Hand holding the weak on this Mental Health Day…..

We might not be responsible for being down, but we are responsible for getting up-Jesse Jackson

The more you say I am strong means you are becoming vulnerable and need help. And the best way to help you is to help others. This is how an individual human system works. Why we need good and happening friends around is to fill our mental void. We need friends for recognition, for celebrating, for self-fulfillment by sharing our accomplishments with others. We need people who are like-minded to understand us. We need expansion for self-worth. We begin with one or two people to care about us to a total score.

But what if we falter one day? The big gap (doom) appears between the self and society. We attribute the gap or void to bullying, violence, luck, becoming unsuccessful, ostracized by the system, or doomed with the disease. We need help.

Those friends may think she is a pain in the ass. They may not waste time with her. She is left in a sanatorium. She needs to be constantly present with her psychiatrist. The family abandons her. The pills make her even worse, she loses hope. Her life is not alive, just ablutions. Why waste our time on her? Why back the weak? If she cannot get it, why bother? This world is not for the weak!! We only surround ourselves with the winners. She smokes, drinks, and dies in oblivion. She drinks poison every day.

She found a ray of hope. She found herself. A Good Samaritan worked upon her. She found a job. She became interesting to know. She started fighting her disease. She started thinking she is worth it. She started to belong somewhere. She was doomed but she channelized. The Good Samaritan was strong. He found her. He found his strength in her. He was vulnerable so he helped the weak. Now she is strong and ready to hold the hands of the weak or of the ones like her. She found meaning in her living. She got her back her willpower. Rejoice the good Samaritans, she no longer is weak. And she will help the weak. A beautiful world started with a chain reaction. A trigger of one good deed, followed by another created ecstasy and happiness all around, wherever we see. She said, “Let the rain come down and wash away my tears!!”

It is wonderful. She realized, and he realized, they realized the human system works by helping each other. Therefore, on this World Mental Health day resolve to hold at least one hand that is weak, for him to be better than before, for her to be better than before. There are some things you can do to help the mentally weak people around you to observe this day, this year:

1. Be polite and courteous, it works well for those in despair, open up and speak your mind, and lead people around to see you as an example. Create cohesiveness. There will be subtle cues as to who needs help or who is finding it difficult to cope, with coming up and sharing their problems, however minuscule they might be, sometimes small things have massive impacts.

2. Meet your extended family. Broaden your perspective. Check if there is someone vulnerable at home. Analyze the root causes. Analyze if someone is overburdened. Cook together. Go on a long drive together.

3. Check if someone is in anger around you. Urge that person to have a “my” time alone and sort themselves out and offer to help if anything.

4. Organize a prayer session at your workplace. Help people around you understand the importance of faith. This faith leads me on. This faith must lead you on, is the motive. This collectivism brings up people to be their best and resolve to do more.

5. Do something extra every day for yourself. Exercise, long walks, meditation, reading a self-help book to not falter in this difficult life. Keep yourself mentally fit to lead someone struggling at their end. This is the magnet or attraction towards us if we tend to mend a soul.

These small steps aren’t difficult. Make peace with you and the world. Protect yourself from mental illness so that you can find subtle signs in yourself that you can channel to help others. The signs to recognize are irritation, anger, indecisiveness, vulnerability, over-somnolence or insomnia, negative jargon, intolerance, and more.

You can find like-minded people and contribute to the community of self-help by recognizing the signs of mental illness and spreading awareness for the timely help. Remove the stigma, we all get bouts of mental ill health during our lifetime so be comfortable with those who are struggling around you. They will eventually come out of it or shall need care. The ultimate goal is to uplift.

We might not be responsible for them being down, but we are responsible for bringing them up!!

Empower each other to prevent mental ill-health!!