Summary: 2 years after being introduced to TRP by a good friend of mine, my 10+ years of continues depression is gone, and I'm legitimately happy. Everyone has rough patches but you need to evaluate your own life, figure out what’s important to you, and get after those goals. (Sorry if I lose my train of though at times, this was longer than expected, feel free to ask questions however)

Body: About me: I've never posted on here before, however I've been around for a couple of years now. My story is slightly different than the ones I've seen posted on here before, and after seeing the recent CNN hit piece I figured I'd give my own version. Currently I'm a 25 year old white guy, I lifted like it was my religion for many years prior to being introduced to TRP, and didn't really struggle with women. My problem was that I was still very unhappy with life as most of it still didn't make sense to me. I seemed to be doing everything that I was told I'd need to do to be happy but it just didn't seem to be working. Half of my life I was raised by family members without seeing my parent for a stretch of 7 years, after which they had decided to take over parenting (Age: 10). I had to move to another country where I did not have any friends, and couldn’t even make any if I tried as I didn’t speak the language. My new household was dysfunctional with an abusive dad who ended up going to jail a couple of times for it. It had gotten to a point where suicide was considered daily by me until my mom was finally able to get rid of him (Age: 14). After that, she fell into her own streak of depression which she still hasn’t climbed out of. I had no adult male figures my entire life, and no one to give me any sort of expectations for adulthood. I was raised by internet and TV like many of the people here. College Years: Most TRP principals I was able to pick up on my own prior to my introduction to it, but lifting was the only one I practiced. I still thought I had to be the typical beta male provider, hold women up on a pedestal, and basically live the typical white picket fence life; none of which made me happy. My interactions with women were still very beta like, the only reason why I didn’t struggle with women despite that was 100% because of my looks (5’11, 187 Lbs, 7ish % BF. Gym was life). I had a couple of girlfriends which ended up being unhappy relationships for both parties involved. Failed every shit test there was, in and out of relationships. I still sometimes kick myself in the head for how many times I had very attractive women hit on me in college just for me to ruin that interaction by my beta like behavior. I don’t have many regrets in life, but if I could go back to being 18 but keep my current knowledge, I definitely would. It’s like Dom M. said “If you’re lucky, you’ll graduate college with a degree. If you’re smart, you’ll graduate with gains.” Getting fit was the only smart thing I did during those years. I have a business degree and I can honestly wipe my ass with it because that’s how much it’s worth to me.

Currently: Up until about 2 years ago I was still very depressed. Failed relationships, could pick up women but not keep them, still living my life the way I was being told by my mom and the rest of the family. Was introduced to TRP and told to just read the side bar and a few books, and man did everything click for me. It was exactly what I’ve always been told to suppress and not do. I quit taking shit from family and everyone else. I started getting into all sorts of hobbies primarily on my own (travel, photography, shooting, Bushcraft, cars/motorcycles, etc). At this point I have hobbies to keep an interesting conversation going with just about anyone, which has been extremely beneficial in both personal and professional life. I promise you that it’s extremely beneficial if you can connect with someone at the top in your work place on something that they are passionate about. Depending on your ability to develop relationships, it’s almost guaranteed that they will go out of their way to help you out in the future. Being Raised by only women my entire life, I realized how my own mother was manipulating me regularly after reading a few threads on here with similar examples, so I put a stop to that. I ended up getting into another relationship where I was able to test the TRP principals from the very start and it was legitimately a happy relationship the entire time. Didn’t as much as have a single argument with the GF up until I broke it off with her for a certain trait she displayed that was a big no no for me. Did the whole hook up thing during my anger phase after realizing how stupid easy it is if you just implement the TRP teachings properly, and got over that as well. I agree to a high degree with how the founders and some of the contributors go about approaching TRP, the only thing that I take a different approach on is talking about it. Typically on here it’s stated that you shouldn’t talk about it, and that rule should definitely apply to your work place considering the current political environment. In personal life however, I am very open about it. I’ve openly discussed these principals with friends and women that I’ve dated, and have yet to get a bad negative response. Your mileage may very on your delivery however, but it has helped me in my personal relationships. Just make sure you actually practice what you preach or you’ll end up with the opposite results. I’m currently saving up money and working on getting into a career field that I’ve wanted to get into since I was a little kid but was always told no by my family. I have some very defined goals that I’ve sat for myself for both professional and personal life. Still picking up hobbies regularly (although they are starting to get more complicated). I take responsibly for my own actions and my own life and don’t let anyone else control the direction of it which gives me an absolute sense of freedom and happiness. I take responsibility for my own actions and have a very solid understanding of what I can and can’t control. I don’t frequent this place much, but I still practice and will continue to practice for the rest of my life as TRP was the single most life changing thing in my life. By no means do I think I have every answer in life, but I did happen to figure out at least some of what makes me happy and what I want to work towards after having no direction in life and wanting to sort of end it all together.

Lessons Learned: 1.\t“Tough situations don’t last, tough people do.” For those that maybe are in a shitty situation right now with home life or anything else, always keep in mind that there’s likely a solution to your problem. Take control of your own life and get yourself out of it. 2.\tIf you’re not already fit, get fit. I was a fat until college so I can speak from personal experience that there is night and day difference in how you’ll be treated by both men and women. 3.\tTRP is a tool box, not a definitive 12 step program for recovery. Take only what you need. Figure out what is lacking in your own personal situation and then figure out the proper approach to solving it. I certainly don’t agree with everything and everyone here, but there is way more good information than bad.. in the side bars at least. 4.\tDon’t stay angry with life, it’s not going to change anything for you, you’ll just be mad. Realize that this is what life is. I get that it sucks when that realization hits you first, but finally knowing the rules that you will be playing the rest of your life by will make everything ten times easier. 5.\tAnd finally my most important lesson learned: do exactly what you want in order to make you happy. If you’re idea of happy is living in a van down by the ocean then go for it regardless of what anyone says. If you’re idea of a happy life is snorting coke in between a hookers ass crack then go for that too. From my interpretation of TRP, it’s not a certain life that you must live but more about you finally taking control of your life.

Suggested reading and links 1.\t“The Rational Male” if you’re new is a must to get a basic understanding. I think this is the best way to be introduced to TRP, period. 2.\t“The Way of Men” I love Jack Donovan’s stuff. It will definitely be more depend and on your personality. I always had an idea of what he writes about in my mind, it was just great being able to finally see that put into words. He has other books, all of which I’ve read, and I do recommend all of them. However if you do not like nor agree with this book then the other ones will be the same for you. 3.\tGet a book on something that you’re passionate about and get good at something. A personal example is “Long Range Shooting” by Cleckner. Taught me more than internet could on this topic, and I always have it as a resource to refer to. 4.\tI’m going to include a few links that I’ve picked up in threads here over the last couple of years that go back to the core principals relating to the dating aspect. These are all studies. If you’re having a hard time swallowing the pill by taking the word of the people on here then maybe read these: Why Is Muscularity Sexy? Tests of the Fitness Indicator Hypothesis , Women's Sexual Strategies: The Evolution of Long-Term Bonds and Extrapair Sex , And more by Pillsworth Haselton.