The world and particularly our valley right now are in the middle of mental health crisis. We are not just tackling covid-19 like rest of the world does but we are battling many struggles in addition to covid-19. It’s estimated that half of the population across the world is suffering from depression at some moment in their lives and this estimate can be more when it comes to Kashmir owing to undue circumstances that we people have been exposed to. Rather than joining the queue, it’s quite important to learn why we get down and how we can change it because believe it or not, we create our own negative feelings and we can also ensure that we turn our lives around and be a positive change for others..
it's a strange kind of time we are living in right now where people from countries, tribes and families that have the most feel like they have the least.. people that live in countries & have the most reason to be happy seem to have the least amount of happiness. Why is this? is it comparison? Comparing ourselves to everyone who has more in this social media world we live in ? Never feeling enough because another will always be better in some area?
Remember comparison is the thief of joy. Never compare yourself to others. It doesn't matter how great you're, if you're not grateful for whom you're and what you have, you'll never ever be happy. There’s always going to be someone who has more money than you . There will always be someone doing better than you , someone fitter than you, someone better looking than you. if you're always comparing yourself, you'll always lose. one thing other people will never have over you ;they are not you. your greatest asset is that you're unique & when you're free to be exactly as you are, that's the greatest way to live.
the less you care about others opinions, the happier you will be. Unhappiness and depression comes when you focus on things you don't have. Instead if we appreciate what we do have & focus on where do we want to be , we can feel better almost instantly.. appreciation and gratitude is the single most powerful way out of depression or any low states. you can not feel both deep gratitude and negativity at the same time.if you can, you're not feeling the gratitude.
The teachings of our holy Quran & prophet Muhammad (SAW) show that gratitude and depression do not go together.One who shows the quality of gratitude can never be depressed. Depression initiates with the beginning of conditioned thoughts like "i can only be happy if x, y, z happens in my life. Having rules like "i can only be happy if " will always ensure happiness because life always throws challenges and obstacles in your way.. Keeping this in mind, you then can understand on an intellectual level that depression and anxiety does not have to be permanent. You can figure out why you feel down by learning about how your brain works, how your mind works & you can direct it to something that feels much better & long term..
Comparison is another big issue especially these days with an increase in social media craze and the amazing revelation of filters and editing apps. Filters that make people to look like a supermodel in one swipe and also the filters that many people apply to their lives like exaggerating everything to make themselves look bigger and better & leaving out all the negative things that are there, deep inside.The happiest people on earth do not compare themselves to others ever. Remember that comparison distracts you from your game.. focusing on someone else's score, focusing on someone's job, focusing on someone's pub-g, facebook, Tik Tok and Instagram grid doesn't make yours any better Focusing on what someone else is doing, what they are wearing, what someone else is driving does not make yours any better.I have seen people getting depressed because someone has got more number of likes on their face book profile. Why are you supposed to get mad at things that's nothing but a fantasy.Remember “minding your own business and focusing on yourself eliminates half of life problems".Focus on yourself & on your own strength and that's going to make all the difference. Without trying to copy, mimic or imitate anyone, keep focusing on the direction that works for you because there are always many directions to get u exactly where u need to be... they run their own race & they are happy for all others to run theirs in their own time & in their own way. Happy people don't have the best of everything because they make the best out of everything.
Certain things will never work as planned because you're living a life and not a movie. How u respond to how things work out will determine the quality of your life. The truth is that the pain you feel when you're depressed is coming from your thoughts about your current life situations , not the events but your thoughts about the events. Change your thoughts to change your life. use the pain for a greater benefit. The key principle in overcoming depression and unhappiness is not to focus on the depression & that's what most people do and they end up in depression.. one of the fastest ways out of depression is to create a compelling tomorrow , a greater purpose for your life.. if you're genuinely excited for the future, you cannot be miserable now & you can't let go of everything that has happened in past but you can use the lesson from past to build yourself. don’t be attached to outcomes or gaining of material things but instead get excited about who you're and who you're going to become , whom you're goig to help as a result of this amazing life you will be creating for yourself. Remember if you're suffering from depression, everything can turn around whatever you're going through right now, it will for sure get better and better. Don’t lose hope. Stay positive & energetic.
Email :Zubairchemku@gmail.com
