The power of sharing

However hard we hold onto people, we will have to face the universal consequence of us being alone at some point in our lives. Although this was a pretty grim and ironic sentence to start an article that is titled ‘The Power Of Sharing’, an inevitably social concept, I would prefer penning down things that are not utopian.

We cannot get people to walk our path for us, but what we can do is let them walk with us. Although human experiences are very unique, they are also shared stories.

Sharing our emotions, and being vulnerable in front of someone else might look scary initially, but it can be one of the healthiest steps we can take to hone our mental health. Talking about mental health, and venting out things that are troubling us can help us reduce the stigma around mental health and build a healthy support group.

Teaching ourselves and others how to talk about our struggles can mitigate stress rather than develop it. As responsible youth, we need to revamp the language around mental health. We can work on ourselves, taking small steps at a time to understand our feelings and express them without demeaning the struggles others are going through.

Here’s a little guide to comprehend the comments made above.

1. I don’t feel good today, I am so depressed sad.

2. My OCD perfectionism cannot tolerate my bookshelf being disturbed.

3. I saw him laughing a moment ago, and now he is crying. He is so bipolar gets so many mood swings.

The more we talk about our mental health challenges to the people we trust, the more empowered and helped we will feel.

When people, especially those who influence society, like actors, singers, and sportsperson disclose their struggles, they not only improve their well-being but also help in bashing the internalized stigma around mental health that prevails in society.

At times talking about our difficulties may trigger us because it somehow forces us to retrospect on the troubles we have been through. We need to understand that it is a very human thing for us to be triggered by discussions on our mental health.

Sharing our emotions and reflecting upon our journey helps us to identify healthy coping mechanisms and our perspective on mental health.

On a lighter note, let us think about the 'relatable memes' we find on the internet. At times it baffles me to a great extent that the things I considered very personal happen with others too and I am not the only one who gets a dry text like 'ok' from her dad. Similarly, our mental health narratives are also shared by others and we are not alone.

Once we conquer the scary phase of opening up, we learn to talk about our struggles without feeling unsafe or drained. We use the power of sharing to safeguard our mental well-being.

Sharing makes us kinder to ourselves, and eventually, we show kindness to others as well. We embrace the element of empathy and try to connect with others who are struggling similarly. The way we act inwardly soon becomes our outward personality. We begin to challenge the existing ideas about mental health instilled in our brains and society.

Opening up helps us recognize positive and appropriate places to seek help and find support. We meet others who have similar narratives to share and listening to their stories encourages us to dismantle the established stigmatic notions around mental health.

Sharing helps us accept reality.

One step at a time.