Mental Health after Retirement

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      In my previous post, I highlighted on maintaining spiritual health during the second innings of life. Our mental health is also equally important. Let us discuss on maintaining good mental health.

     For having good mental health, we have to free our mind from worry, fear and anxiety; and have to fill it up with full of happiness and joy. Now the question arises whether these are under our control? Yes, these are under our control for which we have to develop certain habits. 

Freedom from worries:      

Most of us are in the habit of worrying unnecessarily in anticipation of problem which may be real or imaginary. Generally, most of our anticipated problems are imaginary. We suffer unnecessarily in case that problem doesn't come and suffer twice if that problem comes into reality. It is better to practice erasing worries because worry is not a solution to any problem. It is better to find out solution and act on it instead of worrying. If the problem is unavoidable then it is better to face the problem boldly as a challenge without engaging our mind in worrying. Concentrate mindset in present toward action and solution rather than anticipating problem in future or remembering mistakes in past because both past and future are not under our control. But we can take action in present. Taking action in present helps in the achievement of goal. 

Freedom from fear and anxiety:

            Unnecessary fear and anxiety also deteriorate our mental health. Most of our fears are  unknown. Fear generally comes from inaction and overthinking. Many times we plan for something but fail to execute because of fear of failure. Success and failure are part of life. Please remember, every success goes through several failures during the course of it's journey. Thomas Edison who invented the lightbulb had gone through several failure attempts before he could finally invented the lightbulb. All fears not necessarily come from fear of failure. Many times fear comes from the imagination of some incidents. Watching horror films may also create fear psychosis in our mind. It is better not to watch such movies or videos creating fear psychosis in our mind. It is better to feed our mind with good and pleasant memories and imaginations. We have all gone through good and bad moments in our life. It is better to cherish good memories in our life. Bad memories cannot be erased once it has gone into our mind. But by continuous engagement of mind in cherishing good memories, the effect of our bad memories can be diluted. Before going to bed imagine at least one good and enjoyable moment in your life so as to have sound sleep and start the day in the morning with gratitude for all that you are having.

Having Pleasure and Joy:

        Laughing is a good medicine for our mental health. Have a fun and laugh open heartedly. But never laugh at the cost of other person and never make fun of other person. Develop the habit of deriving pleasure out of very small things. Celebrate every achievement even if it is small. Celebration creates feeling of sense of achievement and joy which motivates us in reaching another milestone in the course of our journey toward success. Feel happy even for the achievements of other persons. Have an outing with your family. Enjoy all the activities in your daily life. Each and every activity in our daily life can be made enjoyable. 

Mental Activities:

       Engagement of mind in mental activities was not difficult during the first innings of life because of compulsion. But it becomes challenge during the second innings as there is no compulsion. However, there is a lot of scope for mental activities even after retirement which many of us are not able to find out. Mental activities are required for keeping our mind in a healthy condition. There are many mental activities of which one or two can be selected for doing it regularly. Playing chess, crossword, building block, etc. are few mental activities that one can carry out. There are some other mental exercises which one can do. Reverse counting, memory games, solving puzzles, etc. are few mental exercises. 

            

Conclusion:

      Let us make every moment of our life enjoyable by freeing our mind from worry, fear and anxiety. Do some mental activities to have good mental health. Good mental health is required for having good physical health. I will discuss on maintaining good physical health in my upcoming post.