What causes mental illness and its various types? The answer lies in demon possession. When a person has mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar, major depression, psychosis, multiple personality disorder, or has suicidal thoughts, the individual has quite literally “lost their mind” to invading demon spirits.

Demon spirits pray on those who are weak mentally, physically and emotionally. When a person suffers a trauma in their life and they are unable to cope with the trauma mentally and emotionally, a part of their soul chooses not to have that experience and splits off causing “soul fragmentation”. This leaves a vacuum or space for demon spirits to reside within the soul and influence the mind and feelings of the person involved.

These demon spirits enter through holes in the aura when the person is emotionally vulnerable and seeks to “escape” their own life. Take for example, marijuana usage in teenagers who are often emotionally troubled and seek to escape the reality of their troubled lives. Taking drugs such as marijuana causes holes to appear in the aura. It is also a form of “escapism” that fragments the soul, leaving the individual open and vulnerable to demon possession. And this is why schizophrenia has been linked to marijuana usage. It is not the marijuana itself that is causing the schizophrenia, it is the invasion of the demon spirit that hi-jacks the soul and mind of the troubled teenager, after they have used marijuana.

This is why we see ordinary young adults stay healthy all their lives – free of schizophrenia – and then all of a sudden have schizophrenia after taking marijuana. It is because they have lost control of their mind due to demon possession.

Severe or more extreme types of mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar, personality disorder, multiple personality disorder, psychosis are caused by a large number of demon and earthbound spirits entering the soul of the person involved. The person has literally lost control of their soul and mind to malevolent or negative spirits. Major depression, suicide and suicidal thoughts are also caused by demon or earthbound spirits influencing the mind and the emotions of the person’s soul they inhabit.

Most people on earth have one or more earthbound or demon spirits within their soul, that has gained entry into their soul either during this lifetime or been carried over from a past life. Yet because demon spirits can only possess a soul according to the degree to which it has chosen to give away control of its soul, most demon possession is only partial in nature and the demon spirit expresses itself through the identity of the human ego. Most people cannot distinguish between what is of their own human ego, which is negative and fear-based in nature, and what is of a demon spirit that has infiltrated their soul under the guise of the ego.

The website mentioned below will give you important tools and information on this subject, information that has been channeled from Jesus Christ and other spiritual beings of Light, to help free you of the clutches of this demonic scurvy that has raged the souls of the people on earth. It is time to take back control of your soul.

The “Baker Act is the common name for The Florida Mental Health Act of 1971; (Chapter 394 – Mental Health Part 1- Florida Mental Health Act State Statutes 394.451-394.47891) which allows an individual to be involuntary examined and institutionalized.The Baker Act allows for involuntary examination and can be initiated by judges, law enforcement officials, physicians, or mental health professionals. The two criteria that must be present is that person:

• has a mental illness (as defined in the Baker Act).

• is a harm to self, harm to others, or there is evidence of self-neglect (as defined in the Baker Act).

Mental illness” means an impairment of the mental or emotional processes that exercise conscious control of one’s actions or of the ability to perceive or understand reality, which impairment substantially interferes with the person’s ability to meet the ordinary demands of living. For the purposes of this part, the term does not include a developmental disability as defined in chapter 393, intoxication, or conditions manifested only by antisocial behavior or substance abuse impairment” (as defined in the Baker Act).

RELEVANT STATUTES:

394.459 Rights of patients.

394.4615 Clinical records; confidentiality.

394.462 Transportation.

394.4625 Voluntary admissions.

394.463 Involuntary examination.

394.4655 Involuntary outpatient placement.

394.467 Involuntary inpatient placement.

394.468 Admission and discharge procedures.

394.4685 Transfer of patients among facilities.

394.469 Discharge of involuntary patients.

KEY CHECKLIST ITEMS FOR DOCUMENTS:

Certificate of Professional Initiating Involuntary Examination

• Include name of client/patient

• Complete date and/or time

• Be sure to list mental illness diagnosis

• Behaviors supporting mental diagnosis can be included

• Include printed name of professional completing the form

• Include the degree/title of the professional e.g. MD, PhD, LCSW, Physician, Psychiatrist etc.

Release from Involuntary Examination

• Include details as to why the person is being released from involuntary examination

• Include date and time of the examination

Voluntary Admission

• Use the correct forms for minor child and adult

• Note on the voluntary admission form if minor child refused to co-sign

• Voluntary admission form can only be signed by a legal guardian/parent

• Be sure to include the name of the patient

• Make sure to complete the reason the person came to the hospital

• Printed name of the staff/person witnessing signature needs to be legible

Petition for Involuntary Inpatient Placement

• Psychiatrist/Clinical Psychologist name needs to be on the correct line

• 1st and 2nd Opinions have to be completed before the Baker Act expires

• Include observations supporting petition

• Include the date and time of the examination

• Writing on the document needs to be legible

SELECT CRITICAL TIMEFRAMES

Certificate of Professional Initiating Involuntary Examination

• Examine person within preceding 48 hours

• 72 hour clock is non-negotiable- person has to be converted to voluntary status or involuntary inpatient placement process has to be initiated

Emergency Medical Condition

• The 72-hour period begins when the patient arrives at the hospital and ceases when the attending physician documents that the patient has an emergency medical condition.

• Once person is medically cleared the BA clock resumes.

• One of the following must occur within 12 hours after the patient’s attending physician documents that the patient’s medical condition has stabilized or that an emergency medical condition does not exist:

1. The patient must be examined by a designated receiving facility and released; or

2. The patient must be transferred to a designated receiving facility in which appropriate medical treatment is available.

Petition for Involuntary Inpatient Placement

• 1st opinion, 2nd opinion and court filing must happen within 72 hours

Request for Discharge from Hospital

• Must be communicated to a physician, clinical psychologist, or psychiatrist as quickly as possible, but not later than 12 hours after the request is made.

• Person has to be examined within 24 hours and 1) either has to be discharged 2) involuntary inpatient placement process has to be initiated or 3) request for discharge has to be rescinded by patient

Transfer to Involuntary Status

• If involuntary placement petition is filed it must be filed within 2 court working days

Court Hearing on Involuntary Inpatient Placement

• Within 5 court working days

Writ of Habeas Corpus

• Must be filed with the court by next court working day

Resources:

National Alliance on Mental Illness

http://www.nami.org

1 (800) 950-NAMI (6264)

National Institute of Mental Health

http://www.nimh.nih.gov

Since March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic started spreading, the magnitude of population reporting anxiety or depression grew exponentially. It has always been a common experience to face anxiety in different walks of life. Anything from finances, job interviews, social gatherings, and other personal vulnerabilities tend to evoke anxiety at times.

