PTSD and Having More Self-Compassion

PTSD and Having More Self-Compassion PTSD Coping Print PTSD and Self-Compassion Thinking More Positively About Yourself By Matthew Tull, PhD twitter Matthew Tull, PhD is a professor of psychology at the University of Toledo, specializing in post-traumatic stress disorder. Learn about our editorial policy Matthew Tull, PhD Medically reviewed by Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD on August 05, 2016 Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital. Learn about our Medical Review Board Steven Gans, MD Updated on June 24, 2019 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Overview Symptoms & Diagnosis Causes & Risk Factors Treatment Living With In Children Portra/Getty Images If you have a diagnosis of PTSD, you may struggle with self-compassion. The symptoms of PTSD can be very intense and can disrupt many areas of a persons life. As a result, you may experience feelings of guilt or shame, negative thoughts about yourself or feelings that youre worthless or a failure. These are common thoughts in people with PTSD - but theyre not true and they can make matters worse for you. Well share strategies for learning how to be more compassionate toward yourself. Why a Lack of Self-Compassion is Dangerous for People With PTSD A lack of self-compassion can have a huge impact on recovery from PTSD. Heres why: This way of thinking and living may decrease your motivation to continue through difficult moments in treatment.It may increase feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. For example, you might think, Im a failure, so whats the point with continuing with treatment?A lack of self-compassion can also bring about strong feelings of shame and guilt, which can make emotions even more difficult to manage.Finally, low self-compassion may lead to self-destructive behaviors. For example, you might begin to engage in deliberate self-harm as a form of self-punishment. Self-compassion can be difficult to increase, but its very important to do so. Below are some strategies for fostering a stronger sense of self-compassion as you deal with PTSD. How People with PTSD Can Increase Their Self-Compassion Fortunately, there are many ways to work on your sense of self-compassion. Here are some of the most effective strategies: Recognize that youre human.  If you set very high expectations that you cant meet, it is hard to feel compassionate about yourself. For example, you may have in your mind a timeline for improving your PTSD symptoms through treatment. But different people progress through treatment at different paces. Some people notice immediate gains, whereas others may take a little more time to notice benefits from treatment.  Setting very high standards or expectations increases the likelihood that you wont meet them, which can increase feelings of worthlessness, helpless, hopelessness, and failure. Recognize that youre human and that there are going to be times when you struggle or slip. This is normal and actually a positive part of the process of recovery. Those moments of struggle can help you identify areas you need to continue to work on, as well as help you find new coping strategies to prevent similar struggles in the future.Be mindful of negative self-focused thoughts.  Just because you have a negative self-focused thought doesnt mean its true. Our thoughts are largely the result of habit. We cant always trust them, and this is especially the case for negative thoughts about the self. Such thoughts generally only result in more shame and guilt.  Mindfulness can be a very useful strategy for managing negative thoughts. Being mindful of thoughts helps you take a step back from them, so you dont connect with them or buying into them as truth. This will decrease their intensity and, eventually, the frequency with which they occur.Practice self-care.  When people feel low self-compassion, theyre at greater risk for engaging in self-destructive behaviors or isolating themselves from social support. When youre experiencing low self-compassion, its very important to act in a way that is counter to those feelings. Remember: Even if we cant always control our thoughts or feelings, we always have some level of control over our behavior and the choices we make. So when youre f eeling worthless, act in a way that is opposite to that feeling by engaging in some kind of self-care activity. Do something nice for yourself and your body.  Self-care may be a difficult thing to do if youre having very strong negative thoughts or feelings. But even a small self-care activity can prevent these thoughts and feelings from taking hold. Acting as though you care about yourself can eventually bring about actual feelings and thoughts of self-compassion.Validate your emotions.  Another way to increase self-compassion is to validate your emotions. We dont experience emotions randomly. They are there for a reason. Emotions are our bodys way of communicating with us. When we beat ourselves up for having certain emotions, all we do is increase our emotional distress. Therefore, recognize that your emotions are important and reasonable. Try to listen to what your emotions are telling you and realize that its OK to have those emotions.Reduce self-destructive behaviors.  A lack of self-compassion can lead to self-destructive behaviors, such as deliberate self-harm, eating disordered behaviors (for example, binging and restricting) or substance use. These behaviors may be a form of self-punishment, and theyre very destructive if youre also dealing with PTSD. Although they may initially reduce your feelings of distress, in the long-term theyll only reinforce a sense of shame, worthlessness or helplessness. Its important to take steps to reduce these behaviors. Strategies focused on impulse control may be particularly useful for this.Practice acts of kindness.  If youre feeling like theres nothing you can do to help yourself, then make the choice to help others. Acting with compassion toward others can improve your own self-compassion. Plus, theres some evidence that helping others can facilitate  recovery from a traumatic event. Helping others by volunteering, for example, can improve your mood, provide a sense of accomplishment and agency and bring about a sense of worth.Recognize your accomplishments.  Finally, recognize what you have accomplished. Its especially important to recognize accomplishments you have made despite the experience of PTSD symptoms. Make note of difficult tasks you have accomplished or challenging situations you have successfully navigated. Recognize accomplishments both big and small. We often brush aside small accomplishments, but no accomplishment is too small when you have PTSD. Give yourself credit for showing strength and perseverance despite dealing with a PTSD diagnosis. Self-compassion is very important in recovering from PTSD. But its is also a very difficult thing to foster. Try out all of the strategies above and discover which combination of activities and behaviors work best for you. Your progress may be slow, but even a small amount of self-compassion can have a tremendous impact on your mental and emotional health.

