A New look at Mental Issues

Dealing with the Germs of Mind

Through my hub, A New Approach to Mental Health, I proposed the concept of mental germs. Let me ponder further.

Let us say, we got hurt. Two things happen. We may sustain serious damage, both as a result of that injury, and due to the repercussions owing to our reactions to same. The damage we sustain can thus get aggravated, or mitigated, by our reactions. And when it comes to bodily injuries, we are protected rather well, both by our immune system, and by a continuously updated medical science. Where, separating the symptom from the disease can be cited as the single most important component that has led to this success, we may say, by channelizing our efforts towards better productivity. Additionally, we are constantly aided by the clean habits we try to maintain in all aspects of living.

But, our mental injuries are getting only a step motherly treatment. I think we need to follow here also, something similar to the above. And there we face many challenges.

Firstly, what constitutes an injury? This is easily understood in case of physical injuries, as something that can hurt. Anything which is used beyond its purpose can cause hurt, and everything too can do the same, if one is not careful enough. In the same lines, can’t we say, anything that we say, hear, see, or sense, can act as an injury, if it is beyond certain limits, and everything can act thus, whether within limits or not, if one is not careful enough.

If so, what constitutes a limit?

To appreciate this better, let us take a moment to chart out our responses to such matters in other fields of life. Here, we agree that our style of living contributes to the plethora of germs, and other substances capable of bringing harm to our well being. Also, we are able to continue with a healthy life only by resorting to a planned strategy of a better environment, and a conducive way of living that involves both prevention and cure. 

We need a similar approach for our mental health too. I think, firstly we can acknowledge that our daily transactions, potentially, result in an atmosphere fully infested with mental germs. That can let us identify the need to develop a strategy to maintain a sound mind, notwithstanding such an inclement atmosphere. As above, such a strategy too may have both preventive, and corrective steps.

What is happening? Presently, we get, bombarded with information of various kinds, and of differing intensity. Some, most unreal, but exciting, some others, clearly true but tasteless, and many others of in between stature. As a reaction to these inputs, our minds are constantly on a churn. 

We identify with sympathy, or oppose totally, those signals that belong to the first two. And we neglect the third group, though those potentially contain early warnings of many a disaster. Both of which produce, directly or by reflex, transactions of severe nature in our minds, leaving us always in a state of mental strain. And, as it is well known, good decisions rarely arise, when the mind is under strain.

Therefore, what is needed is to limit all our transactions, whether of enjoyment, expressions of grief, of anger, or whatever, such that only the signals that belong to neither of the extremes take part. And this should be our style, both for action and for response, which should also get instituted widely and taught to the young, as a part of clean living habits.

(Why is that, since time immemorial, nobody thought in these lines? Surely, this does not look anything revolutionary, or out of the world.

I think, that exactly is the reason, why such ideas never interested us. Our forefathers were, just as we are nowadays, looking for an opportunity to grapple with something esoteric.)