The Mental Reset I Didn’t Know I Needed

Live, Laugh, Eat and Relax for a Better You

Often in life, our mental health is placed on the back burner because, guess what? It does not pay the bills. Life goes on, and you may be mentally struggling but still pushing the car into full-drive mode to complete your 9-to-5 job, while the engine—your brain—gets closer and closer to overheating. Yet, you ignore it and tell yourself, you can do this. Until it catches up with you, and you realize that your once-healthy physical disposition has taken a turn for the worse—your pressure is rising, your blood sugar is getting out of control, and now you’re not only doing mentally unwell but have physical health complications to boot.

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Would you believe that in this lovely picture you see displayed above, I was going through serious mental struggles? That’s the thing with mental health. The car can be shiny and squeaky clean, yet under the hood is just a hot mess.

Thankfully, I decided not to turn down the offer to go on this exciting work restaurant outing with my colleagues—some of whom are dear friends to this day. I lived, laughed, ate, relaxed and drank—responsibly and without alcohol, of course, because contrary to popular belief, alcohol does not take the pain away. It only temporarily masks it, only for it to return like an uninvited guest declaring, “Hey, I’m still here.” One thing I can tell you is that I left the restaurant laughing and far better off than when I came. It was a well-needed mental reset, which felt like getting fuel in the tank to continue the journey and figure things out.

What Happened Next—When the Lights Went Out and No One Was Looking?

Well, on my way back home, I asked myself, “What now?” And I could actually find feasible solutions, unlike previously when my mind was just so full that I could not even hear the faintest whisper of hope.

So, the lights went out and the day started again. But guess what? No longer was I in the looped mindset that life is just horrible and who cares if you’re happy or not? Just be a man and suck it up. On the contrary, I was instead the man who knew that I was approaching a breaking point, and that restaurant outing helped to recalibrate my mind. It was a small, private, intimate setting filled with laughter, good food and talks about our next steps in life.

Don’t Lock Everyone Out!

So, if you’re going through a lot mentally and your friends or close work colleagues offer to take you out, please don’t automatically decline. Small, intimate settings such as these have a way of repositioning your mental sight so that you can see some of the beauty in life again—refueling your tank to keep on going.