Someone on Reddit asked a question: “Why does the world seem to be so F*CKED?”
The poster mentioned the insane obesity rates, increases of anxiety & depression, and other metrics. The primary question was: why is it that it seems everyone has some form of diagnosed mental illness?
I left a long response, and thought I’d share it here.
For the record, I believe fulfillment/happiness is easily possible, but you have to be a “weirdo” to have it.
Once you’ve embarked on the self-improvement journey, the world appears so… strange.
Why is it so normal to eat chips & candy, which are packed with nothing but cocaine-like sugar and processed chemicals? Why is it normal to sit around and derp on a TV box all day?
I think it’s because of the “herd” mentality. Most people remain trapped because they find safety in numbers, when these days those who are safe are willing to stand out.
The truly normal human walks down the street eating apples, not chips. The truly normal person avoids excessive TV & media. The truly normal person approaches attractive members of the opposite sex, rather than always wondering “what if.”
Here was my response to “why does the world seem so F*CKED?”
Here are some of my guesses:
1. Terrible diet. Yes, bad food causes anxiety and depression. It certainly did for me and it’s well documented that eating excess sugar reduces focus, happiness, sleep quality, and increases anxiety, etc the list goes on.
My diet is now fruits, veggies, healthy meat only (not McDonald’s, even considering trying no meat), nuts, seeds, etc I try to be natural.
Now I’ve so much energy and focus it’s crazy. I can’t believe I grew up eating so much crap fast food and sugar. That is not healthy.
Book to read: the ultramind solution.
2. The internet. People are ruining their ability to focus. Constant stimulation also increases anxiety. Furthermore social networks create an unhealthy air of comparison; you think everyone is living a dream life when in fact you see only snapshots of their week.
The internet is also preventing people from having real social interaction. We are social creatures and meant to be in groups. Most people are losing friends and isolating themselves. Their social circles are becoming their school or work groups, which is of course fake. You can’t be real with your work social circle.
Book to read: the shallows
3. Lack of exercise. I don’t have a book recommendation here, but you can do your own research on the stunning effects exercise has.
It increases focus, reduces depression, reduces anxiety, increases health, increases optimism, the list goes on.
Most people in America wake up, walk to their car, sit in their car, walk to their office, sit in their office, then go home and sit and watch TV.
It is said that exercise, if it could be packaged into a pill, would be a “miracle pill.” The list of diseases it prevents is extensive.
YouTube this: “what I’ve learned exercise.”
4. Poor sleep. Blue light from technology prevents good sleep. Most people don’t have good sleep hygiene.
YouTube this: “what I’ve learned sleep.”
5. Terrible schooling. America’s school system, and most school systems, are God-awful. They teach almost nothing of real value. Source? I’ve traveled the world making money online and 5% of what I learned in school is valuable. The most important things are not taught or even known.
Kids are forced to be in school all fucking day learning stuff they’ll never use. I’d love to talk more about this, but I think most adults could agree.
They are pushed into University before they even know what they want to do. Rather than being encouraged to try things out first (such as job shadow a doctor) they are funneled into expensive University.
They then rack up debt, which now can’t be forgiven, all in the name of “education.” My University (like almost all) required random classes to graduate. You have to fulfill random bs requirements. Like yes, learning about prehistory was SO HELPFUL for my internet business >_>
Finally the amount of work pushed onto kids is ridiculous. If you can’t teach kids in 8 hours a day, then you’re a failure, a horrible teacher. Teachers create boring, non-engaging lessons then give their students hours of homework. Even a little homework in each class adds up to hours.
Is it that kids have “ADHD” or that we are expecting them to work away their childhood?
Can YOU work 12 hour focused days with minimal socializing and no exercise?
Schooling and University may have been useful back in the day but it hasn’t evolved with our evolving world. It horrifies me how much time I lost in my life to school for things I’ll never use (or have forgotten).
It would be considered torture too make an adult work all day perfectly. The fact this is requested of young kids is ridiculous. If we taught a bit more efficiently and let the kids enjoy life, they’d actually learn more.
6. Lack of self care. Finally, no one is ever taught self care. How do you heal from a break up? How do you make new friends? What do you do when you’re burning out?
I wish I was taught these things. Instead we live in a go go go society that glorifies working your life away for some arbitrary notion of “success.”
One weekly massage can greatly increase your work productivity. Yoga can make you happy. Cold showers can heal injuries. Meditation for just 20 minutes a day can give you that peace you’ve always wanted. Literally being in nature has been scientifically proven to heal injuries faster. But these aren’t taught in school or by anyone.
In nature, we would not have worked so hard as we do now. Isn’t that funny? Yes we live longer, and can prevent diseases, but we have also created our own diseases; we’ve created a way to burn us out and make us suffer, just in a completely new way.
We live in a society disconnected from reality. We eat shit food, don’t exercise like our bodies are designed to, we are constantly comparing ourselves and ruining our brains with the internet, we are burning out from ever increasing workloads (and useless schooling), and then expect somehow we will be happy.
And because of the herd mentality most people have, it’s unlikely everyone will change anytime soon.
Happiness (or fulfillment) IS possible but if you want to be happy you have to be weird.
When everyone is at a party drinking alcohol and eating shit food, you have to be taking Ginger shots and eating a banana.
When everyone is posting their life on social media, you have to stay in reality and be careful of the internet’s effects.
When everyone doesn’t exercise, you have to run miles and hit the gym.
When everyone uses their phones or TVs before bed, you have to create a night and morning routine.
When everyone expects University and school to bring them prosperity, you must keep learning and discover the real secrets of life and abundance.
When everyone is burning out, you have to go on a meditation retreat, do some yoga, get a massage, and find a group of friends to share some laughs with… And maybe realize there’s more to life than the hustle.
Happiness is possible. These days, you’ve just gotta be a weirdo to have it.
