Emotional and Mental Health

Did you ever feel depressed? If you have, you know there are many medicinal drugs available which we call the anti-depressants. My encounter with depression I was under the influence of depression medication for 5 years. One day I realized those anti-depressants have stopped soothing my mind. And I was in desperate need of permanent solutions. I asked myself: What is the best way to overcome depression naturally? How can I overcome depression without medication naturally?  I  even tried connecting to people whom I thought would comprehend my disorientation to thoughts and emotions. I was not too late to realize: Though it's easy to give theoretical pieces of advice on how to overcome depression, it looks impossible when it comes to its practical implementation. The person who never felt depressed at any point cannot guide you with the remedies to overcome depression. Therefore, it becomes imperative to express yourself to a person who can completely comprehend what you are going through. Bits of advice like try to be happy and stay away from negativity can do more harm than good to you. That's because these suggestions indicate the person cannot feel even 1 percent of your plight. Every depressed person is aware of these bits of advice the question remains 'How?' Here, I shall share a few practices which I followed in my gloomy past and came out of it strong. 14 ways to overcome depression naturally Meditate It is the best way to overcome depression naturally. To be honest, until my mind tasted the meditated feel, this technique sounded very boring to me. Always thought it was a waste of time but once I started practicing it, it was a magical feeling which I had never experienced before. Want to know the best part? I slowly revived my lost feel which made me realize the true meaning of being aware in the present moment.  Check out: 8 meditation techniques for complete beginners Follow compassion Helping others and bringing a smile to the faces of unfortunate people is the best you can bring a smile to your face. Don't believe me? Try it. If you are capable enough to feed the emotional or financial pain of people, never hold back. Trust me, Compassion is a gateway to the feeling of contentment, which is one of the best counter-attacks of depression. Listen to upbeat music It is one of the simplest ways to overcome depression naturally. Music is the food for the soul. Listening to cheerful music not only uplifts the mood but always keeps you away from thoughts. And once you start thinking less, the mind cuts the chords with depressive thoughts.  Eat healthy to feel healthy Your mental health is deeply connected to your physical health. Enrich your diet with food high in unsaturated fat like omega3. And did anyone tell you about the miracle ingredient turmeric? Never ignore its remarkable powers working as antidepressants. Please stay away from alcohol—the silent killer. It is an elusive stress buster. Not only it harms your physical health, but it also ruins your mental health as well. Accept yourself the way you are  Keep reminding yourself you are a beautiful soul. So please be good to yourself.  You need to realize quickly that everyone is wired differently and...

First of all, let us define self-control: According to Vocabulary.com, "Self-control is the quality that allows you to stop yourself from doing things you want to do but that might not be in your best interest." My dear friend, today’s world is full of alluring mediums where you fall prey to the materialistic forces for momentary happiness. Resisting the temptation has become extremely difficult.  Getting carried away to these tempting drives might give you instant happiness and success. It is the reason why you begin to lose your self-control and commit yourself to these choices. But is the success and happiness derived by committing to it real? Does it really last for a lifetime? Let us find out... Why is Self-Control Important? Straight out, there are no shortcuts to success, and happiness derived after fulfilling the never-ending desires is short-lived. You got the reason why is it short-lived. It is because those desires are never-ending. The fulfillment of one just makes making way for the other, resulting in a never-ending vicious flow. This momentary happiness is soon followed by regret. And trust me, this regret adversely affects the self-love. And if continued further, it may even lead to self-harming thoughts. It is immensely important to stay away from these drives. And this is why your self-control has a vital role to play. The stronger your self-control, the less you fall prey to the luring drives.  A few daily-life practical examples where self-control is important... Student, self-control is resisting the temptation of going to your best friend's birthday celebration today when he/she has a difficult exam tomorrow. Ice-cream lover, self-control is resisting the temptation of eating it when you are on a fitness diet. Married man, self-control is resisting the temptation of getting carried by the physical beauty of another woman. Sugar patient, self-control is resisting the temptation of sweets and desserts. Parent, self-control is resisting the temptation of raising hands on your child when he/she commits a mistake. Stressed person, self-control is resisting the temptation of alcohol, which is an elusive stress buster. Monetary-struggler, self-control is resisting the temptation to earn quick money by unethical means like gambling or theft. Failure, self-control is the resisting the temptation of giving up. I am sure you can relate to any of these instances.How is Self-Control Connected to Self-Esteem? In such a competitive and stressful environment where every man is for themselves, self-esteem has become quite essential. And it is your self-control, which is responsible for your boosted self-esteem. If you keep falling prey to the alluring mediums, you will never be able to ride high on your self-esteem. Ultimately, you shall keep on denying the internal happiness. On the contrary, you just need one big situation where you resist yourself to the alluring temptation via self-control. Then off you go, your self-esteem and self-love get an automatic boost. And this boost acts as a solid base to resist the upcoming temptations. Let us find out how this entire process works... AN INDIVIDUAL – SELF-CONTROL – CHARACTER BUILDING  – AVOIDANCE OF MATERIALISTIC TEMPTATIONS – HIGH SELF-ESTEEM –  REAL HAPPINESS. First and foremost, self-control has to be your initiation to do the...

