I've also seen this slow erasing. And seeing someone lose touch with who they were is the scariest thing. When someone becomes addicted to gambling, they only feel numb. It's about how you need volatility to feel alive
What he really lost was his orientation. Modern loneliness, mental pain that isn't dealt with, and pressure to succeed all happen in silence. Everything leads to this. These stories aren't anomalies. They look like reflections. Of how badly we teach people how to deal with pain, find their own worth, and be bored without collapsing. The next story will be the same, but have a new name if we don't do something about that