These are normal feelings and vanish in some time. However, for some people these experiences can be more than a momentary restlessness, especially in challenging times like COVID-19 or during other personal or professional crisis.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Americans experienced more symptoms of anxiety disorder during April-June of 2020, compared with the same period in 2019. According to a survey, around 40.9 percent respondents reported at least one behavioral health condition, such as symptoms of a trauma-and stressor-related disorder (TSRD) associated with the pandemic (26.3 percent) and symptoms of anxiety disorder (30.9 percent). In addition, 13.3 percent of respondents reported to have started or increased substance use to cope with COVID-19 related stress or emotions.

In this hour of tremendous stress, it is important to keep calm and avoid panic or anxiety situations. Here are some lifestyle suggestions that people battling anxiety can adopt to enjoy a better quality of life.

1. Staying physically active: Indulging in 30 minutes of physical activity five days a week can help boost mental health. Exercise helps minimize stress by improving mood and maintaining healthy physical health. People with mental illnesses should start out slowly, gradually increasing the intensity and amount of physical activities.
2. Eating healthy: Good nutrition is the key to good mental health. Healthy food has a positive impact on management and prevention of mental health problems including anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among others.

   Foods rich in essential fats, complex carbohydrates, amino acids, and vitamins and minerals can improve and protect overall wellbeing. Moreover, consuming adequate amounts of water is also essential to maintain optimum mental as well as physical health.

3. Avoiding alcohol and recreational drugs: According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), around 20 percent of Americans having an anxiety or mood disorder have an alcohol or other substance use disorder. Therefore, individuals battling anxiety or showing the signs of anxiety and other mood disorder should quit alcohol and substance use with immediate effect. In case they find it difficult to get over the addiction on their own, they can enlist professional help.
4. Quitting nicotine and caffeine: Some people resort to smoking for its calming effect. However, it is a false perception, as nicotine tends to increase blood pressure and heart rate, the physical symptoms associated with anxiety. Similarly, anxious people should also avoid caffeinated beverages as they can aggravate the symptoms.
5. Practicing relaxation techniques: Stress management and relaxation techniques including meditation and yoga can help ease anxiety. While it may take a while to develop a routine for these techniques, these are beneficial in the longer run.
6. Getting ample sleep: As per the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), 54 percent people with stress or anxiety experienced increased anxiety about falling asleep at night. Anxiety patients also complained of disturbed sleep in the night, called as midnight anxiety. Such patients should practice healthy sleep habits to enjoy a sound sleep. People facing difficulty in sleeping may also see a sleep expert.
7. Socializing: Some people get anxious at a mere thought of socializing. However, socializing can be an effective technique to overcome anxiety. Meeting like-minded people, sharing thoughts and seeking emotional support can go a long way in helping people recover from social anxiety. It can be difficult in the beginning and can be achieved with continuous support from family and friends.
8. Seeking and sticking to the treatment: Sometimes, anxiety becomes so severe that it begins to impair one’s quality of life. It is time to seek professional help. Anxiety is treatable; however, it is important to follow the instructions of a medical professional and stick to the treatment plan.

In everyday conversing about Health, we clearly understand Health to mean Physical Health, because only Physical Health is measured and expressed by scientific consensus. Nevertheless Physical Health is not only just a fractional aspect of the Well-being of an Individual, symptoms of Illness are commonly the final exposition of a an earlier event that caused a disturbance in the body’s Energy Field. This is an essential consideration in the realm of Preventive-care, or Sustainable Health where effectiveness is proportional to its earlier detection. Consequently, what is now called “Preventive-care” does not mean forestalling Illness per se, as it is limited to analyzing Physical Health and therefore should be more aptly termed “early Symptoms detection”. In order to preempt disease and keep the Individual healthy, we need to extend our Health Analysis to all its 6 elements:

• Physical Health
• Mental Health
• Emotional Health
• Spiritual Health
• Social Health
• Intellectual Health

We have already analyzed the first 2 elements: Physical Health (When Healthy Is Not Enough: Discover The 6 Elements You Can’t Be Missing!), and Mental Health (When Healthy Is Not Enough: How To Engage Your Emotions!) Now the question is: How is Emotional Health different from Mental Health, are they not both the same? At least many dictionaries define Emotional and Mental Health as the same thing, and in everyday parlance both terms are – wrongly – used interchangeably.

Emotional versus Mental Health Even though the dictionaries are missing the distinction in definition, the significant difference evolves when we define the terms emotions and mind.. Emotion roots in the French word for move or excite, implying that emotions are spontaneous and ever-changing. Emotions are the person-specific non-conscious reactions to a situation that may result in feelings, such as anger, joy, sadness, love or hate. Expressed emotions typically include crying, yelling, laughing, shouting, trembling, stumbling or even fainting. In contrast, Mind can be defined as: that which is responsible for one’s thoughts and feelings; the seat of the faculty of reason; The terms are also distinctive in our daily lives and how we are perceived in society. We can say: I changed my mind, while saying: I changed my emotions, doesn’t make sense, because emotions happen, they are not made. Many definitions purport that Emotions are part of Mental Health while the opposite does not apply. However, in the context of assessment of the Whole Health of a person, the Holistic Health, we have to analyze Emotions as a separate element. It is well known that Emotions may have a profound effect on the Individual’s Mental Health and eventually manifest in Physical Illness.

For example, my own father was, what people call a very emotional person. He showed frequent outbursts of extreme anger to a degree that it threatened his job. Aware and afraid of the situation, he stifled his emotions. But stifling didn’t change his choleric nature and he eventually came down with a massive heart attack from which he never recovered. He was never diagnosed with a Mental Health problem, but he clearly had an Emotional problem with Anger Management. It follows that Emotions can also have a positive effect on the Individual’s Well-being. A Lady Doctor friend of mine contracted a very aggressive form of Leukemia and her chances of survival were very low. But she has a personality characterized by very positive emotions, always laughing and charming with great charisma. During a lecture she fainted and was brought to the ICU, but before her colleges could rush to the site, she had disappeared. This happened many times for many years and today she is still alive – as a medical miracle. But she had such positive Emotions that beckoned to everyone: I absolutely refuse to give up!