Just like every organ has a respective purpose, our mind is responsible for conscious thinking. Having said, it has become the invincible conqueror ruling (or should I say ruining) most aspects of our lives.  To think less is the need of the hour. But unfortunately, it has become the biggest challenge for most of us. Does it signify thinking is unimportant? Na... never said that! It’s a materialistic world my friend, and thinking is as essential as food. Wondering what’s the concern? Most of us cannot control: The frequency of thoughts The quality of thoughts We are so glued to our thoughts we are sub-consciously missing one vital phenomenon which makes us complete — Feeling emotions. And as a result: Most of us think more and feel less. What you don’t realize: Happiness — the ultimate purpose of life is a feeling. And only when you feel more and think less; you experience the untouched avenues of happiness. “Get out of your head and get into your heart. Think less, feel more.” ~Osho Strange: In the quest to become happy, most of us don’t pay attention to the quotient without which happiness remains an untouched dream — the feeling quotient. When I was struggling to feel happiness, never did I explore this side; never dug so deep. Or should I say missed the basics? Interestingly, even after knowing it, there remains an unsolved mystery. What? Let’s find out: No wonder, feeling emotions is important. Agreed... feeling positive emotions is vital. But are there only positive emotions? What about the negative emotions seeking reciprocation from feelings? So you see... just we think we got the answer, intrigues a big question: Is it important to feel negative emotions as well? A definite yes! Sounds silly? It’s not: This is the catch most of us miss, leading to the inability in maintaining a healthy balance in work and relationships. Look: Thinking and Feeling are two sailors of your lifeboat. While thinking sails you to the materialistic world; the feeling quotient is the captain of your inner world. Coming back to why is it important to feel negative emotions: I hate to disappoint you but only feeling positive emotions is a cowardly act. When there are highs, there are lows. Sometimes the conditions are favorable sometimes unfavorable. If there is positivity in this world, there is negativity. We... the human beings are full of emotions. When we are all smiles while feeling positive emotions, it is our responsibility to listen to the cries of negative emotions. And only then, there is an acceptance and a way out.  I don’t know much but I’m sure about this: You need to feel the negative emotions to get rid of the pain inflicted by it. Ironical warning: Running away from feeling negative emotions is easy. There are many illusionary tricks — medicines, alcohol, drugs. But is it a permanent solution? Can you escape reality? Doesn’t the negative emotions hit back harder with a stronger intensity? My dear friend... feeling the negative emotions are always better than trying to evade the unsung truth. What I strongly feel, always feeling upbeat dilutes the extracts of positivity, and even happiness seems monotonous this way. So feel every emotion you experience to...

