Tweaks as easy ways to ameliorate our mental health, like audio tweaks to ameliorate the sound.
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Well said bruss.
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To be fair when I contacted Unite’s legal department about the industrial injury claim they were brilliant. I met with the lawyer who was building the case and discussed the case in detail, especially the gap in physiotherapy and intimidatory practices. Then I was sent to a specialist for an expert diagnosis. I would never have got anywhere without them. It was the shop floor rep who was useless.
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Mental health and our well being is a major concern for most of us in this modern world. We’re constantly being bombarded with information pressured in one form or another and from all directions. Like many others here I’d be reluctant to offer any advice, it’s hard enough to help and guide those close to you without trying to help some one you know nothing or very little about.
Having gone through some hard times in the 80s I can completely understand how difficult it is to keep picking yourself back up but the truth is you have too. Hopefully friends and family can help although sometimes their well meaning intentions are often misdirected, that’s why it’s important to get professional advice.
My only comment is time, time to allow yourself to recover from trauma and loss. Running and/or bike riding is great way to take your mind off your problems and I guess just keeping busy helps.
Re meds, nobody passes judgement when you’re on meds for “medical” reasons however if you’re on meds for mental health reasons seems everyone has an opinion.
I hope the OP allows themselves the time to rebuild their life and everything works out. Best of luck.
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One of my ex business partners had a son that sufferred from skitzophrenia (sp?). To assist, he took on the leadership of the local skitzophrenia society. He said that one of the main problems was that most people confused skitzophrenia with mutliple personality disorder and vice versa, which made it more difficult to diagnose the real issues and get people the correct help they needed.
We employed his son for basic factory tasks and seriously overpaid him for what he was capable of, and we made him part of the team and it all helped him with a feeling of accomplishment and self-respect.
We also helped other employees in similar ways. (We had 130 employees).
I wish this was a standard thing that companies would do to ‘give back’, without the reward of tax breaks and government program incentives.
Mais, c’est la vie … there’s only so many old hippies running successful businesses.
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@Pete_the_painter - Thank you. I am stable at present, on the other side of my ‘problems’ and trying to improve. My absolute top priority is to be there for my Son, who has just reached 23 and it about the start Year 4 of his Medicine course, at Bristol.
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As you and others have mentioned exercise is fantastic for boosting mood, especially if you can engage in some kind of group or team sport for the interaction it also brings to the table which is probably equally beneficial if you’ve been keeping yourself to yourself. Solo exercise can be mind numbingly boring at times, at least to me.
Some just won’t have the conifdence or motivation to do exercise, for others they physically cannot do so easily if at all. I find I can be well motivated to exercise in fits and starts then injuries set in which can be a real setback if they last for weeks or months on end.
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This is so true and very wrong, but thankfully I think things are changing for the better, especially with some high profile individuals highlighting matters. The problem is that others far too often consider mental health matters as a personal failing, lack of resilience or simply putting it on, whether you are prescribed medication or not.
What I forgot to mention initially is that concern about other people’s perceptions prevent many individuals seeking help in the first place, whereas they’d be entirely supportive of you seeking help for physical medical issues (most anyway). Physical and mental wellbeing are often intertwined.
We have a confidential wellbeing service at work which is excellent should you need it. They regularly send wellbeing surveys to all staff to assess the workforce’s mood - participation is voluntary and again confidential.
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I would like to hope this is true… but… 
[On Meds for Mental Health, since 2019.]
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The effects of Mental Health issues cover a broad spectrum. As with physical disabilities there will be consequences for an employer. Just how far an employer can probe and what disclosure is reasonable is not clear to me.
On a positive note, getting over fuzzy thinking without pills is possible for some. For me work was about the buzz of being able to find creative solutions to problems and delivering. IT consultancies did not suit me. The fact that the pay was comparable or better was no compensation. Fortunately after a dearth of interesting stuff and a few job changes I found a client for whom I worked for for ten years. Working in industry was always better though, so I retired early to live from property after the children fledged.
