HAPPY MENTAL HEALTH DAY!!!!
Today is a day about recognizing those who struggle with mental health but perhaps just as importantly, today also serves as a public service announcement to the masses!
Mental Health disorders are REAL and just because no one wants to talk about them doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
Chances are, everyone who reads this blog knows someone who has publicly or privately battled with a mental health disorder.
The facts
Did you know that anxiety is the most common mental illness in the world?
Did you know that over 40 million people live with anxiety and a large majority of those people are under the age of fifty?
Did you know that the majority of people who suffer from anxiety and depression are considered millennials?
If the statistics are right, that means 1 out of every 10 people you meet are suffering from some sort of mental illness.
And here’s what’s even more scary:
The numbers, as big as they are, are only growing at an accelerated rate!
In 20 to 30 years from now, it's possible that over HALF our country could be suffering from some sort of life debilitating disease like depression or anxiety.
Why now?
If you ask me, the reason mental health disorders are on the rise is because we as a society have never asked more from an individual.
Think about it.
Gone are the days of boundaries between work time and play time. Employers expect us to be on call 24/7. With more competition, the stakes are higher so if we can’t get the job done our bosses are sure to remind us that someone else can…
On top of that, here’s a unsettling stat to chew on:
If you consider the law of inflation, we as Americans make less than or equal to what our parents made in the 1970's.
Congratulations everyone, we're the first generation of Americans in HISTORY to make less than our parents!
But hold on, I’m not done because it doesn’t stop there…
To compound the issue of being overworked and under paid, the world is no longer flat -meaning there is no such thing as domestic competition.
Nowadays, if you want a job you have to compete for it with people from all over the world—not just in your city.
Furthermore, with the recent advances in artificial intelligence, you’re not competing against only humans anymore because today you’re competing with FREAKING ROBOTS!
Jeeesh! No wonder people are stressed the eff out!
It’s not out there, it’s in here
Here’s something they don’t teach you in business school.
Growth for growth sake, is not always a good thing.
(Investors that are reading avert your eyes now!)
I say this because haven’t we’ve seen what a purely capitalistic society looks like?
Didn’t we just end up with the privileged few owning most of the capital and resources in the market which inevitably pinched out the less educated and/or less skilled?
Didn’t the life of “want, want, want” and “more, more, more” leave many of us feeling empty?
Is that not the life we’re all living right now?
Seems like it is to me…
But, what would happen if we already had everything we ever needed?
What if instead of looking outside ourselves for happiness, we looked within?
What if we didn’t need to have a nice car, a huge house and a massive bank account to feel like we’ve made it in this world?
What if we could be content?
What if this was all we ever needed—no matter what “this” is.
What can we do?
It’s hard to admit we need help and that there is something wrong, so I applaud those of you who have already sought help.
Mental health disorders are no joke and scary to face alone so if you feel like you might have a mental ailment, I implore you to seek professional help TODAY!
But that’s not to say there there's nothing we can do to make our minds more resilient and less prone to getting sick.
Striving towards noble goals in life is an amazing use of the human soul but the same cannot be said about consumption for the sake of consumption and a “grow at any cost” mentality.
Stop trying to have it all because the truth is, you already have everything you will ever need to be happy!
Let me say that again, STOP TRYING TO HAVE IT ALL! You already have everything you will ever need to be happy...
Spend more of your time trying to accumulate presence and less of your time trying to accumulate things and watch how your life changes and your mind gains clarity...
But don’t stop there!
Because being grateful for what you have is just one of many things you can do to improve your mental health.
Mindfulness, as always, is an amazing way to increase happiness and reduce stress because the less we get tugged around by our emotions and the stories our egos tell us, the more we can focus on the things that make us happy and that will improve our lives.
You can go to the gym to release some endorphins, move your body by taking a walk, do anything physical!
There’s no doubt the mind and body are connected so a healthy body means, in many cases, a healthy mind!
Conclusion
The point is, there are dozens of different things we can all do to improve our mental health and the health of our society at large.
If we could all just realize that we don’t need things to make us happy and that no one else can actually make us happy but ourselves, this world would be a much happier and healthier place.
So if you haven’t done so already, make tomorrow the first day of your life where you live mindful of your mental wellbeing. Start taking care of your mind and don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it!
See you next Wednesday!