This example portrays that one can change mood simply by changing the thinking. The brain controls both mood and thoughts so it makes sense that what one thinks about can change emotions. Nevertheless, this is not the whole picture, for that we have to consider the other elements that play a role, such as Spiritual Health which will be analyzed in the article: When Healthy Is Not Enough: Unleash The Power Of Belief!

What is MHMR?

Mental Retardation, the second part of this acronym, stands for the state of a person when he does not have the same mental capability as other people. Generally, he may have difficulties making decisions for himself, doing daily chores by himself, and participating in activities designed for other people of his age. This illness is usually congenital; the children with mental retardation learn and develop slower than other children. They need help with their daily activities, such as eating, dressing, speaking and toilet habits, for a longer time than other children of their age. They also require special education that addresses their special needs and helps them blossom in their own way. People with mental retardation are in no way different, they are simply deficit in certain functions, learning which might take a longer time for them. They are not meant to be isolated from the mainstream society.

Frequency of Mental Retardation

Mental Retardation is not an anomaly. According to a survey carried out by the U.S. Department of Education in 2002, the rate of mental illness in the country is from 3-5%, with almost 613,000 children affected with various forms of mental retardation. Mental health services in the country are therefore always upgraded with the latest techniques in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness.

Diagnosis- MHMR is diagnosed by specialist doctors by evaluating the child’s IQ, and whether it is adequate enough for his age, and secondly, whether he can perform the independent functions such as eating, understanding commands and performing them, interacting with his family and peers.

Treatment- Mental health services in the country not only diagnose MHMR, but also deal with recognizing the inner strengths and talents of the person, and providing the patient with educational support, behavioral counseling, and helping him learn to do his own chores himself. The treatment for mental retardation requires infinite patience, and specially trained doctors who understand the plight of the children affected with mental retardation. There are special schools for mentally disabled children, and the mental health treatment gradually helps the child to deal with the real world.

Organizations for MHMR- There are several reputed organizations in the country dealing with MHMR and offering mental health services. They offer counseling, run schools which teach life skills to children and adults with mental disabilities. Directories of the major hospitals in the district will have names and addresses of mental health services organizations.

Who knew? A phrase my Jewish relatives instilled in me decades ago. Who knew, that spiritually would be the strongest, most lasting, medicine for my mental illness? Who knew, that reclaiming and cultivating the damaged spirit within me would calm the trauma of anxiety, panic and depression?

In 1982, at age 29, I had a devastating nervous breakdown and was hospitalized in a psychiatric ward for six weeks. Eighteen years later I still don’t know why they call it a nervous breakdown? My nerves didn’t breakdown. I certainly had tactile feelings. I could touch my own arm and feel the sensation. So what nerves broke down? I have come to learn that it wasn’t my nerves but my emotional defenses, my emotional guard, my perception of who I am that became confused and full of fear. I became fearful of living. Sounds scary? It was beyond scary.

I had an extremely sever case of (OCD) Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, a disorder that I experienced as a child and throughout adolescents without knowing it. When my full onset hit in 1982, my symptoms were classic OCD such as, washing, checking, counting, obsessions about harming others, etc… The primary symptom was the phobia of Germs and Contamination. I would let no one touch me for fear of passing or receiving germs.

The touch example will give you a basis of how OCD Germ and Contamination phobia works. If you touch me I develop anxiety, questioning what germs are on your hands. Then I would start obsessing if those magical germs may harm me? The magical thinking or obsessing exacerbates. My fearful inner dialogue continues: ‘You touched my hand. I now have your germs. If I touch someone, those germs may get on some one else and harm them. They may get sick or die, simply because I wasn’t careful, and it’s my entire fault!’

Sound irrational? It was. However, OCD is not a psychotic disorder, it’s a neurotic disorder. It’s a ‘Worrying’ state of being. It is a progression of obsessions (worrying thoughts) and compulsions (behaviors to try to control the worrying thoughts) all expressed from fear. It develops into anxiety and panic. However, at the same time the OCD mind is frustrated and confused.

I used to say to myself, “this is ridiculous, how can this be happening? I don’t really believe all these obsessions, but why can’t I stop?” OCD is a neurological disorder. It is a progressive disorder if not treated. In 1982, there was little or no OCD medication that would help. Anxiety reducing medication and ERPT, Exposure-Response-Prevention-Therapy worked the best for me; I’ll talk more about that later. I became much worse before I started my journey to recovery. Washing hands nine hours a day, bathroom rituals taking up to four hours per day, two hours to take a shower, checking and counting with scrupulosity. I was obsessed with fear of virtually all my surroundings. I had lost my job, my relationship, my apartment, my life. I remember my Psychiatrist sending me the message that this would be the greatest journey of my life. My question was; when does it end? When does this great journey find peace? When will it all stop? I was willing to do any thing to make it stop!

Recovery began with anti-anxiety medication so I could begin the long process of Exposure Response Prevention Therapy (ERPT). This was a process of exposing myself to fears and phobia’s and then not responding with rituals. Example: Using ERPT with a phobia of public bathrooms and germs. Here’s how it worked for me. I would get cognitive support from my psychiatrist to work up a head of emotional muscle to take the risk of using a public bathroom. Then I went to a local hotel lobby. I used the bathroom. Now, the trick was not to ritualize the fears away by washing my hands for hours. I washed my hands twice and walked out the door. I then had a wave of anxiety that I was instructed to feel the feelings. Not go back and wash or do any other ritual to take care of that feeling. Just sit with it and let it dissipate. It worked! I have been doing ERPT since 1982. I had a tool that with much practice would be a solid treatment. However, now that I could lean on ERPT to help my symptoms what was there to help balance my emotional life? What was there to bring serenity and peace back in to a life of stress, control and fear? What I found was some thing that I would never have thought of approaching. This nice liberal Jewish boy from Wisconsin was about to enter the realm of Spirituality.

The Spirituality I am talking about is not religious in nature. It does not come from any religious denomination or sect. It is a spirituality that is about reclaiming ones broken damaged spirit. Mine needed extreme mending! It all started when my psychiatrist suggested I be around ‘like-people’. He recommended going to a 12 Step group.

I am not advertising or promoting any 12 Step program. It’s not for every one. You have to decide for yourself. I am simply describing my experience and how it guided me to an extremely strong medicine called, Spirituality.