The Second Amendment Americans Have the Right to Bear Arms!

The United States Constitution says that U.S. Citizens have the right to bear arms.nbsp; Even though this guarantee was written with no constraints,nbsp; there are now laws that limit certain aspects of gun ownership.nbsp; The reasons for gun control fall under the flag of public safety.nbsp; Though there are many safety reasons why private ownership of firearms should be banned, these arguments are outweighed not only by the need for protection, but because the limitation of ownership rights could become dangerous to personal freedom. nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; When the U.S. Constitution was written, some delegates thought Militia was†¦show more content†¦nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; A big problem with keeping guns in the house is the curiosity and ignorance of children.nbsp; Children are more capable of finding guns than they are given credit for.nbsp; Children under the age of 15 suffer approximately one-third of the deaths caused by guns in the honbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; me (Cruit, 18). Even if a child is well behaved and listens when they are told not to touch a gun, they may still cecum to peer pressure and let their friends play with a gun.nbsp; Not only is a gun dangerous to children, but the ammunition is as well.nbsp; A child could be seriously hurt by an exploding bullet which can be set off by being hit by a rock, a nail, or being thrown into the fireplace.nbsp; Children are unpredictable and they do not know the effect of a gun on themselves or their friends. nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Having a gun in the house can also be dangerous because of temperament, rage, and impulse because murder is usually a crime of passion. If you or someone in your family has a hot temper that leads to rather violent reactions, you should not keep a gun around (Cruit, 23).nbsp;Show MoreRelatedThe Rights Of A Free State1118 Words   |  5 PagesLobenstein American Lit 2 December 2014 Amendment II â€Å"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.† The Right to Bear Arms According to the Second Amendment, in the Bill of Rights, the rights of the people to keep and bear arms have been enacted since December 15th, 1791. Across the 223 years this amendment has been around, there has been an abundance of history behind the Second Amendment. Over thisRead MoreEssay on The Right to Bear Arms a Constitutional Conflict 1666 Words   |  7 Pagesbearing a firearm was initially represented as a duty in England, up until King Alfred converted this duty into a right. By doing so, individuals were allowed to use firearms for two purposes: self-defense and hunting. In time, â€Å"kings chose to trust their subjects with arms and to modify and supplement the militia if need be† (Malcom 3). Individuals were given the right to bear arms in exchange for their participation in England’s militia, which consists of â€Å"able-bodied male citizens declared byRead MoreHow America Should Perceive The Second Amendment Essay1139 Words   |  5 PagesOne of th e most controversial topics in American society today is gun control. This issue has many people debating how America should perceive the second amendment. Many view the second amendment as outdated, irrelevant, or possibly dangerous in today’s society. Others believe the founding fathers’ beliefs and reasons for including the right to bear arms are often misinterpreted resulting in a fight to protect its place in the Bill of Rights. The pushers for more gun laws and the NRA are in unendingRead MoreEssay about Americans Have the Right to Keep and Bear Arms1556 Words   |  7 PagesAmericans Have the Right to Keep and Bear Arms   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Our rights as Americans started to take shape when the Constitution of the United States was drawn up by the delegates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Three years later, a very important part of American history called the Bill of Rights was added. The Bill of Rights is looked upon and interpreted every day. It gives the citizens of the United States many of the rights and freedoms that we value today, and some of those areRead MoreSecond Amendment Essay837 Words   |  4 PagesOne of the most highly debated amendments of the United States Constitution is the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment has been disputed for hundreds of years on exactly of its exact true meaning. The United States Constitution wrote the Second Amendment as â€Å"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. The argument that has lasted for centuries begins with the first part â€Å"A well regulated militia†Read MoreThe Right to Bear Arms Essay831 Words   |  4 PagesThe Right to Bear Arms How many of us want the U.S. government to have the right to tell us what to do, and when w can do it. There are probably not many who would agree that the government should have that right. Though having gun control laws is not to that extreme, some would say it is the first step. Growing up in a small town, and also growing up with guns my whole life I was one of those people who did not want gun control laws. Then after reading two articles that discussed this topicRead MoreThe Second Amendment Of The United States1725 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Americans are deeply divided over the Second Amendment. Some passionately assert that the Amendment protects an individual’s right to own guns. Others, that it does no more than protect the right of states to maintain militias† (Cornell). The Second Amendment of the constitution gives citizens the right to bear arms, and is therefore one of the most important laws of the nation. This amendment holds an important value to ou r nation because, it prevents tyranny but, it also protects, spreads, andRead More Gun Control versus The Right to Bear Arms Essay886 Words   |  4 Pagesthe Government have the right to make something illegal, such as the right to bear arms, after allowing the citizens to possess personal protection after all these years? They cannot, it would be infringing upon the right that our four fathers gave to this nation, making us the free country that we are today. Beyond people?s individual beliefs on whether gun control should be enforced or not, is a constitution that gives each person the right to bear arms, and a Bill of Rights to re-enforce thatRead MoreThe Battle Between Gun Control and Gun Rights Essay1113 Words   |  5 Pagesthe right to bear arms according to the Second Amendment has been a hotly contested issue for many years in American history. The matter has been one of the most controversial issues in the second half of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first; disputed between politicians on the liberal and conservative side along with issues such as abortion, capital punishment, and gay marriage. The Supreme Court has officially defined the controversial Second Amendment by stating that states have theRead MoreA Well Regulated Militia: The Founding Fathers and the Origins of Gun Control in America1153 Words   |  5 PagesThe second issue in this paper is about rebellions throughout American history. There were sever al rebellions, but Shays’ Rebellion, the Whiskey Rebellion, and Fries’s Rebellion were an important part of the militia debate. â€Å"Shays’s Rebellion was the largest violent uprising in the new nation’s history, would become the first test of the radical potential of the militia and the right to bear arms in post-Revolutionary America†(Cornell, 31). Shays’s Rebellion revealed a tension in American constitutional

