Mental Illness is Real. We need to Acknowledge it and Learn to Resolve

The world we are living in a very strange one. At one end there is 24x7 connection to technology and an overload of information. At other end there is lack of willingness to make physical connection with other humans and lack of understanding of which information to consume and what to ignore. And then we have change happening at a scale that is never seen by any living being. All this is causing us to either unhappy about what we have not been able to do or achieve or anxious about what we may not be able to do or achieve; causing a wide spread of mental health issues like anxiety, stress, depression.

What do we need to do? We need to first acknowledge and understand the problem and then work towards the solution.

My belief is that the top problem is this: the fast pace of our lives, the competitiveness all around, the over-reliance on machines, the ease and nearness of availability of ‘things’ – is all causing many skills and abilities to diminish; the likes of which are patience, idealness, calmness, collaboration, verbal communication, cognitive and analytical thinking, emotional intelligence, resilience, distinguishing between want vs need.

Again, it is my belief that from solution perspective we need to look at two different viewpoints

Those who are suffering / have suffered from any type of mental illness:

• Mental illness is exactly that – an illness. Recognize the problem, acknowledge and accept, talk about it / share with someone, get help
• Past cannot be changed, it can only be learnt from. Learn and move on
• One cannot know the future, but what we do in present defines our future. Focus on making the present great
• Remember: ‘self’ is most important; self-awareness, self-discipline, self-care. Understand your emotions and work to manage them
• Happiness is found within. If required, train your brain to be happy
• Life is a journey and everyone has the same destination. Everyone’s journey is unique and different – define yours
• It is important to understand what is essential and what is non-essential in your life
• Try things that work to help you be at ease – talking to an expert, talking to family and friends, journaling, meditation, listening to music, etc.

Those who have not suffered from any type of mental illness:

• Learn about mental illness. Become aware so you can understand those who suffer
• Stop typecasting and creating a stigma about people suffering from mental illness
• Don’t make it about ‘you’. It is all about understanding the other person. It is all about empathy
• Proactively reach out to others and check in. Just saying a ‘hi’ also works lots of time
• Be available when someone reaches out. At times only ‘being there’ is all that is required
•  Listen. Don’t judge. Don’t counter or correct. Just listen
•  Remember: Just because you are not suffering, you are not an expert on solutions. Don’t be a hero, be a friend

Is this the know-all? No. Can there be more problem areas? Yes. Will all solutions work? No. What is important is to start, to try, to learn, to unlearn and to learn, and most importantly to keep moving.

And am I an expert to tell you about this? No. You may already know many such things; there is abundant information already available. I am just asking you to be proactive rather than reactive. I am one of you. I have seen near and dear ones suffer. I have myself suffered. I am acknowledging. I am learning. I am hoping you will too.

Please share your thoughts, suggestions, experience.