At that time, Obsessive Compulsive Anonymous was virtually nonexistent in my area. My Psychiatrist suggested I go to Al-Anon. I said to him: “Now wait a minute, I don’t think so. There’s nobody in my family that is an alcoholic, why are you suggesting Al-Anon? I have OCD.” He sat back in his chair with a gentle smile and said; “The first step of all 12 step programs reads the same except for one word. For instance, in Alcoholics Anonymous it will read; ‘We admitted we were powerless over alcohol -that our lives had become unmanageable’. In Codependent Anonymous it will read; ‘We admitted we were powerless over others-that our lives had become unmanageable’. In Emotions Anonymous it will read; ‘We admitted we were powerless over emotions-that our life’s had become unmanageable'”. Then he looked at me with his soft nonjudgmental eyes and asked; “Jim, what are you powerless over at this time in your life?” I replied;” My fears, my OCD”. He agreed and continued to ask me these bottom line questions. “At any level, has your life become unmanageable or out of control”? I thought for a few seconds. Bang! It all made sense. I had no control over my fears from OCD and my life was a mess because of it. He then asked the crucial question, “Jim, in that first step, do you think you could replace that single word with “fears?”

So, on a Wednesday night, I went to my first 12 step meeting. In the beginning I found myself internally fighting with the program. For example: fighting with the principals, fighting with the ideas, fighting with the common sense simplicity of it all. All these slogans that made absolutely no sense to me. ‘Let go, let God’. My brain screamed silently; ‘what the hell was that suppose to mean’?

It was clear that the program was not a religious program. The words, God and Higher Power were used only in the context of choice. A Higher Power of your choosing. It could be the Universe, it could be the group, it could be anything outside of yourself.

I went back to my psychiatrist, and asked; “What the hell does ‘Let go and let God’ mean?” He replied with words that I carry to this day. He said plainly; “All it means is Stop Trying to Figure It Out.” For the first time in my life I got very very quiet and literally stopped talking. ‘The committee’ in my mind, stopped arguing. Something finally made sense. I had been ‘figuring out life for decades rather than living it. Then my brain snapped back into judgment mode. It sounded just too simple for a person so phobic and fearful. I said to him in a defending voice,” Stop trying to figure it out? And then what”? He replied with another life changing spiritual concept; “and then, let go of controlling all your feelings and fears. Have them. Own them. Feel them. Life is about feeling all feelings, including fear and not controlling them. Jim, live life on life’s terms not your terms”. Ouch, that made sense! I couldn’t remember when I just let myself feel fear or anxiety and let it pass through me. I always tried to control it with rituals or obsessions.

Spirituality is about rebuilding and reclaiming a damaged spirit. Children, whom have not experienced abuse, judgment or disorders, are children that are full of spirit. They play, they laugh, they explore. When children or adults have any dysfunction, come into their life, their spirit or life force diminishes. The goal of Spirituality is to bring back your spirit with new tools. Tools you may have forgotten. Tools that were always with you, but because of the dysfunction, have faded. For myself, I wanted spirit back. I wanted to let go of control and live in a place of serenity not fear. Control is my issue.

There is a very strange paradox about control that you learn when you get in to spiritual work, whether it is through 12 Step programs, Course in Miracles, a large amount of books and tapes on spirituality from authors like Melody Beattie to Wayne Dyer to Depac Chopra.

The paradox is this, ‘When you let go of control and stop trying to figure it out… you get control. Let me repeat that. WHEN YOU LET GO OF CONTROL, YOU GET CONTROL. Isn’t that strange? I found it unbelievable, but I tried it and it works every time.

In rebuilding my spirit I found I was a tremendous people-pleaser, judger and controller. However, I learned a spiritual truth that I use to this day. I don’t have control over what other people say, do, act or behave. I can influence other people, but I have no control over them. I have no control your feelings. I have no control over how you are perceiving this information you’re reading right now. I do have control over my own thinking.

A good example of this was in my beginning years of recovery using spirituality. One Wednesday night I was sitting in a 12 step meeting. In this particular meeting there was an elderly lady sitting in the corner knitting. She never spoke, she just listened. She looked a little like Aunt Bea from Mayberry who was a sweet, kind, elderly lady, knitting in the corner of the room. She sat in the same chair, the same place, every meeting, every week. That night I was talking about how bad my day was. I was filled with anxiety, rituals and obsessions. I was exhausted from it all. Mad, frustrated and damn angry! The elderly lady put up her hand for the first time in months. She was chosen to speak. What came out of Aunt Bea’s mouth was the most profound thing I had ever heard. She quietly said; “You know, you can start your day anytime you want.” The room went quiet, very quiet, for a few moments. Then, my thoughts started to judge her statement, as I had been judging her silence for months. ‘How can you start your day anytime you want’? I didn’t understand. I asked myself. “If I have an anxious day from 7am in the morning till 11 at night and I go to bed at 12 midnight, between 11pm and 12 midnight I should start your day”!? She quietly expressed; “Exactly”, and then went back to knitting.

Aunt Bea wasn’t Aunt Bea anymore. She was my Guru!

That was the day I started to understand gratitude. I had a horrible day but I could make the conscience decision to start the day over no matter what time it was, and be grateful to the Universe or God that I had an hour of a good day. I could then build on that gratitude. Maybe next time I would have two or three hours, just because I changed my attitude in to gratitude. Start my day over at any given moment, what a concept. Rebuild my spirit at any given moment, what a gift. Take back my power and decide to feel the feelings of anxiety and let them pass, at any given moment.

I stopped judging this woman and began coming to meetings hoping she would speak.

Adding Spirituality, in all it’s many forms, to my treatment and recovery from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder has changed my life completely. I believe that it is the missing treatment modality that many of us need. It has given me life tools to work with. I wish I had a Spiritual Compassion class in the 3rd grade. For the majority of us, we were never taught spirituality without religion attached to it. Relearning how to look at my life from the inside out has been the most powerful medicine I have experienced.

On my road to recovery, I continue treatment through cognitive therapy, medicine, exposure-response-prevention therapy, risking, 12 Step programs and spiritual books and tapes. All have helped me get back my life. The spiritual component has been the strongest. At first, spirituality seemed New Age. It’s actually Old Age, based on philosophies centuries old, and now made understandable for us slow learners.

Belief was one of the strongest dynamics to change my biology. My heart is now open to all the possibilities of life.

