Fnord wrote:
So far, the top three choices are:
Acknowledging that my problems are valid.
Filling me in on all of the relevant facts of my problems.
Telling to me your own similar personal experiences.
I wonder why no one else has posted the following:
[X] Other: Offer advice that has worked for you and others several times in the past.
Am I really the only member who feels driven to offer solutions, and not just acknowledgement, facts and anecdotes?
Resolving problems is a process. The first step in helping someone unknown to you (ie a first poster), is let the person know their problems are valid. (Assuming they are valid, such as "I am so sensitive to light I can't....whatever.")
Intermediate type help would include the other suggestions, offering information, facts, resources, similar experiences and what has worked for "me."
Solutions are pretty much the last thing a person suffering can deal with. Not sure exactly how to explain it, Fnord, and others may be more articulate. When one is suffering there is so much "noise" and incidentals flying around in one's head a "solution" might as well be on Mars. It takes a long time to move from problem to solution without the middle ground.
One of the truly wonderful things about the forum is that there are so many people, so many perspectives that each person has something of value to contribute. Solutions are valuable. So are all the other things people have mentioned. We can't expect that any given person will find our solution/suggestion/post fits their life.
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The river is the melody
And sky is the refrain - Gordon Lightfoot