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- Never Fully Heard #11 - Dark moments, learning happiness & overthinking
Never Fully Heard #11 - Dark moments, learning happiness & overthinking
The 5 minute mental health newsletter
Nick Horton
October 16, 2022
The 5-minute mental health newsletter.
Never Fully Heard is a space for men to listen to and engage in open, vulnerable & uncomfortable conversations to help improve their mental health being.
In today's edition:
Podcast episode 3: Sean Ruane - How I navigated my darkest moments
Self-reflection question of the week: Are you practising how to be happier?
Article of the week: 5 powerful books you should read if you are struggling with overthinking…
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It's Sunday, let's go!
Before reading I want you to do four box breaths.
Exhale to a count of four, holding your lungs empty for a four-count, inhaling at the same pace, and holding air in your lungs for a count of four before exhaling.
Repeat 4 times.
Sean Ruane: How I Navigated My Darkest Moments
Episode 3: How I navigated my darkest moments: Sean Ruane Founder, Mind Data
Link to podcast here
Some of the topics covered today are:
Dealing with tragic life events
Coping mechanisms
Suicidal depression
Therapy
Grief
Founding a business
Where do I find out more about Sean?
❓Self-reflection question ❓
Happiness is built by habits & is a skill that can be learnt.
Are you learning & practising how to be happier in life?
This brilliant passage below is from the Almanak of Naval Ravikant:
Link to book here
"My most surprising discovery in the last 5 years is that peace and happiness are skills. These are not things you are born with. Yes, there is a genetic range. And a lot of it is conditioning from your environment, but you can un condition and recondition yourself.
You can increase your happiness over time, and it starts with believing you can do it.
It's just a skill. Just like nutrition is a skill, dieting is a skill, working out is a skill, making money is a skill, meeting girls and guys is a skill, having good relationships is a skill, and even love is a skill. It starts with realising they skills you can learn. When you put intention and focus on it, the world can become a better place.
You can build good habits. Not drinking alcohol will keep your mood more stable. Not eating sugar will keep your mood more stable. Not going on Facebook, Snapchat, or Twitter will keep your mood more stable.
Playing video games will make you happier in the short run and I used to be an avid gamer but in the long run, it could ruin your happiness. Caffeine is another one where you trade long term for the short term.
Essentially you have to go through your life replacing your thoughtless bad habits with good ones, making a commitment to being a happier person. At the end of the day, you're a combination of your habits and who you spend the most time with."
I would like to say that in cases of mental illness, clinical depression and bad mental health, it can be really unhelpful & damaging to use the phrase "just be happier" and I think medical or mental intervention is needed in many circumstances to stabilise one's mental state.
However, I do find it empowering that you can focus on changing your habits and the people you surround yourself with in order to take control of your happiness in the long run.
📝 Article of the week 📝:
Link to article here
"There is one thing that is constant from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to sleep and that is your thoughts. They are always there floating around in your head.
Some of them serve a purpose and help you navigate through your day and assist you in making good decisions while the rest of the thoughts are useless. They serve no purpose at all apart from cluttering your mind.
The problem comes when we give our attention and energy to these useless thoughts and become a prisoner of them.
While it completely makes sense to analyze your decisions thoroughly and take multiple perspectives into consideration while taking them. But the issue comes when you are unable to get out of your thoughts and feel paralyzed to take any sort of decision or action.
If you are struggling with a problem of overthinking and you think too much for too long then read along I’ve got a special surprise for you all.
Here are 5 powerful books that help you get out of your own head and bring clarity to your life."
Link to article here
🚀 Share Never Fully Heard 🚀
If you know someone who would enjoy being a part of this community please forward them this email or send them this link below.