My favorite spiritual saying; ‘When the student is ready, the teachers will appear’. When I became willing to heal, all new spiritual concepts arrived, and I got better.

Spirituality; who knew?

Do you suffer from a mental illness and don’t know how to get through your day because of the stress it causes?

My angels gave me a mission to speak out about mental illness. In doing so they gave me a message that if someone wears or uses turquoise in their daily lives it will soothe them and get them through their day.

Depression, Anxiety, OCD, all mental illnesses are usually ignored by sufferers and their family or friends. Many think it is a stigma to acknowledge it. Too many people frown down on us because they don’t understand the illness. If you don’t suffer from any mental illness symptoms you can’t begin to know what we go through. It has a lot to do with us functioning overall. What most people don’t realize is we have a lifelong diagnosis. We can take medication and take care of ourselves, but our illness might never go away. It’s always lingering waiting for that right moment to come back to the surface.

Being depressed is very stressful. People are afraid to admit it because they don’t want others to think badly of them. The fact is, with all the turmoil in the world today, a lot more people are becoming depressed. There is so much unemployment in the United States, which can cause a domino effect in our lives. A big issue is people losing their homes and some ending up homeless. This causes people to feel like nothing will ever get better.

I have firsthand knowledge and experience with this lingering illness. It is tough living with depression and anxiety. It is a feeling of being stuck and having no direction in life. For the longest time I never wanted or was capable of doing much physically, so I mostly watched TV. I was hospitalized 2 times for suicidal thoughts and in 2014 actually made an attempt. I felt like a wall was up and it wasn’t me going through the actions. I knew it was wrong but couldn’t control myself. My angels have been forefront in my life and orchestrated the event in a way to help me get on the right track and get more outpatient help. I’m not ashamed of having a mental illness. My spirituality is part of what got me through this last year.

Here are some symptoms that are overlooked as signs of a mental illness that we should all be aware of.

• A constant sad feeling

• Physical pain for no reason

• Chronic physical illness

• Extreme exhaustion

• Anxiety with shaking, headaches, increased heart rate, chronic belly ache and nausea.

• Depression makes us not care

• Drug or alcohol abuse

It is important to take care of yourself. You must “put the oxygen mask on first” before you can help others. Things can get better, even though the illness may never go away entirely. Having healthy mental health is like a muscle. The more we work it, the stronger it becomes. Some ways we can help ourselves are to follow a natural diet and have a fitness routine. Find something that interests us and follow through with it. For example, make jigsaw puzzles, reading self-help and inspirational books, watching your favorite TV programs. Try to get out into the sun for at least 10 minutes a day.

Having belief in yourself is a big step in healing.

My message is “Brighten Your Day With Turquoise”. My angels gave me this message to share because turquoise is considered to have a calming nature.

The meaning of the color turquoise is open communication and clarity of thought. It helps to open the lines of communication between the heart and the spoken word. It presents as a friendly and happy color enjoying life. In color psychology, turquoise controls and heals the emotions creating emotional balance and stability. This is a color that recharges our spirits during times of mental stress and tiredness, alleviating feelings of loneliness. You only have to focus on the color turquoise, whether on a wall or clothing and you feel instant calm and gentle invigoration, ready to face the world again!

Read more about The Color Turquoise at empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com

When we have a mental illness it is sometimes hard to get through our days. We look for other ways to calm us and using turquoise is another way that can help. We can wear a turquoise shirt or outfit, even a hat or headband. We can paint our walls turquoise and accent them with scenery photos that have turquoise accents.

Other ways to use turquoise for calming:

* Wear turquoise jewelry or carry turquoise gemstones in your pocket

* Write positive affirmations on turquoise color paper and post them through the house or place of employment. It can be as simple as “I AM HAPPY” or “I AM CALM”

* If you are a plant lover you can use turquoise flower pots to brighten a room.

* Artificial flowers

* Hang turquoise towels and shower curtains

*Sheets, blankets and bedspreads

* Turquoise color Vision Board with pictures of things that make you happy. Place it where you will see it often

Let’s support people with depression and anxiety. It is OK to acknowledge your suffering and being depressed. By doing so, it is a stepping stone to a journey of healing and leading a happier, more interactive and fulfilled life.

My vision is to have drop in facilities for people to go to and just relax and learn some coping skills. I learned a lot in outpatient programs after my hospitalizations. It is hard to get into these programs so I am going to learn about having a non-profit organization to offer these types of places through the United States.

Remember to have faith and know you can always pull through anything!

Love and Blessings, Catherine

Online therapy, mental health treatment conducted over the internet by a mental health counselor, has been an effective and convenient option for years. However, in these days of COVID restricted societies, it has become more of a necessity than an option, that has required a certain amount of adjustment for both clients and counselors.

As a psychologist who has worked more than 25 years as a “traditional” face to face counselor, I was sceptic at first. Would the client and I really be able to establish a proper connection in cyber space? How about my ability to decipher body language in a Zoom meeting? Would I be able to provide sufficient emotional support behind the screen to a client in emotional distress? I was leaning into the cons, while the obvious pros murmured unconvincingly in the background.

My first online session didn’t do much to convince me otherwise: problems connecting to the internet, failure to get the sound up and my uneasiness with the new “office” made it a fail. However, after a few more sessions things started to flow. Soon it became a comfortable routine, and the client was just as “real” in this setting. I even had clients who tried both setting, face to face and online, and then opted to continue online. The pros were starting to outweigh the cons and why so?

The Pros

Privacy: Most, if not all, clients highly value privacy when seeking mental health treatment. Online therapy offers additional privacy, as there’s no need to go to an office, where one may potentially meet other clients or therapists. This is particularly comfortable for a client who might leave the office feeling emotional and in need of alone time.

Time and logistics: No time (or cost) lost in transport and a session can even be squeezed in during lunch hour at work or after work at the office. Even the car can occasionally be used as an office!

Effectiveness: Research has shown, that online therapy can be just as effective in treating mental health issues such as depression, anxiety disorders and mild to moderate addiction.

Accessibility: Any one with a reliable internet connection can reach an online meeting. This means that people living in remote locations, with disabilities or with children to look after can now easily have access to treatment.

Convenience: Online therapy done comfortably from your home, often offers you the possibility to have sessions that fit into your own schedule as opposed to standard office hours.

Location: There is no location! You can chose your preferred therapist regardless of the country they’re residing in. Since working in several different countries over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of being able to provide continuous therapy to my clients worldwide, even though we are

countries and time zones apart.

