The science is clear: you are a normal human animal in a very sick society — Have you heard enough about trauma yet? Trauma is the word of the decade, apparently. Everyone’s triggering everyone’s trauma. Our bodies keep the score. Who’s winning, I wonder? We’re not. Whatever war it is we’re fighting, it seems we’re always losing it. We’re addicted, alienated, confused, disoriented, aggressive, pissed-off and…

The more I study the trauma response, the more questions I have — This is a story about trauma, but more “trauma as a topic of study” than any overview of traumatic experiences. Still, if discussion of trauma is emotionally difficult for you, please only engage with this story according to your comfort level. …

There is not “too much content.” We’re only just beginning to find our voices. — Let’s not kid ourselves here: I don’t make much money on Medium. For the past few months, I have actually been making some income here, about enough for groceries each month if I don’t shop too bougie (but I do), but compared to the time I spend writing, I’m still…

Don’t forget to like and subscribe. — Hi, I’m Anna Mercury and I’m a brand. I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but Mercury is not my real surname. It’s not an homage to Freddie either. I just like the planet. When I sign onto this strange portal between the worlds and don the Mercury mask, I cease…

It’s unhelpful, inaccurate, and obscures the practice of learning to suffer less — When you’re suffering, one of the most painful, invalidating things someone can say to you is, “You create your own suffering.” Not only is this wildly unhelpful when you’re hurting and in need of reprieve, but it adds insult to injury: it invalidates your experience of reality, and worse than…

A quick guide to making decisions with others by understanding your needs — There is a common misconception that we need particular things to happen in order to feel satisfied. We want certain events, outcomes or objects — at times, we believe we need them — and so, naturally, we take actions in order to make these things happen. …

Figuring out what those needs are and meeting them in new ways can unlock a world of satisfaction — There is a common misconception that it is possible to need a specific thing. When I say thing, I mean the kind of thing your mind can easily conceptualize in images, names, and ideas. It’s only natural for the mind to imagine our needs this way, because this the only…

Why we don’t need any more heroes, or their journeys — After years of taking no notice of it, I’ve finally been bitten by the Succession bug. It was always going to happen eventually. It’s a beautiful-shot, perfectly-acted masterpiece that feels like a hollowed-out, Trump-era-dystopia take on an Aaron Sorkin show. The writing is superb, the characters are painfully realistic, and…

Or, how authoritarians use your fear of authoritarianism to get you to hate anti-authoritarians — What up. I’m Anna. I’m here to chew bubblegum and rant about the stupidity of American socio-political discourse and I am perfectly capable of talking while I chew. You see, I am what Jordan Peterson might call a “postmodern neo-Marxist.” That I’m an anarchist and more of a Bookchinite than…