Mental Health - Widower Experience (WX)

Ende Mai 2026 gab Sting dem Guardian anlässlich der Rückkehr seines Musicals *The Last Ship* ins Londoner West End ein bemerkenswertes Interview . Darin sprach er nicht nur über Musik und Theater, sondern auch über den Verlust industrieller Arbeitswelten, den Wandel von Gemeinschaften und die Frage, welche Folgen es für Menschen und Gesellschaften hat, wenn traditionelle Formen von Arbeit verschwinden. Einige seiner Gedanken haben mich weit über das eigentliche Thema des Interviews hinaus beschäftigt. Sie berühren Fragen nach Sinn, Identität, Zugehörigkeit und gesellschaftlichem Zusammenhalt – Themen, die eng mit unserem psychischen Wohlbefinden verbunden sind. Deshalb möchte ich in diesem Beitrag einige der Gedanken aufgreifen, die Stings Aussagen bei mir ausgelöst haben. Auf meinem UX-Blog habe ich das Interview zum Anlass genommen, über Design, die Mensch-Technologie-Beziehung und die wachsende Rolle von künstlicher Intelligenz in kreativen Prozessen nachzudenken , aber hier geht es...

It is possible to influence one's thinking and choose where to direct one's thoughts. For me 'Having Hope' means not losing faith and confidence - but also feeling well-being. Having hope that everything will be okay is especially important when we are in difficult and hard times or in other words we experience a serious life crisis. First of all you should comfort yourself and give yourself courage - if you not already do so.  If you can't think of positive or encouraging thoughts, think about what you would say to other people in the same situation to encourage this. Methods I suggest to recall positive experiences from the past ...  Which situations did you master?  What went well?  When did the situation look hopeless in the past and which kind of solution emerged or about which did you thought about? Look for people - talk with people who have already found a solution for similar challenges ...  You might find these people in your environment. Or check y...

If you think about dying with dignity - you might have in mind to take that final choice out of the hands of a 'higher power' and putting it squarely in your hands. To die at a good place, or as my wife did, at home in her own comfortable lounge chair with loved ones is a good final moment. It’s about the quality of life, not the quantity of life. And we as intelligent beings should be able to make those choices ourselves, not some stranger who knows nothing about us. But in order to that - you have to talk to your spouse, your family and friends. And I firmly suggest to start to compose a piece of writing. Make up your mind (and this may surprise you) about the good and positive things in your life ... ... what you want ... what you love, ... what makes YOUR life worth living, ... where, when and how do YOU enjoy life, ... how do you want to see yourself Then think about what you don't want ... the dark sides, the negative things you won't experience ... ...

Life often gets tough, but just remember:  You can handle anything. Calm mind brings inner strength and self-confidence, so that's very important for a good life. Suicidality is a taboo all over the world and thoughts of suicide are often seen as a taboo. This taboo can prevent people in challenging times and suicidal crises from confiding in others - perhaps out of shame or feelings of guilt about their own thoughts or out of fear of not being understood or of overwhelming those around them. I think being in an extreme situation, seeing oneself in an unanswerable or unresolvable condition and times … and thoughts of suicide are not something to be ashamed of. Ignoring or hiding thoughts of suicide usually only helps for a short time because the underlying problem is not solved. If someone has no one in their environment with whom they can talk about their thoughts, there are people they can confide in, e.g. family, doctors, psychotherapists and telephone counseling serv...