#Replug Mindfulness Thread

1. Often we misconstrue physical well being with being healthy. If you're mentally healthy, you're luckiest person in world. Neither money nor muscles matter. If people are complaining about something that means something is bothering them.

2. You can't be going through something emotionally & mentally tiring and yet expect yourself to 'get up & get things done'. You can't. Ask any Kashmiri who has been in home for last 8 months. You never notice when your mental health takes over your physical health & cripples you

3. Not just for any Kashmiri, people are always battling something. You don't see their battles, you can't. You simply notice it when they are consumed until then they appear to be happy like everyone else. It can be anything from joblessness, to academic failure,

4. to professional failure, to loss of a loved one, to harassment at school/work, to family issues. People are putting up happy faces and hiding behind them, facades are built to 'normalize' misery. If people are complaining, hear them. If someone comes to you with a problem and

5. you can't do anything about it, just listen. You don't need to advise, just hear them out.

6. I've met people who hate their parents because 'they were never there for them.' Well, they were always present physically but emotionally and mentally they were absentees. If you are not ready to take responsibility as parents, don't reproduce.

7. Don't let another human suffer because you gave in to societal pressure of having a child to prove your fertility. Same goes for friends and lovers, don't give false hopes. If you do, you are scarring the other person for life.

8. Don't ghost your friends, don't let your egos drive your friendships for you. If you cannot come through, leave with dignity, don't let other person suffer because you couldn't keep your promise.
Communicate with your loved ones, communicate, communicate, communicate.

9. You have no idea how many people are waiting for a simple text from their beloveds, from their kids, from their parents, from their friends, from their lovers, even from their spouses. Yes, couples too communicate way too less.

10. Especially men, they have this perpetual fear of stigmatization if they open up even to their partner!

There are people who don't open up and there are people who don't have listeners even when they want to open up.

11. So, it doesn't matter if you have chiseled Greek-God/dess like body and six figure salary, you are misconstruing pleasure with happiness.

12. Be a listener. You'll do world great service. I met people who couldn't open up to their families, none of their friends, even their spouse! Where would that person take their grievances to? They pour it out to random strangers over the internet.

13. As kids, we were warned not to interact with strangers and as adults stranger on another Continent knows more about us than our family and friends! We live in a strange time, where we will gladly listen to someone online but won't do that offline.

14. Virtual life seems much more interested & investing. Probably because you can be yourself & there are no strings attached. Whereas confiding in family & friends might change their outlook towards you for the rest of your life. We're all scared of being judged for who we are!

15. Speak up. Speak to your family, or your friends, or go anonymous and speak to a stranger. You'll feel better, you'll do yourself a favor. If you're hurt mentally or emotionally, seek aid. Broken heart is as good as broken bone, it needs time and care to heal.

16. The world is imperfect in every sense, you can never have it all and also you can never lose it all. You will always have something to look forward to. Always.

Stay Strong.

17. As Cpt. Picard said in Star Trek,

It's possible to commit no mistakes and still lose.
That is not weakness. That is Life.

It will be crippling and it will bring you to your needs, there is no shame in asking for help. Seek aid while you can.

Speak!