STATE of MIND – Beautiful/Balanced/Disturbed?

2020 – the year of COVID-19 pandemic and the year which took me 6 months to write something apart from emails and social media posts!

I am going to be a mind talker today ( Mind Vs Brain – are they the same, co-related or different? Perhaps a topic for another time.) Did it take a pandemic or a famous Bollywood actor’s demise for me to write about this? Perhaps yes. YES, we have been seeing, hearing and reading about MENTAL HEALTH everywhere. I read the most apt definition (in my opinion) – ” mental health is a state of well-being and we all have it. It’s not just about surviving, it’s about thriving. It’s enjoying life, having a sense of purpose and being able to manage life’s highs and lows” . Kudos for the much needed awareness but don’t you think we are X ( put your age here) years behind already? If we acknowledge it so late, when are we going to ACT on it? Doesn’t it need to be part of every academic curriculum and every company’s KPI?

Today I want to focus on the GOOD mental health. Understanding the other side of the same coin ( mental illness/mental health disorders – depression, anxiety, panic attacks, addictive behaviors etc ) is equally important. For now regarding the other side I just want to say ‘let there be no stigma or fear regarding mental illness” The person suffering, the support system/caregiver and the community needs to tackle this together. Why the GOOD? I consciously try to remain optimistic and focus on the brighter side of things, the lockdown has definitely tested my belief like probably each being on this earth. Yes, there are days I have sulked, felt low, demotivated and discouraged. Being grateful, retrospective ,resilient ( powered in my mind by my brain! ) and definitely my family has helped me immensely to remain on the same course of positivity.

Mental health isn’t simply the absence of mental illness – so true! It is a nuance – good mental health might look different from one person to another. According to a study, there are six common factors of well-being that we see across different descriptions and definitions (my discernment) :

1. A sense of purpose – it is a variable but always have one at every stage/phase of life if not an ultimate one
2. Strong relationships – there might just be a few but make every effort to keep them alive
3. Feeling connected to others – I try to do this by thinking that there is always a learning or a take away from every person I interact with
4. Having a good sense of self – oh boy! this one is the most EVOLVING factor. I am the greatest mystery to me and I will keep unraveling this mystery until my death.
5. Coping with stress – Living only in the present/the moment is the least stressful. Challenging to do that but I am practicing. For me that constant urge to do a new thing or hone an exiting interest has helped
6. Enjoying life – I am still learning the best way to do this. But I think there are two things worth mentioning here. Firstly, to try and see the bigger picture of everything. Second is to accelerate from collective consciousness ( a concept explained beautifully by Deepak Chopra ) to pure consciousness.

Definitely at this point, my thoughts are wandering and there is a plethora of things I want to write here. But I don’t want to bore myself nor you! 🙂 I will end on two notes. To fight with COVID-19, we are being asked to form a social bubble ( to interact with only a set of people always so that the contact is minimum and tracing is easier), so why don’t we take this opportunity to form a social bubble for life – a set of people who will be there for you and you will be there for them no matter the distance, time zones! They can be your family/ friend/an acquaintance to whom you should be able to say. ” I just want to talk, please just listen. No judgements, no advice, no interruptions, no inference. ” This is important because I think a good mental health depends on expressing yourself in one way or the other! Also this way mental health is primarily part of a family (the root) which defines and redefines us through out our lives.

Each setting and situation you’re in, and each person you interact with, can impact your well-being. Surround yourself with positive people. People inspire you, or they drain you – pick them wisely. “Surround yourself with the dreamers, and the doers, the believers, and thinkers, but most of all, surround yourself with those who see the greatness within you, even when you don’t see it yourself.”

I am working towards a BALANCED mind rather than just a beautiful one and definitely don’t want it to be a disturbed one! Now go, ACT on your mental health.