Mango Street Essay - 1090 Words

On Mango Street, it’s nothing new for kids to jump off a building and end up killing themselves. Rape? Thats no big deal it happens all the time. Not only is Mango street like this, but the majority of Southern Chicago is like this. Many people are forced to live in this type of environment because of their economic state. Many people like Esperanza hate the place they live and are desperate for a change. Esperanza knows that there is a little chance of change. Around her she sees people living their suffering lives and not their bright future they had planned. Looking at the people around her makes her want to leave Mango street and start a better life. She knows that if she stays in this neighborhood, she will have a dark future like†¦show more content†¦As you can see your neighborhood can influence you to be someone bigger. In the vignette â€Å"Four Skinny Trees†, Esperanza realizes that she can reach high no matter where she is in life. Esperanza reaches out to the skinny trees when there is nobody else to understand her. She also uses the trees as motivation to grow big mentally from seeing how the trees grew. Four skinny trees, small and strong, teach Esperanza how to grow in a place where she doesn’t belong. The trees were placed in an environment that they were unable to grow. It was not possible for them grow out of concrete. But they survived and grew into the four skinny trees. This relates to Esperanza and her relationship with her neighborhood. Esperanza doesn’t belong in Mango Street, people expected that if she stayed on mango she could’ve turned into the people living on Mango Street. But no she didn’t change she became someone much different than the people on Mango Street. â€Å"Four who reached and do not forget to reach (75).† This quote shows that the trees showed to reach high no matter how small you are. Whenever Esperanza felt like that she can’t grow on Mango Street she always looked at the trees to see how they still persevere to grow big like others trees. In conclusion, the four trees in Esperanzas neighborhood inspire her to grow day by day. In the Vignette â€Å"Alicia and I talking on Ednas steps,†Show MoreRelated The House On Mango Street: Seeking Independence Essay1016 Words   |  5 Pages In the book The House on Mango Street, author Sandra Cisneros presents a series of vignettes that involve a young girl, named Esperanza, growing up in the Latino section of Chicago. Esperanza Cordero is searching for a release from the low expectations and restrictions that Latino society often imposes on its young women. Cisneros draws on her own background to supply the reader with accurate views of Latino society today. In particular, Cisneros provides the chapters â€Å"Boys and Girls† and â€Å"BeautifulRead More House on Mango Street Essay1429 Words   |  6 PagesHouse on Mango Street The story; themes; and implications for teaching from the House on Mango Street come from showing how today’s society has low expectations for those in the inner city. This book can be used to show what inner life is like and how these people are looked at and treated by others in society. Using this book in the classroom can be beneficial because many people have negative preconceptions of what life is really like as a minority. I know that I think of inner cityRead More House on Mango Street Essay833 Words   |  4 Pages Esperanza is torn between deciding whether she wants to escape Mango Street. She is embarrassed by the superficial appearance of her identity, but appreciates her roots. Her house is a wreck and the neighborhood, probably not much better off. However, she has loving family and friends. Although marriage has caused the suffering of many of the women in her neighborhood, she realizes that she needs men to fulfill the new desires she attains as she hits adolescence. Through the novel, Esperanza maturesRead More The House on Mango Street