The Cons

Confidentiality. Keeping your personal information private is always a major priority in psychotherapy, but online counseling adds a layer of complexity, especially when the therapist sends information and exercises to the client opposed to handing it over in private. It’s an issue that should be addressed between the client and the therapist.

Insurance. Some, but not all, insurance companies will accept to cover online treatment. However, in these corona times, insurance companies have also been needing to adjust their demands. Still, checking with your insurance company can keep your mind at rest.

Not in-treatment. People who are in acute distress, suicidal, or who have a serious psychiatric illness will need immediate in-treatment or in-person care and e-therapy can not provide sufficient assistance in these cases. However, if you’re already in an online treatment, your counselor will be able to help you with directing you to the necessary institutions.

COVID. Last but not least, online therapy offers the obvious and 100% safe option from contracting Covid in the office and avoiding the hassle of quarantine. We recently had a counselor in the office with covid, and afterwards clients and therapists who had been in close contact, myself included, had to be quarantined for a week.

I hope this article has been able to provide a general overview of the pros and cons of online therapy. Personally I’m converted, and a big supporter of online treatment for clients with mild to moderate psychological challenges, and I’d highly recommend anyone who is still scepticsl to give it a try!

I have kidded for decades about the fact that in my ministerial years I have met at least 23 of the Two Witnesses. One felt he was both of them, thus the odd number.

I remember going with a minister to a home in Idaho once where the woman heard the voice of God often in her head. She had a young baby so the minister asked me to tend to the baby while he talked to her about her visions and voices. The baby had not had a diaper change in a pretty long time, so I took care of that in the kitchen while the minister tried to help her. Seems she was killing chickens on the farm and trying to resurrect them…without much luck. We never made any connection to the danger and I doubt either of us understood the symptoms of schizophrenia, but I do now. After that, I returned to Ambassador for my last year and was reading the LA Times in the lounge before breakfast. My eye fell on a small article about a woman in a small town in Idaho who was found sitting in her car on a Mountain top waiting for Jesus to return. I knew the name. They found the baby dead on the farm. Or should I say, still dead.

From the Bible we find a man once laid on his right side for 390 straight days and then flipped over for another 40 because the voice in his head told him to. He built little models of Jerusalem in the sand and laid siege to a stone with a pot (Ez. 4). He even cooked his food with human waste (Ez. 4:9) and dug a hole in his own home and squeezed himself through it with his possessions on his back (Ez. 12). His name was Ezekiel. Maybe he was traumatized by the captivity or the destruction of the symbol of all that was holy and stable to him, the temple. He died forever ago and lots of the stuff he said was going to happen never really did far as we can tell. I hear a lot of minister types quoting him 2500 years later as if you can read the newspaper and immediately see what Ezekiel was talking about. I guess if they lay siege to a rock, lay on their sides for a year or more and give up charcoal for human waste at cookouts, …well…ewwww. Time to find another church. I know most will say that God told him to do these things….but think about what you are saying. Would you say that about Andrea Yates who God told to drown her kids or Mijailo Mijailovic who killed the Swedish Foreign Minister, Anna Lindh, saying when asked who told him to do it, “I think it was Jesus. That he has chosen me”?

An Old Testament character, Moses, went up into the mountains a few times because the voice in his head that no one else could hear, called him up for a meeting. He said it was God, but when he came back down the mountain carrying , what he said were the rules from the voice in his head, he ordered the murder of 3000 more pretty nice people, men women and children for not patiently waiting for him. And these people had already had a pretty tough time getting out of Egypt doing what the voice in this guys head told him to do. He had friends killing friends and families. Bummer… that was a heck of a lot of drama and walking for nothing. From what I understand, hardly anyone who fled Dodge City, Egypt believing the voices in this man’s head ever made it to the Promise Land. I’m not sure the story really happened, which would be a relief. I just can’t imagine this as a good way to begin their understanding of “Thou Shalt Not Kill.” This same fellow, was pretty sure that the voice spoke to him from bushes in the desert too. Not a good sign in the world of mental health types .

Yet again, an Old Testament figure called Abraham, decides to take his only son, up the mountain and kill him as a sacrifice. Perhaps a weird way to say thanks for the son that he could never have before. But I’d think that was going a bit too far. Reminds me of cutting off the nose to spite the face. Anyway, the voice in his head said to and then decided it was only kidding. The child, who probably refused ever again to go on any “just a campout” with dad , was replaced by an animal conveniently stuck in a nearby bush. What’s the chance of that! I can’t imagine Isaac every quite trusted ol’ dad again.

There was a guy who married a prostitute because the voice told him to. We had to drop the standard laws of marriage for this one, but its OK if you are doing it for God. Man was his wife mad about that! The guy even began to think he was a reincarnated form of the guy before him who talked to the bush. Tons of people obeyed this guy for a time, but usually not for very long. Hosea I think.

The more I think about it, the more I have to admit that voices in the heads of people I never met, and no one at that time could hear themselves, have played a really big role in who gets the final say in religion. What if…Nah.

Paul in the New Testament fell off a donkey when he heard a voice in his head about giving Jesus a hard time in his old job. He even saw a flash of light in his head, brighter than the sun and it was already noon when this happened! That’s pretty darn bright! When people in the Bible light up, it’s ALWAYS brighter than the sun. You’d think more people would notice. The others either heard the voice but did not see the light, or saw the light but not the voice, stood up, or all fell down depending on the story your read in the Bible. The voice in Paul’s head told him it was time to change jobs and he’d get his vision back from a guy in town if he did what he was told. Today we might say he had all the symptoms of a sunstroke or maybe even temporal lobe epilepsy where voices and flashes are pretty darn common along with an intense sense of morality that others must get in tune with.

Paul went on to write most of the New Testament and continue to tell people nothing about any real Jesus he had ever met. No stories, no miracles, no teachings, nothing about the 12 guys Jesus had to follow him, and I would expect to have passed the teachings on to others. Maybe even write something about Jesus, after all there were 12 of them! But alas, they didn’t much and we have no clue what happened to that bunch. It’s all hearsay. Some say that they were merely a symbol of the twelve signs of the zodiac surrounding the central sun/son, and not real people, but let’s not go there.

