Isn't boredom the root of something bad? Evil or something?

The past couple of days have been really strange. Last night my son went out with his friends, which I thought was a good thing considering he was so upset about his unemployment extension being blocked by congress. OK, not just his, many people are affected. Anyway, while he was gone his best friend posted something very similar to what my son had posted on Facebook. It was basically FML. In case you didn't know, FML=Fuck My Life. What is the difference between depression and extreme boredom? Anyone have any idea? I'm not really sure myself anymore. I started going back and forth with my son's friend about positive things going on in his life. For instance, the fact that he has a job. His response was that he was still bored and that anything he wanted to do costs money. He feels as though he is going nowhere in his life. Like he is going to be stuck. Like my youngest son he is in his early 20's and still living with his parents. 

  I remember what it was like to be his age, of course my life was very different. I was already married, had a child, and was living overseas. So I started thinking about when I was a teenager. It was much easier to be bored in those days I think, at least as far as options go. A handful of channels on the TV and maybe one or two radio stations that played the music you liked. But still boredom is boredom, so I thought about the things that I did and I mentioned to him about setting some goals for himself and figuring out how to achieve those goals. Most kids these days do not seem to be setting goals for themselves other than, "I want to be a rock star" or "I want to make a million dollars". Well how are you going to achieve that? A music label is not going to come to your door with a contract and unless you win the lottery, you are going to have to do something to make that million dollars. You have to be proactive in life to live instead of just existing.

  I feel very much like a teenager these days as far as goals go and boredom. Boredom is VERY bad for someone with PTSD. It seems inevitable that if you find no joy in life, how do you set goals and how do you find a way to get past the boredom? That is something I am still working on with the help of my therapist. I am in dire need of money, which also happens to be a good motivator as well as a major stressor. But it is still a struggle every single day. I am bored and all I want to do is sleep. I know it is not good and so I am trying to focus a little bit each day on some goals. It is really hard when you have no energy. But it has to be done. Somehow. So I kept trudging on. When you have 2 people in one house who are both depressed and bored, it can be dangerous. Thankfully I came up with something concerning my son and for once he doesn't seem to be fighting me. I hope that is a good sign. He actually seems as though he may try to get a job for a nice change. He isn't fighting it right now, which is progress.

  Right now boredom is something that neither of us needs, we'll save that for work! By the way I'd like to leave you with this book that is still in print and still relevant if you are not sure what to do with your life for a career. Good luck!