It's time to talk about Mental Health

By Dr Mrigendra Das, Psychatrist at The Darwin Clinic

 

“We get told to put on a brave face. But sometimes, the bravest thing is to take the face off" - Anonymous

 

It is International Men’s Health week, and it is my pleasure to share my thoughts about mental health in this brief piece. I want to touch upon the issue of the prevailing stigma of discussing mental health issues, particularly in men. I also want to discuss spiritual learnings of self-management for better mental health as learnt from the Bhagwad Gita, which is an ancient Hindu scripture that provides a synthesis of key philosophical concepts of Hinduism and yoga.  

We are generally comfortable to discuss our physical health issues, however, when the discussion is related to mental health, we can be reluctant. This can often be related to stigma about mental health issues, and fear that discussing one’s mental health issues would make one appear to be ‘weak’, ‘odd’ or ‘crazy’. There is a lot of evidence that people who report mental health issues are discriminated against, and this means that they do not seek treatment when they need it. Evidence suggests that reluctance to discuss mental health issues are more prevalent in men. This may be part of an outdated societal belief that men are stronger, and discussion about mental health issues would make them appear weak.

Mental health difficulties may not just be a mental disorder, but within the normal spectrum of our emotional experiences of feeling stressed, low in mood or burnt out with the stress of day-to-day living and life events. 

Mental disorders amongst Australians are common, with 20% of adults likely to experience a mental disorder in a year. It may come as no surprise that depression and anxiety are extremely common experiences within the general population. Depression has a high lifetime prevalence- one in seven Australians will experience depression in their lifetime. Similarly, disproportionately high use of alcohol or substance use is quite common in order to deal with mood and anxiety difficulties.  

In order to overcome the stigma of mental health issues, we need to do our bit. This includes knowing the facts about mental health issues, discussing this with our friends and family, seeking help when one feels the strain and in particular supporting others including our friends and family when they experience mental health difficulties.

This brings me to some key learnings from the Bhagwad Gita that can be extrapolated to improving mental health in general. The writings in Bhagwad Gita, which is thousands of years old is still relevant today, and offers us some valuable lessons.

Accepting ourselves

The Gita states that we must discharge our duties in life and follow our path. However, it elaborates that it is important to discharge one’s duties, rather than another’s. In order to do this one must learn to be comfortable with what they are and not look outwards. In other words, we are not perfect and are different from one another. We must embrace our uniqueness, imperfections and be ourself, and learn to live with how we are.

It is the means and not the end that matters

The Gita discusses the importance of renouncing the fruits of our labour. We must in life focus on the journey and not merely the destination. To elaborate on this, when we have a task at hand, we must do it with sincerity and dedication, without much thought about pursuing success or great achievement. It goes without saying that if we do not focus on the fruits of our labour, and rather the process, we are more likely to be successful and satisfied with the outcome.

Everything in moderation

The Gita discusses the importance of moderation for mental health. Too much of everything is never good for us such as food, alcohol, work, sleep or exercise. Finding a balance in our working life between work and leisure is important. We should find enough down time to reflect and include all matters in our life including meaningful pursuits and recreation.

The importance of meditation

The Gita discuss the importance of Yoga and how the practice of meditation can free us of affliction. In today’s world when we are often rushed off our feet, it is important to find time for activities such as meditation or mindfulness training. There is ample evidence in modern medicine about the positive effects of meditation on overall mental and physical health.

In concluding, it is time for us to consider that it is OK to discuss mental health, and we should all do our individual contribution to dispelling myths and stigma around mental health issues.