The Covid-19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the world and all aspects of life as we know it, for better or for worse. While the actual pandemic is over and the world is trying to economically and socially recover, there grew the epidemic of mental health struggles that prevails to this day. Many of us struggle to cope with the fact that the world is very different from what it was before 2020, and we will never go back to the way things were. We have had to adjust our lives and mindsets in the ever-changing environment we were thrown into, often making us lose our self-confidence and assurance. Even as we are adjusting to the new, post-pandemic normal, feelings of anxiety, depression, and loneliness are at an all-time high. We are seeing this shift not only in individuals, but in organizations as well. Why has this epidemic of loneliness and depression persevered past the pandemic? 

Lack of Ownership

What often happens when someone is in a bad mental state is that they start to pin the blame on external factors. Whether it be stress from work, strained familial relationships, the pandemic, or seasonal depression, we often develop a victimizing mindset, where the people and circumstances around us are the cause of our depression, anxiety, and loneliness. As a result, we believe that those are also the factors that will determine whether our mental health worsens or improves. We have the power to change our mental health, and the first step is to take ownership of our state, and acknowledge that we have the power to change it, no matter what is affecting us externally. 

Choosing the Path of Inaction

The lack of ownership and self-victimization leads to the mindset that they themselves cannot, or will not, do anything about it. Most people who go through depression and stress are well-aware of the change that is needed in their mindset and lifestyle, but either choose not to take action or do not have the proper skills needed to take action. They have the knowledge needed to improve their mental health but decide to remain in a perpetual state of inaction. The stress gets in the way of any real change and remaining inactive is the easiest path to follow. 

There are generally two types of people who choose the path of inaction. The first group are those who aren’t able to properly grasp the change occurring in their lives and apply the knowledge they already know to their own situations. The second group are those who already understand the source of their stress and how to overcome it, but are letting fear get in the way of taking action against it. These are both natural responses, since people are often too scared to change their stagnant lives or simply don’t know how to apply change with what they know. Take the example of wanting to become more physically healthy. The first type of group knows that they must go to the gym and eat healthy to achieve this, but do not know what specific strategies to apply, such as cutting down on sugar and weight training at the gym. The second group are aware that they specifically need to cut down on sugar and start weight training, but are afraid to start it because it will disrupt the current life that they are used to.

Defining Mental Health Through Tangible Goals 

We often define our mental health status by the material or tangible goals that we put on ourselves, such as our career goals or our relationships with other people. When one defines their mental health by these, it feels like it remains out of our control because we are letting external factors determine the health and vigour of our mind. This is also what leads to the victim mindset discussed earlier, because we have already let ourselves think that these external factors control our future and our lives. In our minds, we have done nothing wrong, and we cannot do anything to improve, which is far from the truth.

If you find yourself following any of these factors, then it is a sure sign to take action. We may feel exhausted from having to take on more than we bargained for from life, but that doesn’t mean we have let it affect our mental health and our ability to thrive in our environments. We can take the limited version of ourselves that is set by barriers and open up a new possible lifestyle of self-control and positive energy. Getting started may seem difficult, but it is a small effort for a lifetime of peace, satisfaction, and mental balance.