Paul spoke volumes about the one who spoke to him in his head and he saw often in visions. When he gave the instructions for eating the body and blood of Jesus, he said very plainly Jesus himself told him about the details of that. Paul never met the real Jesus so I’m pretty sure he meant in vision. When he said, “have I not seen the Lord?” he didn’t mean in person. He meant in his visions. He even took a trip to the third heaven, but said the stuff he saw was too much to share at this time…Hey!

At any rate, Paul ends up in Rome for some unnamed offense and disappears. Sometimes I think his death or execution must have been an embarrassment to the church as the last we hear of him, he is under house arrest having a pretty good time. I’m sure they knew how it ended for the guy and why, but it might have annoyed the early Christians to know the truth of it all, so they left it out.

I even heard or read in the book of Mark that Jesus mom and brothers came down to Jerusalem to get him because THEY thought he was “mad.” I don’t think they thought he was angry, but rather a bit daft. Jesus kind of blew them off in a way that would have got me slapped by my dad for being so rude to mom. It was like he didn’t know them. Mary had evidently completely forgotten about his wonderful birth story and all those great things she kept and pondered in her heart. Besides he had to do what the voice in his head said. Later, other guys who wrote about Jesus dropped this hot little tale and told a really cute story about how Jesus came to be. God himself had visited her, well no, I guess the Holy Spirit did. You know the third thing in the Trinity and she was pregnant by no less than the Deity. She burst into song about this in Luke and seemed to know that Jesus was literally “fully God and fully man”, whatever that means. I can understand one thing being fully something, but not two things being fully the same thing but different and coequal but not. Oh never mind. Church talk. I guess it’s one of those mysteries we hear about when one story leads to the next and we tie ourselves in a knot, wrapped in a enigma, coated with cheese.

Matthew tells a great story of Jesus birth, different from Luke’s, but at least they cleaned up that embarrassing tale about Jesus being hauled away by his family for being nuts. Mark must have been mistaken according to Matthew and Luke, but Mark was the embarrassing story and came before the cute story, I suspect it had a ring of truth to it, at least as Mary saw it.

Sometimes I wonder if Jesus was so anxiety ridden not to know who his real father was that he took mom literal when she got tired of him asking and said “God is your father.” Who knows?

I always found it interesting that the poor kid in the New Testament who threw himself in both the fire and water often, or maybe just fell in them when this hit him, cried out, foamed at the mouth and then recovered pretty quickly when the demon was put out, had all the symptoms of infantile epilepsy. Every one!

Some say his cursing trees for having no fruit at a time of year when there is not supposed to be fruit, or attacking the legitimate money changers in the temple who really were simply changing pagan money into temple scrip for the purchase of sacrifices, were not good signs of quality mental health. That last act probably got him killed by the Romans, though somehow it ended up being the Jews fault. I guess it was easier and a bit wiser to blame the Jews who could not hurt you, rather than the Romans who could kill you. At any rate, this temper thing is not a good sign of good mental health.

As long as we are on the topic… I always found it interesting that the poor kid in the New Testament who threw himself in both the fire and water often, or maybe just fell in them when this hit him, cried out, foamed at the mouth and then recovered pretty quickly when the demon was put out, had all the symptoms of infantile epilepsy. Every one! I wonder how people back then would treat a kid with epilepsy! It runs its course in about 30 minutes so it would sure appear that the old demon was banished. I also wondered as a kid, what a kid would have to do to get a real demon lurking in his body. Must have been some weak minded kid to let that happen. I remember as a kid hoping no demon would jump on me. I’d vote infantile epilepsy and not blame the folks of 2000 years ago for not knowing the symptoms or how it manifested. Anyway, the demon was put out, but we don’t know if it ever came back.

Jesus had a hard time doing this stuff in his hometown because a prophet has no honor in his own town or with his own family. Well duh! They know you pretty darn well and got so concerned they came down to retrieve you for your own good, if you believe Mark. Of course he blamed the weak faith of the group, but maybe that’s because they all know you so well and aren’t easily convinced. I mean, if Jesus was God, really, really, really GOD, would the force be thwarted just because the neighbors who knew you as a kid had a hard time accepting that? I think not! Since when does being God in the flesh depend on the acceptance of the people who know you best?

I once read a story about Jesus where, as a child he kills another playmate for some offense towards him. Gosh, I hope that didn’t really happen but I can see why it never made the cut. I guess Jesus could have heard about Moses knocking off the Egyptian for picking on a buddy and God said it was OK to express your anger that way if you need to.

Jesus also got rid of a whole legion of demons in a man that lived in a cemetery, naked and was really an angry guy that was so strong he broke the chains they tried to bind him in. I guess that was sorta the lithium of the times…chains. Anyway, aside from this man having every symptom of schizophrenia, all the demons got thrown into a herd of pigs and they ran down into the sea from a town no where near the sea and drown. Kind of a marathon run and by the time they got there, they’d be skinny and pooped out pigs. But this is another story. Boy, I bet that made the farmer mad at Jesus! Of course, this would not be a Jewish farmer so it’s ok. In the OT, if you found some animal that was defective, you couldn’t eat it yourself, but you could sell it to the pagans, so hey, not your problemo.

Anyway….I guess we could really wonder about the book of Revelation… Whoa…that is some good drugs! Whoever wrote that was one angry human being… Death, destruction, fire, plagues, trombones, vials and all sorts of stuff pour out on everyone! This Jesus is not such a nice guy. Sometimes I get to thinking the one in the Gospels can’t possibly be the same one as the guy in Revelation, but that’s what they say. The one in Revelation seems like an end stage schizophrenic gone amuck. I’m not sure I could be comfy in heaven or the kingdom with one who could be so freaking mean to everyone except those special ones. I always felt a few seminars or maybe a refresher type program would send a kinder gentler message, instead of all the butt kicking, death and destruction. Maybe a nice lunch between encouraging sessions and a Luau in the evening where we could all marvel at actually meeting the real God and Jesus. And hey…if the presenter is really God or Jesus come down…I mean really really…I’d listen and be good. But alas, this Jesus in Revelation is a case…maybe literally. It’s just one big vision in someone’s head hearing voices again that others can’t hear and seeing things others don’t see. Makes me nervous. And people today base their entire life perspective on a vindictive vision expressed almost as a “oh yeah, well this is what you get for not believing me.” Nuther symptom. Vengeance.

