“A Slow Guide to Confronting Doom, v1” by Ruby

Following a few events[1] in April 2022 that caused a many people to update sharply and negatively on outcomes for humanity, I wrote A Quick Guide to Confronting Doom.

I advised:

• Think for yourself
• Be gentle with yourself
• Don't act rashly
• Be patient about helping
• Don't act unilaterally
• Figure out what works for you 

This is fine advice and all, I stand by it, but it's also not really a full answer to how to contend with the utterly crushing weight of the expectation that everything and everyone you value will be destroyed in the next decade or two.

Feeling the Doom

Before I get into my suggested psychological approach to doom, I want to clarify the kind of doom I'm working to confront. If you are impatient, you can skip to the actual advice.

The best analogy I have is the feeling of having a terminally [...]

---

Outline:

(00:46) Feeling the Doom

(04:28) Facing the doom

(04:50) Stay hungry for value

(06:42) The bitter truth over sweet lies

(07:35) Dont look away

(08:11) Flourish as best one can

(09:13) This time with feeling

(13:27) Mindfulness

(14:00) The time for action is now

(15:18) Creating space for miracles

(15:58) How does a good person live in such times?

(16:49) Continue to think, tolerate uncertainty

(18:03) Being a looker

(18:48) Dont throw away your mind

(20:22) Damned to lie in bed...

(22:13) Worries, compulsions, and excessive angst

(22:49) Comments on others approaches

(23:14) What does it mean to be okay?

(25:17) Why is this guide titled version 1?

(25:38) If youre gonna remember just a couple things

The original text contained 12 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.

---

First published:
April 6th, 2025

Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/X6Nx9QzzvDhj8Ek9w/a-slow-guide-to-confronting-doom-v1

---

Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.

---