Allow me to begin with a small composition of mine: Speak Speak speak... you speak SPEAK WITH AUTHORITY, SPEAK WITH CLARITY... make sure you get heard when you speak Irrespective of the language YOU SPEAK... as long as you have a voice, you speak don’t wary the criticisms and the questions ... as long as you are right, you speak Don’t worry about losing them, FOR THE SAKE OF FINDING YOURSELF, you speak. To spit out the negativity, for the sake of positivity... gather courage only once to speak on their face and never behind, as long as they are wrong, you speak FOR THE SAKE YOUR RESPECT AND ESTEEM... SPEAK SPEAK SPEAK... YOU SPEAK Hope you liked it! Let's jump right into the nitty-gritty of expressing: Expressing is an introduction of your true self to the outside world. Whatever you are inside, just exhibit it outside. What you are and whatever you feel, just express yourself. Never feel afraid of it. Always remember: “You were born to be real, not to be perfect.” - Claire Baker And this applies to everyone. When you have the freedom of expression, use it to your advantage. You are probably wondering: Why is expressing important? Expressing is your deliberate attempt to convert the negativity felt into positivity. In the world full of lies and betrayals, it is difficult to stop feeling negative. But you need to understand that feeling negative is not a problem.  The problem arises when you keep that negativity within you and do not express it out. But when you express out, you unburden yourself and flush out the negativity.  To maintain transparency between your physical and mental appearance. In case you don't know: There are two facets of your appearance- physical and mental. Expressing acts as a mirror between the two. It ensures that whatever you feel from inside, you present it outside. This way, you are true to yourself and to others. There is no retention of negative feelings inside you to attract other negative energies. You always ride high on yourself via expressing. When you express your true self to others, it means you value your ideas, thoughts, and beliefs. No wonder, expressing is one of the best ways to develop self-love. The quote above says it all... When you express, you expose yourself in front of others. You reveal your true identity to them. In the process, people might get hurt. Many people might not like you. They can call you rude, offensive and aggressive. They might misunderstand you. However, the ones who deserve to be in your life will understand you gradually. They will accept you the way you are. No wonder, these people will be less. But they will be the ones whom you will find by your side every time you need them. It's your identity, this is the way you always are, independent of the person, time and situation. Feel proud! Look: Being nude is always better than being naked. Sounds silly? It's not: Being nude is your choice. It is when you uncover yourself by yourself. It‘s your discretion to expose yourself to others. It is the transparency you...

Before evaluating the differences, let's find out the similarity between both the attitude.  Did you notice that both the attitude have four consecutive letters in common-'LOSE'? You know what does it mean? It means that both the attitude(loser/nothing to lose) are provoked by a loss. Now, there are two possible conditions involving a loss.  You are on the verge of losing. You have already lost. Subsequently, when you encounter any of the above-mentioned situations,  it provokes either a 'nothing to lose' attitude or you develop a 'loser attitude'.   An example involving sports where you are on the verge of losing... Two players are playing a game of squash inside two different courts.  The game is of 5 sets. Both the players lose the first two sets. Obviously, the recovery seems extremely difficult hereon. Now, let us try to compare and analyze their respective attitude where one develops a loser attitude while the other develops a nothing to lose attitude.  The one with the ‘loser attitude:’ After losing the first two sets out of five, the person with a negative mindset starts considering himself as a loser even before the result of the game. It evokes fear inside him and he begins saying to himself that he cannot win from this particular game-situation. Eventually, he surrenders to a situation and showcases a ‘loser attitude’ in the subsequent game-set. This attitude fails to deliver miserably, no need to mention the outcome. The one with the ‘nothing to lose attitude.’   A person with a positive frame of mind sees things differently. After losing the first two sets, he sets himself free. Even he starts considering himself as a loser but with a different mindset. As soon as he accepts his loss, he starts seeing it as a different ball game altogether. It evokes a fearless attitude within him as he is already considering himself as a loser. He starts feeling that he cannot go down anymore and plays the rest of the game carefree and stress-free. Trust me, most of the times he is able to turn the tables around from nowhere, and an evident lose turns out to be a surprising victory. Let us consider a monetary example where the loss has already occurred: Two businessmen suffered a huge financial loss in their respective trades. The one with a loser attitude: The person with the loser attitude starts feeling embarrassed and ashamed. He is not able to sink that loss inside his mind. As a result, it never lets him overcome that loss or defeat. That fear of losing refrains him from starting again. As a result, he always considers himself a loser.  The one with a nothing to lose attitude: There is the other businessman who considers it as an opportunity, the opportunity to start from scratch, where he cannot go down beyond it. This attitude allows him to realize his mistakes so that he never repeats it again. Time for some Happy Realizations!!! Friends, we all lose on something at some point in time.  But what makes us a loser or winner depends...