The wrong job can cause a downward spiral and my outlet was a self build at weekends a few years into consultancy. No Grand Designs on TV to make you think about whether it’s a good idea! Other things such as a friendship ending left me emotionally empty without answers. The energy has to come from somewhere. Certainly not pills. It took ages to realise it was grief. There was still plenty to learn about myself though. Probably a good counsellor would have helped. Ultimately it’s about finding a way to move on to good places without more damage.
Recently I feel able to have understandings about modern theories of high energy physics and cosmology (the former plus general relativity). I enjoy playing with ideas.
Phil
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A good subject to give some exposure too
Certainly had a period of depression myself many years ago during a particularly nasty and unpleasant divorce, which also had an effect on my children.
Glad its way behind me, fighting battles with someone who was determined to destroy me - but failed to do so.
My approach during these 2-3 years was to continually remind myself that this phase was only going to be temporary, that good people do prevail, and to focus on what I could control and what I could influence.
I also mapped out some goals for when this temporary phase would be over.
Eventually it was over and whilst I regret the amount of unnecessary energy and time that was wasted - I came through the other end and so did my children.
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Exactly time, it’s the great leveller. Although I do know that when you’re in the middle of it it’s hard to think about the future.
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The point you raise about information and being bombarded with it is an important one.
I often wonder why these days we hear so much more about people suffering with mental health matters, locally to me in Sydney there are seems to be very many teenagers struggling with depression.
Was there significantly less people suffering from mental health issues and depression in past decades? Or was it because social media didn’t exist to the same extent as now to allow people to share their challenges? Or has the modern world caused an increase in the number of people who are struggling? If the latter it should be important to start to address the cause
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Possibly a combination of all, it’s always been there. I guess we hear more about because of social media but there’s less stigma around the subject as well which means people are (hopefully) more like to discuss it. However I think the constant pressure we’re under these days is a huge contributor, it’s like everything is a competition.
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Perhaps why many search for a simpler less complicated life - much to be said in favour
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A really interesting and pertinent read. Lewis was one of my most influential lecturers at Uni. Hugely intelligent, enthusiastic, and full of life. He so wanted to convey his research findings to his students. After suffering depression he researched the biochemical, neurological, and cultural aspects and wrote this book. Revised edition after he had a relapse.
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There’s a lot of truth here in my experience. I have family and friends who suffer form various forms of anxiety and depression and they all have the similar lifestyles. Sedentary, diet is mostly processed foods, many hours on the computer, phone, social media, etc, poor sleep behavior, they spend little time outdoors, etc etc. Humans really aren’t designed for the modern lifestyle and we’re seeing it in mental and physical health outcomes. I follow a number of medical professionals online that discuss many of the issues that undermine our health and longevity. I watched this particular podcast the other day and thought of this thread. The topics they discuss are things I’ve observed for years. We have too much comfort in our lives and we really aren’t conditioned for it mentally or physically. The belief that Rx and alcohol will assuage these problems without addressing the underlying behavior complicates the problem. I encourage people to get outside, do something that makes you uncomortable, get your heart rate up, spend less time on social media, leave your phone at home once in a while and unplug. You’ll feel better. This is long but worth a listen, the beginning is background on the author but provides some perspective. No silver bullets here but some tweaks to your behavior may provide some light for you.
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I recently discovered one of the people in this video - Dr Attia - and his friend, Andrew Huberman on YouTube.
They have worthwhile information (often based on Peer reviewed academic journal articles) to share in relation to diet, exercise, meditation, and health.
There is an amazing video where Attia interviews Huberman about his backstory, which is Fascinating.
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Yeah, I’ve been following Huberman for a couple years now and discovered Attia through him. I’m a big fan of the Huberman/Andy Galpin series on physical training and conditioning. I’m making gains in the gym again thanks to what I’ve learned from their work. Attia’s view on VO2 max and longevity is interesting. I’m a former distance runner so this resonates with me. I don’t run distance anymore but I do like hiking and regularly hike some extreme trails here that get my heart pounding. I plan to start rucking for my normal walks to see what that’s all about. Also, Huberman’s podcast on the effects of alcohol are a big reason I quit drinking. I was a moderate drinker, never any dependency issues, but moderation is not good anymore unfortunately. My summit times are back to where I was 15 years ago, haven’t felt this good in ages.
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