Mind your mind before it's late !!!

Dr Thounaojam Nanao *

Mind your mind before it's late !!!
But What is mind?
A very complex question for me!

Mind, a function of brain? Or a set of perception, cognitive abilities like intelligence, reasoning or judgement or something else. Many philosophers and psychologists have given different definitions but none are fixed on what actually mind is! Let's keep aside what it actually means. But one thing what I have noticed and observed is obscured. Mind is so powerful and the same time mind is so weak! And mind is very stubborn too. I can't get which one is the most appropriate one to satisfy my own question. Once your mind is deranged, it's too hard to make it alright, I don't mean it can't be corrected.But how much? And how long ???

There are numerous mental disorders which affect the life from depression to schizophrenia, from autism to conduct disorder, from anxiety to obsessive compulsive disorder and many more that could be cited. Be thankful for a healthy mind instead of your success and achievement!

Once mind is affected, it affects the whole life, whole eternity! Some may disagree, hold on and start observing the psychiatric people in the asylum, neighbour, road sides or in your own house, or within yourself! Lets say, Schizophrenia, one of the distressing mental disorder, a psychotic disorder where hallucination and delusion are the main symptoms. How they could be? You will never understand until you observe or talk to them?

Just imagine how would you feel when you hear someone's voice all the time which are not present in around you, you see someone who follows all the time and delusions which has spoilt your peace of mind? How is the life of those patients? OK, if the person doesn't have an insight, it's little bit relieving, as they sometimes enjoy those hallucinations, they don't understand those hallucinations are not real but what about people who has insight?

Who knows all the hallucinations are not real, who get scared of those hallucinations. Imagine what we feel when we see horror movies! They live in that world then slowly started affecting the real life, they slowly obeys the command and listen what hallucination talk and they act on that, if they don't act, they get scared, interpersonal relationships progressively deteriorating, professional disruption, impairment in all area becomes a normal routine, their behavior, their personality and all become different.

Their mind become so strong that they themselves can't change even when they know it's not real. They get sedated, they get drowsy, they get sessions of therapy, they get dosed with psychotic drugs but how much are they cured? Could they be back to normalcy without medication? I doubt. Again, the society's stigma is a big hurdle for them and for their family.

They may get better or improved but full recovery is few. Would you say suppression of those psychotic symptoms with medication is the only solution and relapse once they stopped medication? Nevertheless, the side effects of those drugs are other big issues for them to endure.

People say tame your mind! But when and how?

Tame your mind before it is affected! Once affected it's too hard to tame in the way you like as mind is stubborn too and life is not always in the way we want! Ups and downs come along with us from childhood to old age. It's not certain! Stress, disappointment, humiliation, hurt, dissatisfaction, worries affect the mind apart from organic causes and results in an unwanted distortion of mind. But how we will save our mind?

Nowadays people are really concerned about physical health and working hard to prevent from hypertension, diabetes, cancer and other ailment. People are going so viral about vegans and organic vegetables and fruits. Is it enough? We should know being healthy doesn't means only physical health. What about mental health? Are we neglecting it?

In this so called developed or high tech world, the value of humanity, the value of love hardly stands. Envies, hatred, violence, abuses, corrupt morals, infidelity have become a part of surviving in this world. One or another always becomes a victim. In one point of time, we face or we will face disappointment, dissatisfaction or hurt.

But how would we combat it? By drugs, alcohol or giving up the precious life or by taking revenge. Or making ourself mentally fit to cope up all the stressors. So, how to make our mind strong? That's another big question for me. But one thing we can adapt our mind in positive vibes before it is too late. Don't wait to do meditation when your mental health is in risk. Start doing from now; if you are parent, teach your children, spare some 30mins of a day for mindfulness.

In today's competitive world, yoga, meditation, mindfulness should be a part of living along with food, sex, shelter and clothes.

I tell you to start taming your mind from now, if mind is stuck or in black side, few minutes of meditation would be impossible, you even fail to concentrate in little doing. Yes, it depends on how strong you were and your well is your coping skill. But everyone doesn't have the same skill. The extrovert and introvert differ in tackling the stressors and their reactions and effects from it also differ.

I have seen giving motivation to those depressive and anxious patients was useless many times as their mind have already become so weak that they feel only hopelessness. Everything becomes impossible. They could not see the life beyond that phase.

Here psychotherapy also sometimes fails. You give counselling, therapy, motivation, etc., they feel better in the time of session but relapse because of their obstinate mind, the hopeless thoughts, negative thoughts, repetitive thoughts come again and again as the deranged mind is so deep seated.They fail to break the chain, they lose the happiness, they lose the life beyond depression. And during those depressive phase, it's hard for them to get in floor and start doing meditation.

One think I know is never give up if you know your mental health is in risk! Start believing and consult the concern people before it's too late.

Smile and laugh, you don't know a wonderful life beyond that phase is waiting, believe it!

Learn to let it go, don't keep holding on one thing. I know once we lost our near and dear ones, they will never come back to us, but we have to move on because it's a part of life.

Cry if u want to cry, never control your emotion to suppress or suffocate inside that later it will turmoil up and down. Emotions are meant to express.

Have an auto correction of positive thoughts whenever you have negative thoughts! Make a change!

Dance on your favorite song, sing aloud with your ugly voice, play like a kid, eat like a hungry tiger, spare time for yourself! Cook different recipes and learn to enjoy doing it! Clean your home, wash clothes, do dishes not as a slave but as a king! Enjoy!

Learn to enjoy in everything you do and tell yourself, "I have positive energies and I am strong".
Let's have healthy mind for healthy health!
When mind smiles, soul grows!!!
A long way to go for the unanswered question
A long way to go to remove the stigma !!