"Thoughts are things; they have tremendous power. Thoughts of doubt and fear are pathways to failure. When you conquer negative attitudes of doubt and fear you conquer failure. Thoughts crystallize into habit and habit solidifies into circumstances.” Adams, Bryan
If you want to move past mental illness
to mental health the best way is through education and awareness of
what is actually going on in your brain. Mental illness is a
biochemical reaction in your head, your chemicals and neurons are
misfiring and creating feelings of anxiety the fight or flight
reaction, depression, mania, paranoia etc. But what initially creates
those reactions? What triggers those chemicals to go all wacky? Some
say the environment others say its just a chemical in-balance, some say
both.
In
Purpose and Perspective an article in Psychology Today asks "Is
your depression due to the environment or biochemical?"
Julie K. Hersh explains, “well of course it is biochemical but what causes a
clinically depressed brain?” Dr.
Daniel Amen says, “that every thought we have causes a chemical and
electrical reaction in our brains.” So with that being said wouldn't it be correct to assume that if we change our thoughts we
could change the chemical reactions in our minds?
I have been on both sides, one being I
can't control how I view life and react to it, whether I get
depressed, anxiety, mania, it's just there. The other side of me says
yes, I can control it, I have before. Both are true. I have accepted
I have an illness something is chemically wrong with my brain but at
the same time I can control how it effects me and how I react to the
environment. With work and perseverance I can create a better
environment in my brain, like the last article I wrote about laughter, laughter and anger cannot exist at the same time. I want to
create a brain that accepts more laughter than anger or other
negative emotions.
The environment around us consists of
so many things, other people and their beliefs, society, politics,
nature,how our parents raised us, siblings, etc. Basically everything
outside of us. There is a lot that can potentially trigger our mental
problems. But what if you changed the way you react to those things
through discipline, awareness, and mindfulness. Which simply means
that there are multiple perspectives you can view life from. Have you
heard the saying there’s two sides to every story? Well it's
absolutely true, there are hundreds of sides to every situation and
if you can open your mind and your vision you can see life in
negative or positive ways, it really is your choice. The more you see
life through goodness, beauty, kindness, the healthier your mind will
become.
Thoughts are Things
Thoughts are things, I love that saying
because it reminds me of that fact, thoughts actually are things.
They send electrical stimuli to different parts of our brain which
triggers chemical reactions. So if I change my thought pattern I can
change the chemical reaction in my brain. It sounds simple right?
Well it's not. I have been working on it most of my life over 15
years now and I am no where near a master. But I can say with
conviction that if you react differently to your environment then the
mental issues you have can be handled so much more easier, it doesn't
impact your life as drastically.
Medications do help, but it doesn't
solve the problem. What is the problem? The problem is your brain, the
way you react to your environment creates the perfect breeding ground
for illness, you have to create an environment for health and well
being.
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| From Flickr by Ganga Sunshine |
Your Universe: How To Cope
“My
internal biochemistry is different than most. I've learned that my
unique universe isn't a bad thing, just different. No one looks at a
cactus and an orchid and expects them to react in the same way to a
similar environment. Why is this concept so difficult for some to
accept when they view human beings? Our challenge as humans is we
don't get to stick in one spot once we find the right blend of
sunlight, water and soil. We move around. Life bangs us from angles
we never expected.” -Julie K. Hersh
Every
person is different, we all thrive in different environments. Like
the above statement we don't get to stick like a cactus in one spot
we thrive in, we have to move around. How do we cope then? How do we
deal with different environments and thrive? We have to create the
environment within ourselves. Where we thrive is inside! We cannot
look for outside sources of health, happiness, well being, it all
comes from inside.
You are your environment and your environment is you. Your world is different from mine, things that help me cope and thrive may be different than yours. A true teacher would not tell you how to do things. In an article Buddhist Approach to Mental Illness will summarize perfectly my point exactly. In this article Dr. Stan Gold asks Lama Yeshe a Buddhist monk questions about how to treat mental illness.
Q: Lama Yeshe, how do you go about treating mental illness? How do you help people with mental illness?
"I try to show him the true nature of his mind so that with his own mind he can understand his own problems. If he can do that, he can solve his own problems himself. I don’t believe that I can solve his problems by simply talking to him a little. That might make him feel a bit better, but it’s very transient relief. The root of his problems reaches deep into his mind; as long as it’s there, changing circumstances will cause more problems to emerge."
I made the mistake of looking for outside resources to cope with my mental illness and issues. I looked to therapists to fix me, medications, diet, classes, money, school, friends/family, on and on it went. Nothing and no one could fix me. This article your reading can't fix you, I can't. You can however, you can help yourself. No matter how sick you are you can help yourself. Your environment can guide you, your family and therapists can guide you and support you but you have to do the work. It is a lifelong commitment to stay healthy. Your worth it though.
References:
Julie K. Hersh http://www.psychologytoday.com/experts/julie-k-hersh
Buddhist Approach to Mental Illness http://mandala.fpmt.org/archives/older/mandala-issues-for-1999/may/a-buddhist-approach-to-mental-illness/
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