Essay1055 Words   |  5 Pageslooks at life from experience of living in poverty, where many do not question their experience. She is a shy, but very bright girl. She dreams of the perfect home, with beautiful flowers and a room for everyone. When she moves to the house of Mango Street, reality is so different than the dream. In this story, hope (Esperanza) sustains tragedy. The house she dreamed of was another on. It was one of her own. One where she did not have to share a bedroom with everyone. That included her mother, fatherRead More The House On Mango Street Essay1298 Words   |  6 PagesHouse on Mango Street takes the account of a working-class family and delves into the various aspects of their day to day lives. Although this is an excerpt, it is a very telling one. The narrative ranges in scope from describing little details like the number of trees on the block all the way to the mother talking abou t what could’ve been. The narration is from the point of view of Esperanza, one of four children. The family moves around on multiple instances, the most recent, the house on Mango StreetRead More House on Mango Street Essay2172 Words   |  9 PagesHouse on Mango Street I never had a choice. They decided it all for me and the next thing you know, we were moved. One night, I come home and my father gives me a big smile and says, we’re out of here. I give him a puzzled look, but after staring into his grinning face, I realize what he means. After thirty nine hard years, he has finally found the home he has always wanted. Since my father was young, he had always dreamed of the house he would one day reside. He would say to his motherRead MoreThe House on Mango Street Persuasive Essay927 Words   |  4 PagesName The House on Mango Street Persuasive Essay Esperanza’s New Home I would like to nominate Esperanza Codero and her family for the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Esperanza is a young Latino girl who is around the age of thirteen; Esperanza lives in a place called Mango Street, which is a very poor neighborhood, with her family in a nearly broken down house in which everybody has to share a room. I believe Esperanza deserves to be nominated because she has been through a great deal inRead More Imprisoned on Mango Street Essay695 Words   |  3 PagesImprisoned on Mango Street â€Å"I am tired of looking at what we can’t have.† This particular quote explains that Esperanza desperately longs to leave Mango Street behind, but she also feels that she may be trapped forever. Esperanza is coming to realize she may never get out of Mango Street. Esperanza feels as though she is trapped many times. Three areas where Esperanza realizes just how trapped she is are a treasure in a furniture shop that they cannot have, Esperanza’s family making lies aboutRead MoreThe House On Mango Street Essay746 Words   |  3 PagesChicago where everyone knows everyone and people are afraid to go near this neighborhood because, people thought they would get jumped or hurt. This neighborhood is known as Mango Street, and there is a young girl named Esperanza(Sandra Cisneros) that lives in a old broken down home. This is her story in The House on Mango Street, Esperanza is a young Latina writer, inventing for herself who and what she will become . Esperanza did not have many friends, was shy, and very sensitive but her love to writeRead MoreHouse on Mango Street essay1079 Words   |  5 PagesGrowing Up in Poverty In the novel, The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, a young confused girl has trouble finding herself as she grows up in the Latino section of Chicago. Esperanza and her family move to a small, crumbling red house in a poor urban neighborhood. Determined, she decides that someday she will leave and move somewhere else and totally forget everything about Mango Street. Throughout the novel, Esperanza significantly matures sexually and emotionally. The many stories of

