Saying Hello and want to help people who are suffering with their minds!

[Jamied]

Hi there,

I am from the UK originally, where I have been recently after having travelled in India/Asia and Australia for a few years on a working holiday visa.

I am back in Melbourne now.

I am really passionate and want to help people who may be struggling with mental health. I personally have suffered from anxiety and depression in the past and have a good understanding as to what genuinely helps.

I am lucky I got the chance to go travelling, break out of my normal routine and see different cultures around the world.

Before I went travelling my best friend who also used to struggle with his own mind, introduced me to meditation and I can't speak highly enough about it. It's something that can anchor you in the present moment and disengage with the mind, because after all, the mind and the ego are the main reasons behind depression and anxiety. As soon as we realise that the mind isn't who we are then endless possibilities can open up for us all.

Anyway, hopefully you guys will be interested in what I am saying, above all though would just be great to have a chat with people and see how I can help - There is a way!!!!

Thanks! Jamie.

[PamelaR]

Hi Jamied and warm welcome to our Beyond Blue forum

Great to see such a wonderful positive thread. Thank you so much for sharing your story.

There are many forums and threads here - feel free to browse and to join discussions that you think you have something positive to add or to help. Also if you want you can make this a running thread of tips for how you've managed your anxiety and depression when travelling. For example -

did you get anxious when you arrived in a new place and didn't know the language, money, or anything else? If you did, what are some of the things you did to help reduce the anxiety?

There's no pressure to do that, just a thought if you're looking to help.

Kind regards

PamelaR

[Doolhof]

Hi Jamie,

I too welcome you to the community here. You mentioned you have travelled to India and other Asian countries. Do you feel that some of the religions and customs of some Asian people opens them up more for greater use of activities like meditation and mindfulness?

Growing up as a Christian, prayers and talking to God has always been okay, but some people of Christianity have not agreed with the concept of mediation. Some ministers I spoke to have also been against such practices as yoga and martial arts for example.

I'm certainly not knocking the beliefs of any person, I am just curious if you feel that some cultures and religions are more open to different forms of self help. I for example, struggle with meditation due to what I was taught as a child!

Sometimes I struggle with my mind too! I find doing craft, gardening or colouring in helps me at times.

Cheers to you and all reading from Dools

[JRG]

Hi Jamied,

It is great to hear your story and I hope you feel welcome on the forum. It certainly sounds like you have some very valuable experience gained through your travels - I would love to hear more about them.

I too, feel very passionate as a person and motivated to help others in paving the difficult path through mental health and recovery. It is great to meet (be it online) another person who shares my interests.

I'm looking forward to hearing from you again.

JG.

[Jamied]

Hello JRG :))

Thanks for your response, it is great to hear someone who is as motivated as me to make a difference and help people with what we know can genuinely help.

It is quite a beautiful thing when you understand how to stop the mind through presence and meditation. I too, however still occasionally struggle with my mind but I have more of an acceptance of it now when it tries its hardest to take a hold on me. That's the key is having that 'knowing' feeling when it arises to help better accept it in that moment.

I would really love to talk further with you about it all and know more about your story too, hey maybe even come up with some ideas to help others in an accessible way?

I have just actually made a website about my Journey, travel and help for others. I am new to this forum and appears to keep things anonymous so unfortunately I can't post it on here for you to read?

Look forward to hearing from you again!

Jamied.

[Jamied]

Hi Doolhof,

Thanks so much for your response!

I personally feel that they often have an acceptance to what is out there. So even though to us they appear to have 'less', they do in fact embrace what they have. I believe that in our society where we have immense freedom comes an underlying unhappiness or discontentment, due to us often looking to external things for happiness. Needing to buy more of this or that, always striving for more, when in fact why can't we be complete and happy right now in this moment? Why can't we drop everything we think of ourselves to be on a personality level and just accept life in the moment?

See yeah that's real interesting you say that they don't agree, this is, again like you say you have been brought up in an environment that has tried to teach you not to believe it.

The thing is, it is not a belief system, so many people often get confused with this because they speak and intemperate it on a mind made level. What I know helps, and I firmly believe is the only true way to end self suffering, is to go within yourself beyond that of mind. Most spiritual teachers will call it the awakening process.

'Awake' from the mind so to speak.

It is hard to tell people of what happens or to explain things, but again it is something you experience not something you 'find out' through naming, it is going beyond naming.

So meditation is a real powerful method in order to calm the mind, go within and start a journey that you never thought possible.

So great to hear you do gardening and all those things that you know help you :)) I bet that these forms of activity help you to become fully present in the moment and it stops your mind from chatting to you - similar to that of meditation.

Anyway, Yeah I have created a website to help people understand it all with some pages on my Journey, Travel and a few words of Wisdom.

Thanks! Jamied

[Jamied]

Hi Pamela :))

Amazing response, thank you!

Yeah that is a great idea to set up a continuous thread to give some guidance from my own experiences. I am new to forums so is it as easy as just putting up new titles within the same blog space each time?

I have just created a website with all of my experiences just like you recommended, should I relate that directly onto here as a separate thing?

thanks again so great chatting with you 🙂

Jamied

[Sophie_M]

Hi Jamied, and welcome to the Beyond Blue forums. It's wonderful that you are keen to share your experiences and support others! To provide some clarity on our community rules, to protect the safety and privacy of all of our members we do not allow people to provide links to their personal websites, blogs or social media accounts. A forum like this is all about discussion, it's not suited to posting as you would on a blog. We certainly encourage you to share what you have learned with other members, and look through existing threads to find topics that have special interest for you.