Someone once asked what’s the difference between a Bible Prophet or Christian fundamentalist and a paranoid schizophrenic? Well, one hears voices in their head, has a heightened moral code, is judgmental yet can be very deceptive and manipulative, has delusions of being on a mission from God, sees things that no one else present sees, hears things that one else hears, sees lights in his head, is the center of the universe and has special knowledge that must be kept secret until the right time an then can only be understood as explained by the one. The other, of course, is a paranoid schizophrenic.

I had a close friend in high school who in college came down with the classic symptoms of schizophrenia. Very intelligent but all of a sudden was overcome with the chemistry of schizophrenia that comes mostly between 18 and 35. He simply could not function in this world. His perceptions and his reality were far different than even he could understand. He died in his chair, alone in a dingy apartment last year. I wish I had gone to see him. Nice kid.

What if most, some or even ONE of the characters of religion, are humans who suffered from certifiable mental illnesses? What if some get followings because they are so darn fascinating and in combo with reading the Bible can seem so right? Perhaps we are dealing with traumatized human beings and their coping mechanisms. Schizophrenic and paraphrenic personalities can be brilliant yet fragile. A narcissist can rise to amazing heights of success and productivity. They can have “beautiful minds” and be very very ill. They make great dictators and Televangelists.

We know more now than we did 3000 years ago. And yet when it comes to the Bible and those who declare themselves the special men of God, we go as blind as Paul claimed to go on the road to Damascus. (Even though Paul himself never says this was the mechanism of his conversion. Perhaps even worse, like Jeremiah and Jesus, he was called before birth in the womb as he notes in Galatians.) Pretty darn special! And yet we can allow that kind of perspective to be religious when today, we would get very uncomfortable with a real person saying that about themselves. What seems OK as long as it is in the distant past becomes freaky if in the present. Many who turned away from Paul or an Ezekiel may have had that gut level discomfort. I doubt anyone today would feel a religious zealot who cooked dinner with his own dung would be anything but twelve short of a dozen.

Why is this an issue? Because a minister, maybe sincere, and maybe simply mentally unstable or delusional can hide in the ministry much better than he can hide at IBM. A minister that is prolific, charismatic while also dictatorial and delusional looks spiritual and obedient. The quirkiness is mistaken for spirituality and obedience to God. They have the ability to be deceivingly compassionate one minute and intensely angry at anything and everyone the next. They don’t like to be contradicted, corrected nor have their mental processes questioned. They NEVER take personality tests! How is it that normal human beings, who have accurate perceptions about the mental instability of some at work, then lose that instinct at church? The quirkiness at work becomes the spiritually desirable trait in church! Go figure!

When Alexander Haig declared himself in charge of the government after the Reagan shooting, he was torn to shreds for his misstep and is still trying to explain it. But when a pastor type declares himself a “Watcher” or an “Apostle” or a Prophet or incredibly more special than the average human, it gets swallowed hook, line and sinker?

What if the behaviors recorded thousands of years ago that has been the basis for so much religious zealotry is simply better understood in the context of mental illness? We always say if it walks like a duck, looks like a duck and swims like a duck, there is a good chance we may be dealing with a duck. When it comes to religion however we change our perceptions. If it walks like a narcissist, if it talks like a Para or schizophrenic and if it has all the symptoms of temporal lobe epilepsy, it must be a man of God!

What if some of the many heroes of faith, even some of the biggies, were simply mentally ill as we understand it today? Wow…what a thought! Makes you think doesn’t it?

Waking up early, meditating, exercising and replenishing one’s platter with an assortment of healthy tidbits can do wonders for a person’s physical health. However, in this fast-paced, technology-driven age, it is not enough to just take care of one’s physical health to achieve overall well-being.

Because mental health and physical health are dependent on one another, it is essential to take care of mental health to boost resilience and fortify the conviction to overcoming all kinds of hurdles during various stages of life. At the same time, a healthy state of mind acts as a bulwark against substance abuse, psychological stressors and other adverse conditions. It is an indispensable element for leading a happy life.

Although the prevalent culture at large is quick to dismiss mental disorders and conditions as behavioral problems, they are as fatal as physical diseases. Most of the stigmas and misconceptions attached to mental disorders are partly due to the inaccurate beliefs and information.

Such is the importance of a good mental health that a person should not experience the symptoms of a psychiatric disorder to take the decision to tend to his or her mental health. Everybody benefits from a healthy and positive frame of mind, regardless of his or her gender, age, social status or ethnicity. An individual’s mental health determines the way he or she will feel, respond and act on a daily basis. It also directs his or her stress-coping approach, decision-making skills, social interactions, etc.

Here are a few ways to improve one’s mental health:

• Begin the day with a cup o’ joe: Kicking off the day with a cup of coffee has been associated with lower rates of depression. Another hot beverage that boosts mental health is green tea.
• Maintain a gratitude diary: When a person pens down his or her thoughts or counts blessings, it helps in acknowledging and appreciating who they are and what they have. Research suggests that expressing gratitude in a diary (digital or paper) improves one’s mental health and provides clarity.
• Undergo digital detox: It’s a good idea to get off the grid every now and then. Although smartphones offer real-time communications and a wide range of utilities, many often find themselves addicted to the internet and social media. As a result, they keep constantly checking the notifications and email alerts. Leave the phone behind for the day, get involved in something fun or indulge in a hearty conversation with someone.
• Take a leap of faith: The fear of failure, commitment and receiving the short end of the stick often prevents people from trying their hand at that one thing they always wanted to do or improve. As the saying goes, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step,” focusing on moving in the right direction is better for an individual’s mental health than being in a stalemate-like situation. Rather than constantly worrying and looking over one’s shoulder, one should face the situations as and when they come.
• Go for a leisurely stroll: A walk, preferably somewhere quiet and serene like a park or in the woods, instills new energy and perceptions. Research shows that taking a stroll is associated with an increase in energy levels, burning of cortisol, protection from depression and augmentation in overall well-being.
• Smile like you mean it: Putting on a happy expression in the times of stress and difficult periods may be too much to ask for. However, smiling is surprisingly an effective coping mechanism as it lowers one’s heart rate and has a soothing effect. In fact, another reason to inculcate this healthy practice is that smiling uses fewer muscles than frowning, thereby protecting the face from developing frown lines and wrinkles.

A mind is too precious to be wasted

To bring about a healthy balance in life, it is important to tend to both mental and physical health. At times, the negligence of mental health is a significant risk factor for the onset of psychiatric disorders. Therefore, it is essential to remember that seeking help in such cases is not a sign of weakness but of strength.