The Pentium Flaw Free Essays

Back in June, 1994 the Pentium Flaw was noticed by Intel testers, who had discovered a division error on the Pentium chip. Intel managers didn’t see this as a major problem so they kept this from anyone outside their corporation. The nature of this issue was a mathematical problem in their Floating Point Unit (FPU), or the math coprocessor. We will write a custom essay sample on The Pentium Flaw or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Pentium chip was having glitches in calculating large divisions. It wasn’t until October 19th, when Dr. Thomas R.  Nicely had revealed the malfunction of the (FPU) trying to do certain calculations. Dr. Nicely was a mathematics teacher at Lynchburg College in Virginia. After running several test on the 486 and Pentium he had pin pointed the error to the Pentium chip. Dr. Nicely contacted Intel and they had confirmed the error, but said they had no reports till then. Intel handled the situation very poorly; they would not return contact to Dr. Nicely, forcing him to write a letter on the internet about the flaw. Even then Intel continued to consider the problem as minor. The internet was getting loads of articles on the flaw and people were making a joke out of Intel. By not letting the industry know about the Pentium glitch, Intel showed their selves to be untrustworthy to the costumer. There are so many different ways Intel could have handled their mistake. They chose to rather send a measly email of apology from the President of Intel with the wrong address. This infuriated costumers saying it was a fake. In the Pentium problem (Janeba, 1995) wrote: Intel’s policy, when it first publicly admitted the problem around November 28 of 1994, was to replace Pentium chips only for those who could explain their need of high accuracy in complex calculations. Intel tried to fix the problem still as a minor error and kept delaying the proper fix. By Intel postponing the fix on the (FPU) cost them even more money than what it would have, if they’d answer back right away with an honorable fix. This goes to show you learn from your mistakes. Eventually in late December Intel declared they would replace all flawed chips upon request. Now Intel has employees who keep up on newsgroups on the internet to see what people are saying about Intel; and they now conduct a better follow up with unsatisfied costumers. I believe Intel did handle this publicity very incorrectly. For being a well-known corporation they didn’t act like it. When they first got word of Dr. Nicely and his discovery on the flaw, Intel should’ve immediately contacted the professor with any apology and offered to replace the bad one. If this procedure would have been done the professor would have been happy, and never have written what he did. Then customers possibly wouldn’t have known of the flaw. In my opinion of the question, what would happen today if this same problem occurred? I don’t think Intel would take the same route they did back then. Intel is a well-established corporation and I believe they would act faithfully with great hast, to solve the problem. I think they have a greater appreciation of their customers now, since this whole Pentium Flaw hit the fan. How to cite The Pentium Flaw, Papers

