Living in India is challenging when you are a part of a society, whose opinion sometimes matter more than the feelings and state of mind of a person. The road towards the recovery of a person afflicting from a mental disability becomes subdued and tougher amongst such circumstances.

Many a times, treatment and counseling is not enough, what completes the healing of a person suffering from a mental problem is a true effort from our part. 

We tell you today, how to give a person suffering from mental illness a new lease of life.

  1. Acceptance - Just like love, mental illness has to be accepted by you. Both sometimes are denied because they are intangible in nature. The more we deny, the greater is the magnitude of reality. The first step of loving them is accepting their mental problem and as a result who they are today.
  2. They are not crazy - Perhaps it is because of so many abuses we use in daily life like mad, insane or retarded that we often categorize people suffering from mental illness as crazy. Avoid using such provisos; the depth of damage of using such words on your loved ones is sometimes enough to isolate them from you, for a very long time.
  3. The ups and downs -  On some days they will feel absolute fit and happy and on others just getting out of bed will soak up all their energy. You need to understand they have no control over this. It hits them as unaware as it hits you.
  4. You are not the reason - It is important to know, you are not their reason for sudden mood swings ranging from mania to depression, anger to extreme happiness. The mood changes are just a part of their illness. You are just a medium close enough on whom they can take out their emotions.
  5. They are not alone - Let them know they are not alone, send them a message to show your love, order food from outside, go out for a walk but don’t let them feel lonely, that is one of the nastiest feelings to encounter, feeling there is no one for you.
  6. It is demanding - Their condition takes a lot out of them mentally, emotionally and physically.For them it is natural to feel like they have been robbed of their identity, your support is crucial so they don’t lose ascendancy over themselves.
  7. Treatment - No matter how sunken they feel, it is your responsibility to take them to counseling sessions and encourage them to take up activities, that helps them fight their condition and gain a brighter perspective towards life.
  8. Rekindling that passion - Give their life a meaning, a new direction. Encourage them to do whatever they are good at. It can be painting, writing, music almost anything. Following your passion has a tremendous energy to overpower the feeling of low self-esteem that often breaks one’s morale.
  9. Educate yourself - Ask them, how they feel, what bothers them. A Psychiatrist can show you the direction towards their recovery. But it bestows upon you how badly you want them to follow the right direction. Unless you know their condition well enough, you can’t guide them in the right direction.
  10. Never abandon them - You never give up on the people you love truly.There will be times when they will give up on themselves, feel worthless and start thinking that committing suicide is their only hope. This is the time the depth of your love will be tested, make sure you don’t give up, even when they have given up on themselves.