When people don't fulfill your expectations, you get hurt. Your undue expectation from people has become one big reason to feel negative.  Therefore, it is imperative to find out why these expectations and from whom are these expectations? Why do you expect and from whom do you expect? In today’s world, you expect from people because you want them to ‘Return the favor back.’ It is an obligation you anticipate from others in exchange for the good things you assume you did for them. It is the reason why you expect a reciprocation. Quickly, you need to understand that if you are counting on every acquaintance to fulfill your expectations, the matter of fact is that you are unreasonable and foolish. Supremely, your expectations could be from the ones whom you love, who are important to you. It might be from the people you care for, whom you respect, the ones with whom you share a strong bond and an active connection. Let's say, people are fulfilling every expectation of yours. But, what we need to comprehend is that everything is perfectly fine until people keep responding as per your expectations. The question is how long you will keep on getting your expectations fulfilled by others? How long will others carry the burden of meeting your expectations? The never-ending expectation process: Be mindful of the fact that the fulfillment of one expectation leads to the urge of the other. Gradually, it leads to an endless flow and to tell the truth, the chain breaks down one day. Yes, your feelings get hurt one day. Sometimes, the volume of that pain soars high to an extent where you tend to shift your perception of people who belong to you. By and by, you even form a negative opinion about those people. You begin to judge those people based on that particular situation in which they did not raise up to your expectation. You start to forget the positives associated with them. In due process, you don’t realize the value of that person in your spirits before this particular incident. And eventually, you lose that person.  Let me bombard a few questions on you... If you are demanding the ideal condition out of a person, are you an ideal person to demand it? How will you feel when you are on the other side of the table? Are you not wrong on your part if you are expecting people to respond according to you? Are you not judging people calling them wrong without knowing about their problems and situations? Maybe, they could have been in their world of problems when you were expecting from them. Or maybe they are the ones dwelling in their own aura and you are not able to perceive it. Sorry for being brutally honest but when you start putting conditions on expectations from others, you are wrong. Put it to yourself and ask yourself how do you feel about those people who impose their expectations on you? And when you are not able to meet their expectations, how do you feel about those judgemental...

The more you search for peace in the outside world, the more you get lost. Like happiness, finding peace is an inside job which has nothing to do with the outside world. It resides within you. To find peace, you first need to target the problems restricting you from attaining peace. The Problems: The elevated anxiety and stress level is the first problem, which is not allowing you to focus on anything. It is leading to overthinking and the peace of mind is being denied.  The second problem is the flickering mind, which is not allowing you to focus on a particular thing at a time. It is leading to imperfections and the peace of mind cannot be attained. Both the problems are not allowing you to ‘Focus’ and ‘Focus’ is the first step to peace-attainment. The Solution: To acquire focus of mind, it is vital to explore your inner world. Meditation is the driver of the self-exploration journey. For a soothing journey, start with conscious breathing which is the easiest way to enter into the powerful world of meditation. Spend some alone time, a preferably early morning where you concentrate on the breaths to take you further and deeper inside you. It is simple to start with and does not require any particular set of skills. The conscious deep breath makes you aware in the present moment. You start feeling and enjoying the now. Consequently, mind’s level of focus increases and the frequency of thoughts is reduced. Finally, the stress and anxiety levels are reduced and the peace of mind is attained. It comes gradually so you need to be patient initially. But once you taste its magical feel, it is the first thing you shall crave for every morning. Playing an instrument, exercising, forgiving, gratitude and compassion are a few approaches to keep your mind peaceful. But again, unless you are focused, the cultivation of these practices can be difficult. Why is the peace of mind important:       - Key to real happiness.       - Enables you to distinguish between the right and the wrong.       -Keeps you away from materialistic desires.       - Helps you maintain the balance between the inner world and the outside world.       - Assists you tackle the panic and unforeseen situations calmly.      - Aids you to carry out the daily life operations distressfully.      - Teaches you patience which is vital to success.       - Keeps you away from over-thinking.       - Enables you to enjoy the present moment.    

Most of us do not train our minds to accept: An unfriendly situation. A self-imperfection. First of all, let us comprehend ‘an unfriendly situation.’ Time is not always favorable to us. Sometimes, when situations are hostile to us, what most of us do is try to avoid the situation or run away from the problem. We don't talk about it now. We don’t want to face it and hence, we try to overlook it. Now, let us try to understand ‘a self-imperfection.’ Nobody is perfect. We all are the effigy of imperfections and yes, there is nothing wrong in it. Nonetheless, how many of us have the courage to accept it? Trust me, only a few. Always remember that being imperfect is not a concern, the problem is the un-readiness of our minds to accept it. Whether it is an unfriendly situation or a self-imperfection, is the denial mode solution to our troubles? I am sorry but we are elevating our problems all by ourselves. Denying the fact that we are facing a problem is an invitation to other troubles. Always remember, how fast and how far we try to run away from an unfriendly situation or a self-imperfection, it will catch up with us soon. This time around, its intensity will be so strong that it will be virtually impossible for us to deal with it. A situation will arise in which neither we will be able to face it, nor we will be able to avoid it. Finally, we will never be able to move out of it. Let us understand it with the help of illustrations. Example 1 You are chit-chatting with your friends. Suddenly, one of them initiates a discussion about politics. Others too plunge into the discussion.  Say, you are the only one who is not updated in politics and you insist them to change the topic. The matter of fact here is you are getting bored because you are not proficient in expressing your views on the particular subject. However, the reason you give for it, ‘Politics is not an interesting subject’. Here, you are avoiding the fact that you are not acquainted with politics, which is the actual reason you are not finding it interesting. Still, you are not accepting it. Example 2 You appeared in 5 exams. You performed well in all subjects except mathematics. Subsequently, you begin to put allegations like the mathematics paper was lengthy. Yes, sometimes you also say that the course was out of syllabus. Again, instead of accepting the fact that you need to work on mathematics, you opt for the denial mode. Example 3 You get into an altercation with your loved one where you give a rude reply. You also raise your voice intensely during the conversation. Instead of accepting that you quickly get angry on petty issues, you put the blame on him/her. Again, you avoid the cause of the problem when you very well know deep down inside that you are wrong. Example 4 You go to a formal together where people were mostly talking to each other...