Own Writing Essays - , Term Papers, Research Papers

Own Writing I remember that cold day in October three years ago as I walked down the endless rows of new and used cars. I was oblivious to the sounds of the congested afternoon traffic around me. All that was on my mind was anticipation, a little hope, and a checkbook in my pocket that seemed to weigh so heavy despite the lack of funds it represented. It was only a matter of time before one of the salesmen would notice me wandering aimlessly through the car lot and eagerly approach me. In the meantime I continued to inspect each car carefully. I felt like a child in a toy store who wanted the most expensive toy but only had a handful of change. I was lost in the moment when I heard, "Can I help you with something?" I had been waiting to hear those words for what seemed like an eternity and now I could finally get down to business. As we shook hands the salesman introduced himself as David Burke. He was a stocky guy with a firm handshake. There was no sign of desperation in his eyes which was a relief. Remembering what my dad told me I substituted his face with a vision of someone I hated most, but his smile that went from ear to ear seemed to swallow and overpower that vision. He asked me what I was interested in and I immediately led him in a beeline across the lot to the car that I desired. I ignored the cries of the cars that I passed along the way and stopped at a white 1996 Acura Integra. He was only briefly intrigued with the car that I had chosen before he asked how much money I was able to use as a down payment. When I told him I only had eleven hundred dollars, I could almost hear the mental laughter that was coming from inside his mind. A few minutes later I was sitting in an office sipping on a cup of stale coffee while David and another man were running numbers through a computer. As I sat there and waited my anticipation transformed into nervousness. I visualized myself driving home in that Integra to help ease my mind. My nervousness ultimately became disappointment when David returned to inform me that it would be impossible to finance the Integra. I was young with almost no credit history but I still had to pretend to be surprised, that it could not be possible, that there was some sort of mistake. He ignored my denial and told me that there was another nice car that I might be interested in, and that it was more or less in my price range. I reluctantly agreed to take a look at this mystery car. When David drove the mystery car to the front of the sales office I was immediately disgusted. It was a small, clumsy, and awkward looking white 1995 Dodge Neon. What I hated most of all was that from a front view the car was designed to look like it was smiling at you. A smile that was almost as big as the one on David's face when he stepped out of the vehicle. Maybe it was the eagerness or the impatience that I brought along that day, but an hour later I found myself on the interstate driving that 1995 Dodge Neon. It was not the Integra that I had been longing for, but for that one day, I was proud to claim it as my very own car.

Answers to Questions About Semicolons

Answers to Questions About Semicolons Answers to Questions About Semicolons Answers to Questions About Semicolons By Mark Nichol Here are several questions from DailyWritingTips.com readers about use of prepositions, and my responses. 1. This sentence showcases my burning semicolon question: â€Å"That’s a great trick; best I’ve seen in ages.† I know the second clause in it contains no subject (or noun), at least explicitly. I’m therefore wondering whether this sentence can take a semicolon perhaps because the subject in the second clause is implied or instead deserves an em dash because there’s no second subject at all. The sentence, as you wrote it, is correct as you mention, the subject is implicit but the formality of the semicolon is at odds with the informality of the omission of the subject, so I’d opt for a breezy em dash instead. 2. In the following sentence, should semicolons separate the three business segments?: â€Å"Its businesses are divided into three segments: Domestic Retail, Bakeries and Foodservice, and International.† No, that’s a simple list with three simple elements. Even the addition of brief detail would not require semicolons, because the segments and their descriptions can be clearly delineated: â€Å"Domestic Retail, which includes merchandising through stores, Bakeries and Foodservice, which involves direct sales, and International, which deals with nondomestic buyers.† But when it would be obtrusive to repeat a structure such as â€Å"which (verb)† that clearly organizes the elements, use semicolons: â€Å"We invited our friends Jan and Dean; Fred and Wilma, the couple next door; and my brothers Greg, Peter, and Bobby and their wives.† 3. So, a comma in place of a semicolon is wrong? I once read a book on crafting sentences that mentioned that a semicolon is never accepted in American fiction and that a comma can always do the work. I’ve been going by this standard, and I like the economy and simplicity of the comma compared to the clumsy, Britishy semicolon. Do you think I’m wrong? A semicolon does seem intrusively formal for transcribing speech whether within dialogue in fiction or when quoting a speaker but replacing it with a comma is erroneous, and the book’s advice is unfortunate. I recommend using an em dash or starting a new sentence instead. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:85 Synonyms for â€Å"Help†Latin Plural EndingsHow Do You Fare?

The offence of bad language - Emphasis

The offence of bad language The offence of bad language Finally, a House of Commons report that is a cause for celebration. This is Bad Language: the Use and Abuse of Official Language the result of an investigation into the many ways in which politicians and civil servants may baffle and intimidate readers with their use of jargon-heavy, euphemism-filled waffle. By making such official documents virtually unreadable, the report points out, the public is effectively denied access to political policies that affect them. The committee behind the report are planning to crack down on perpetrators by issuing penalties for instances where poor use of language has damaging results, like a person failing to receive benefits or services they are entitled to. And while their plan is to refer to the offence of bad political language by the rather jargon-y term maladministration, we really cant do anything but applaud these announcements.