enjoy keeping in touch with you, let me know if that is a possibility.
Diana
I understand. I know I can't take the negativity either. This whole chain of events has me questioning why I come here. Even when we try to keep our sides of the street clean, so to speak, we get hit.
I thought maybe things would pass yesterday and I see they aren't. Perhaps I need a break too.
What is it? A full moon?
Whoops, Lil Moma is fast on the trigger and our posts crossed :) I was referring to her post C31 cause I don't want to try and characerize what is in the mind of others.
-- Jim
No one is running me off. If that were the case, I would have been long since gone because earlier during treament things got a lot uglier with basically the same issues and the same people. No, I'm running myself off cause QOL is very important to me and coming here is starting to become a negative experience which I can't imagine is good for my health. Lil' Moma said it very well in her post above. This will be my last post for a while.
Take care.
-- Jim
You are one of the sanest(sp?) ones here. I have always enjoyed reading your very knowledgable posts.
Its not you,............its small people trying to feel big on an anonymos hiway. If they had to "Look at you" (literally) in the morning, they might pay more attention to their behavior, but this internet stuff allows people to "HIT and RUN" like the cowards they really are.
I have to admit I was more than a little dumbfounded yesterday, and now I see Jim is on the block, I really have always tried to only make valid points for my threads, which makes me feel even more (foolish), I'll think maybe alittle break is needed. I have only been here less than a month, I'm usually more persistant than this but, you know energy, both physical and mental are hard to come by I surely don't need to be upset by strangers nor would I want to upset people who happen to have the same disease I do. I really did have alot of fun joking with you, time for lunch now. Take Care.
Please don't let some negative people run you off. You are needed and loved here. As many have said, just ignore it! We don't want you to go away!
Well, maybe I should take a little break mself, or at least cut down significantly in my participation here.
While I don't think I post any more than some other old-timers, I do post more than most -- and the last thing I want is for it to become a source of irritation/division here. And I certainly don't want to spend my time defending myself cause I've been through that before here.
Frankly, it's probably a good thing because I do have to start getting back to my old life, in spite of some difficulties I'm having with post treatment side effects both physical and psychological.
I wish everyone the best and will be checking in from time to time. Hearfelt thanks to all who have helped me. Good luck in treatment and beyond. Love you all.
-- Jim
OMG!!! I am reading this stuff today and can hardly believe the ugliness. Why pick on Jim? I just dont get it. Havent all of us walked around with one of our feet in our mouth at one time or another. I dont have to be txing to be an a$$ from time to time either. Why is there so much of this hostility going on, the blame game is unattractive, to say the least.
I am so glad I have found "other" places to visit, this place has turned into "cuckoos nest"
I hear the "meow" coming from every direction, men and women both.
anybody care for a DISH of MILK?
It is unfortunate that we have to critize each other at all. I for one, know I can't take conflict or stress at all during tx. I am very fragile and this is certainly not the place I want to come and be put down. We are all sick here or have loved ones that are. I don't understand why posters feel the need to critize each other personally. I know we can debate and disagree, but there is no reason I can think of to disrespect other members for what they ask questions about or how they post. If we don't like someones' style or questions or posts WE can just skip them over. This is the beauty of having more threads. It really isn't that hard to pass them by
Sometimes tx does make us more angry, but it's still no reason to go off on someone else.
It is sad to see what Medhelp is quickly becoming... Soon it will be nothing more than "Jim's Blog", and the only members left a few scared, misinformed, and confused few lingering off every word he expresses. Anybody remember David Koresh?
Now that is scarey..There has been others before, most of which started their own forums or blogs, where they could satisfy their need for superiority, which in turn allows them control over anything and everything related.
Medhelp is not the place!! <strong>If you have suggestions, take it up with the administration..Do not dictate to members as though you hold authority or prestige.. We are all members, nothing more.</strong> Everyone is entitled to opinions, but everyone is at the same time expected to follow Medhelp's rules and guidlines. How about only opening two threads within a certain timeframe?
Making a contribution is one thing, but dictating and setting personal agendas and guidlines is another..This is not "Jim's Blog", it is a patient to patient support forum governed by MedHelp.. It just aggrevates the hell out of me when I see one person dictating continuously about how the forum should be run, when in fact their opinion is meaningless, and actually destructive...
This will be one of my last posts here, as I too will be jumping ship.. To those that I have corresponded with, you know how to find me.. To everyone else, live everyday as if it was your last, no regrets!!!!!
I had made the comment before how much I have appreciated your knowledge, to many some question may seem silly, but when your just out the gate with this, sometimes you just want to hear that your normal, or somewhat normal. Thanks again for all you have given, all of you. I would never want to trivialize this disease or any of the good people that are fighting the good fight. Good Luck
Diana
Thanks, I feel MUCH better sweating all over the place. ;)
I was thinking about the email thing. I was wondering why we need to email each other anyway. I don't even check my email everyday anymore, just another sx I guess. It seems most of what we have to say can be said here. It would sort of feel like a secret club and someone could feel left out of the loop. Not many of us do email here, at least anymore, it seems. Of course, I could just be left out of all the emailing. WAAAAAA Nobody likes me!
I know I had one email early on giving me dr. info. I suppose it could be good for checking on someone that is not posting to check up on them. Otherwise, I'm not sure of the value.