Unwire to Rewire

For past few days was contemplating penning down my thoughts on happiness , being content or being satisfied.

Well happiness is something which cannot be bought off some shelf at any of the jazzy malls OR be acquired from the multitude of self help books available off line or online , but is a state of mind which is dependent on internal & external factors.

While trying to browse for information or rather “GOOGLE” for info, came across a disturbing heading of INDIA TODAY – “India is the most depressed country of the world”.

This line hit me like a bolt from the blue as I was till date aware of another notorious crown in our jewel – “India being the diabetes capital of the world”. Now do these 2 Ds go hand in hand. After all depression is an underlying / sleeping partner in many a symptoms / diseases.

Well this was “other side of the coin” of a story which I wanted to pen down , but understanding this paradigm probably helped me coin the heading “UNWIRE TO REWIRE”. One certainly unlearns to relearn then why not unwire to rewire self’s thoughts.

What makes us the Depressed Country of the world?

A country of 135 crores probably in itself is the answer, because even a single percent translates to 1 crore & Stats quoted by WHO states a WHOPPING 6.5% of the Indian Population suffers from some serious form of mental disorder, with no discernible urban – rural divide. 6.5% means a whopping 8.75 Crores. That’s huge – probably equivalent to the population of many a countries. NOW THIS WAS REALLY DISTURBING but also made me think am I a part of these 8.75 Crores. Someone out there could be a part of these numbers as well.

Now this “why we are what we are” could be lying in our habit of rush…rush … rush in the metros but well WHO says there is no discernible urban – rural divide. Is it because we don’t smile or be happy OR is it something to do with our nuclear families , EMIs , home to office & back travel time , lowering tolerance levels.

Some key take home messages from this study [indiatoday.in]–

• 1 in 6 aged 10-19 is suffering from depression
• Mental health conditions account for 16% of global burden of disease.
• Half of the mental health conditions start by 14 & most are undetected.
• Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among 15-19 year olds.

 “Mental Pain is less dramatic than physical pain but is more common & is also harder to bear” – C.S.Lewis

Unwire To Rewire

Am not a doctor or an authority on mental health, but this prelude came to my mind as I wanted to unwire from the underlying cause to rewire for either being happy or enabling to understand the gravity & talk about “BEING HAPPY”.

If I am not wrong , back in the later part of last century [which looks so distant now], we weren’t either the NOT SO PROUD owners of the infamous titles – Diabetes & Depressed Capital of the world. Then how & when did we achieve these 2 titles?Are we just running around , trying to CATCH UP with someone better than us or trying to be better than the folks in our neighbourhood.

Folks these numbers “6.5%” , “ 14 years” are very disturbing. What baton are we handing down to our next generations? In our rush to be better , are we increasing the disease burden on them? Are we making them too competitive – Why is that other person having better marks , why do they have a better home , a better car , better … better … better.

Is this desire for better making us more bitter & leading to unwarranted underlying mental challenges? Why compare? Comparison is the thief of joy – very words of Theodore Roosevelt.Is this thief of joy becoming the underlying cause of the manifestations called Diabetes , BP , Psycho Somatic Pains [medical terminologies] & low tolerance levels [a social disorder].

Can we really unwire these thoughts & rewire self to

• being content
• spending quality time with loved ones
• do something that’s socially useful
• or just relax / chill – soothe self

WE DESERVE TO BE HAPPY, TO BE AT PEACE WITH SELF.

A lovely example to observe would be our earlier generations or understand from a small beautiful kingdom called Bhutan – ranked amongst the Happiest countries of the world.

How do I Unwire to Rewire

• First of all , Love yourself – Don’t entertain negative self talk- hurts badly
• Sleep Well – Am not a doctor to opine about the hours of sleep , but can certainly say have a good undisturbed quality of sleep.
• Go “Un”Digital , atleast in the later part of the evening – Allow Melatonin to do its work peacefully.
• Exercise daily – Exercise helps release certain hormones which enable feel good factor
• Meditate – Helps soothe down the nerves
• Cultivate a hobby – That guitar , that humming of song , that paint brush , the books you love could make a huge difference.
• Spend Quality time with your family & Friends
• Avoid Toxic words
• Develop the Attitude of Gratitude
• Write a journal – A small self help but may go the long way in helping you do course corrections
• Declutter – Keep life simple , enjoy the moments, being humble can help
• Let go – You cannot live by holding to your past. Focus on what is in hand now & what can be done for a better tomorrow.
• Each one Teach One – See if you can help one person do well / better. Will probably help you as well.

Will appreciate you could share your observations , comments as this is my first article.