Taking Action and Taking Breaks

In August 2025, I was laid off from my job with no warning or severance pay. This is one of the major issues with at-will employment, which most jobs are, especially in the retail sector. This left me depressed and extremely angry. The emotional turmoil was so great that I needed to restart therapy just to cope. And although I’ve found a new job, those angry emotions are still there. Getting a new job was not the solution, but only a step in repeating the cycle. Because there’s nothing stopping my current job from laying me off as well. Because there are so few safety nets for workers unless you work in specific sectors. And even then, HR and other resources are there to protect the company, not the employee. Welcome to corporate capitalism, where faceless entities are well-protected, and the employee is just a means to maximize profit. I’ve started calling it corporate slavery, a term I’ve heard before, but mostly by gurus (i.e. online scam artists) who claim to help you escape the rat race. And while some people might gain some benefit from this content, I see that as not solving the issue, but engaging more in neoliberal attitudes. The solution is to change the capitalistic structure of our society, along with the American ideologies that continue to harm us. This viewpoint is not easily accepted, especially by those who would rather ignore the suffering around us and keep the status quo.

I’ve started reading Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein. And while I’m nowhere near done with the book, the few chapters I’ve read have opened my eyes to the sadistic and depraved actions our leaders will take just to maintain power and control. So much of us have been brainwashed to uphold values that keep the status quo, most times in ways that restrict access to information. We see fundamentalist and right-wing leaders trying to revise history to uphold these beliefs, distorting the historical reality that has been hidden from so many of us. So much of this trauma has been swept under the rug, and the only way to rediscover it is if individuals seek this information or be lucky enough to read the right book and listen to the right person who isn’t distorting the facts to uphold some agenda. Because in this day and age, so many people will spout conspiracy theories as fact with little evidence to support them. People don’t know how to deal with the cognitive dissonance that occurs when you realize what you’ve believed in has been a lie or not the full truth. But embracing the truth can be scary yet illuminating.

I’m still processing and healing, but with this comes a change to the perspectives I’ve held. This change has involved being more engaged in activism. I’ve signed up for newsletters for causes that mean much to me and that has allowed me to see a genuine change that is being started. Watching YouTube and social media content that raises awareness is great for learning, but it’s important to take some type of action on the knowledge that you gain. That’s where real change starts. I’ve seen so many people complain about the things they don’t like I life, but give no details on the actions they’re taking. I’ve always found that irritating and quite frankly, depressing. No, change can’t happen overnight and it will take a lot of collective effort to change the systems that keep us oppressed. But complaining about it doesn’t help either. This is why I started signing petitions and donating money when I have it. These organizations are important and take real action to move the needle. And also helps us not be so complacent in the trauma that we’ve all been living.

But then there’s a third component: giving myself permission to rest. I like to stay active as I have many interests. But I can only engage with traumatic politics and supremacy ideology for so long before I become completely exhausted. I don’t believe we were meant to be constantly attacked and bombarded with news of the latest laws that are being passed to restrict our autonomy. But that is the reality we live . Resources are being stripped away from our communities and hoarded by the billionaires and oligarchs that rule this country. So being able to rest from it all is ever important. I’ve heard of people promoting a social media fast or lessening their screen time. And that’s good but it’s a start. Because there’s a fine line between taking a well-needed break from it all and then staying complacent and ignoring all that's around us. So many people feel powerless, but that’s because few were taught how to process it all or join groups that take collective action. It’s easier to stew in our depression and anxiety and do nothing about it. Or become absorbed in work and just ignore it all. I’ve done all of those things and this past year taught me that is no longer an option.

I’m still continuing my studies of esoterica and strengthening my own spiritual practice. It’s been a healing journey for me that allows me to expand my mind beyond the Christian and whitewashed history I was taught. The revisionist history is fraught with fear (i.e. Satanic-panic) and prejudice that again uphold an agenda and leaves much of the facts and context out. It has much to do with the decline of education per the capitalistic structure of every social resource (including healthcare and housing). But that is a discussion for another day.

For now, I will continue to learn but also rest when I need to in order to maintain my mental and physical well-being. But I will also continue to talk about things I care about, backed by research, because there’s too much misinformation that hijacks our reasoning and warps our critical thinking every day.