Some of us are busy equating happiness to the past instances while many are awaiting the happiness in the future. Only a few of us are able to realize that happiness is right here, right now in the present moment. If you don't belong to this minority category, this article is a must-read for you. In-depth Realizations... The past is gone, and the future is yet to come. You know it too. But there is a reason why I am stating the obvious. I say so to make you realize that the past cannot be changed, likewise, the future cannot be controlled. You can only take care of the things happening NOW. It is only the present moment which always stays with you. Anyone and everyone might leave you except the present moment, which will always be with you until your last breath. If you agree to it, then allow yourself to enjoy its company and make it your best friend...How? Let us find out: The essence to feel: To enjoy the present moment, the first thing you need to know is that Feel is the essence of  Happiness. So the first thing you need to do is to revive the feel.  But it is not that easy as it sounds. It is because your thoughts are dominant over your ability to feel the present moment. You need to realize that Feel is inversely proportional to Thoughts. If you are thinking more, it means you are feeling less. And if you are doing so, the upcoming part of the article is not something you can afford to miss:  Look, I am not saying that thinking is not important. Of course, it's important. Unless you think, you will not be able to plan. Planning is important to get ready to face the upcoming situations. Also, your professional atmosphere requires thinking. So yes, positive and productive thinking is important. But you need to understand that it is not thinking but negative thinking, which needs to be avoided. To avoid negative thinking, I just want you to feel more and think less. The process of negative thinking... What is the current scenario? When you are always thinking, you are not realizing that simultaneously, you are less responsive to your sense organs. Let us explore how thinking is taking a toll on your sense organs. Eyes- You are not able to view the beauty of the nature surrounding you. Nose- You are unable to feel your blessed breaths, which itself is a form of meditation. Ears- You are unable to listen to the beautiful melodies...sounds of nature, delicate words by your loved ones, and most importantly, you are not listening to your inner voice. Tongue- You are not able to feel the food bites...You are more concerned thinking about what you are eating than to feel the fact that you are eating. Skin- You are unable to sense the gentle winds which want to nourish you, the beautiful touch of your loved ones, and many such things.  Do you know, just by sensing any of the sense organs completely, the feelings you experience can be as...

Success and failure are brothers from different mothers. You try hard but the end result is not always in your favor. It is the time when people start judging you and even ask for justifications for your downfall or failure. Straight out, you need to appreciate the fact that your actions were inspired by none other than you. You did what you felt was right. People who can accept and understand it will agree to it. They will always back your decision. On the other hand, those who disagree; your hundreds of justifications will be in vain. Trust me, it is impossible to clarify your actions to everybody. People perceive what they want to as per their convenience and understanding. Moreover, why do you need to give justifications for your committed actions? A decision taken can have both the conditions possible. Either it will be right or it will be wrong. Be brave enough to take the responsibility of any condition. Why are you giving justifications to others and authorizing them to take a call on your decision? Also, the definition of right and wrong vary from person to person. Subsequently, neither it is possible nor it is your responsibility to make everyone happy. You don’t owe any justifications to anyone except to your time. Obliging others with your justifications is a big question on your self-belief and self-importance. Therefore, it is entirely your responsibility to take a stand for your actions. Always be loyal to your time as you cannot predict how much you have. Do things what the time demands and not what the people demand. It is the justification for your time, not people, which eases your life journey.