I just wanted to say I find this completely and utterly untrue. I've made some wicked vents on here and made some even more amazing friends on this forum.
I agree with this. My best friends are 'online' friends. I don't socialize much. I've known most of my online friends for 5+ years. They know me better (on some levels) than my 'real' friends know me. So, while I haven't been on this forum long enough to make friends, I've made plenty of online friends. Sometimes it is hard to know what is real and what is being exaggerated. But, honestly it can just as hard to know if someone is being serious 'in real'. This is definitely one of those times. I don't know enough about Stephy or her situation to have an opinion on the validity of her posts.
I don't think any of what is said will make a difference, personally. She might be reaching out, she might be whining. She might might be listening, she might just want to talk about mashed potatoes and crappy roommates. It doesn't really matter. Those are who supporting/enabling will continue to do so and those challenging/attacking will continue to do so as well.
Too many questions and not enough answers in this case. I doubt she'll divulge enough information to satisfy everyone.
I feel bad for her, but I'm more of a tough love kind of person. I'm not heartless, I'm realistic. Some people need help and when they get it, they succeed. Some people get help all their lives and just end up becoming dependent and whiny. **** happens. People deal with it differently.
I hope she gets help, but I can't say it affects my life one way or the other if she does. I will agree with some who say some of the validity matters since another forum member has her dog. I would hope someone wouldn't drop off their dog on someone else, so I'll assume she really is having problems. But, even though I love my dog, if I was this depressed I doubt the hope that I could get my dog back would change my life.
This has just shown me that if I decide to display personal information and ask for vibes/advice/whatever I need to be prepared to give the full story. It's like in high school/Facebook (same thing, right?) when people say something along the lines "Omg I'm so mad at this situation. It's really awful." But when asked by someone "What's wrong? How can I help?" They become mute and offer excuses like "Oh it's personal." or "I can't tell you on here. The person is might see. I'll text you." I just choose to ignore those people. Sometimes there are not excuses for the reason you are acting a certain way. Lots of people have been depressed and/or suicidal.
I honestly have no idea what to think on this matter. It's confusing as hell. But it's certainly sparked quite a controversy on this forum.