It seems that there aren't many mentally healthy people around these days, with so many people having various struggles, medically diagnosed, or self diagnosed. It is almost like people want to box themselves into a label and then use it as an excuse as to why they can't do, or can't stop doing something. But I get it, because we have created a global environment that doesn't promote health of any kind, and ultimately we are going to suffer mentally as well.
We are adrift in space.
One of the indicators I earmarked as a future problem some time back in the mid-2000s, was loneliness. Even then, I could see the writing on the wall as more people put white earbuds into their ears and scrolled an Ipod list. I remember discussing multiple times with one of my brothers what the consequences might be as people disengage from the world around them and close themselves off to random. Ultimately, this limits conversation, relationships, and degrades social skills - which exacerbates the problems and the downward spiral quickens.
Fast forward a bit over twenty years, and here we are, with a host of mental health crises, that run right along with our generally degrading physical health also. Our emotional health is almost non-existent and as a result of the three - our social health score is rapidly approaching zero.
We live in a world where children are killing themselves, because they can't cope with life. and before the pandemic gets brought up, between 2007 and 2021, suicide of under 20s increased by 62%. And between 2007 and 2018, suicide between ages 10-14 doubled. And if you consider that suicide numbers are the extremes, then there are a whole lot of kids on the edges. So it isn't the pandemic, rather cultural change and behaviours that has led to this outcome.
And of course, it isn't just young people who are struggling, it is just that they have been exposed to decaying conditions their entire lives. They have largely been raised to not only be unhealthy, but focus all of their attention in identifying with their ill-health, self-diagnosing, going to therapy, learning the labels, and applying them liberally to meet their emotional needs of the moment.
And their parents are no better, acting as facilitators and a cheer squad, and using Google to diagnose their children, themselves and to find strategies to deal with largely preventable problems that lead down the road to poor mental health, like using screens as babysitters, rather than learning to talk with their children, and grow together.
Loneliness is just one of the indicators, but it is a big one because for two million odd years, we have evolved to be social creatures that have been successful as a species due to our ability to communicate with each other. Yet, in a few short decades, we have moved heavily away from social interaction and into the realm of "me me me", developing tools to further isolate us from others and still feed our sense of belonging to a group. We are out of sync with reality, but we don't realise it because we have been conditioned so that virtual reality feels real enough. Yet in reality, they are about as similar as a passionate kiss with a lover, and a hot needle in the eye.
The sad thing is, that if anything is to be done to turn it around, it is going to take generations. But, there just isn't the time, nor the will, because instead of dealing with the things that actually matter to the species, we align ourselves with what matters to the economy. Whilst they shouldn't be in conflict, in the current financial world, they are on two very, very different paths.
We all have issues.
All of us.
But more and more, they seem to be dominating our lives and becoming the focus of our attention, rather than a hurdle to cross to get to where we ant to go. The goal for many seems to beat their issues, but with no reason to do so. Life isn't about overcoming, it is about fighting the self over and over, never moving on to anything greater than that - which I suspect is because of the me me me mentality that we have adopted. Despite wanting to be part of something larger, something meaningful, everything gets pushed onto the backburner until we have overcome ourselves. Perhaps we should focus on improving the environment we operate in, and overcome the obstacles along the way instead.
There is no such thing as perfect.
Accept it - and keep improving instead.
Taraz
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