From Mentally Healthy to Mentally Wealthy!

There has been an incredible focus on maintaining mental health throughout the COVID-19 craziness in which we find ourselves immersed. I’d like to suggest there may be a way to leapfrog beyond being mentally healthy to becoming mentally wealthy. 

Wealthy has been defined as having a great deal of money, resources, or assets. Synonyms for “wealthy” include words such as rich, affluent, and prosperous. I tend to think of people who are wealthy as folks who have more material resources than they personally need at any given time. If I transferred my perspective on “wealthy” to the field of mental health, it would mean I have more resources to maintain my mental well-being than I need at any given moment—and enough to call upon in times of personal challenges or to share with others.  

Bill Gates is indisputably wealthy.  Even after a pending divorce, I suspect he will still have more than enough resources to meet his current and future needs—and enough to continue to support the work of the Gates Foundation which currently funds grantees in 48 states and work in 135 countries (as of December 2019).

To be considered mentally wealthy, you must have accumulated sufficient skills, tools, self-awareness and coping mechanisms to maintain a personal sense of mental well-being. As well, you must be able to effectively and successfully thrive through personal crises and/or be able to support others who are less wealthy and in need of assistance.

Should you wish to accumulate mental wealth, here are a few of some of my favourite ways to do so:

• Practice mindfulness
• Take improv training
• Maintain a healthy diet
• Get plenty of sleep
• Spend time in nature
• Stay connected with friends who nourish you and are nourished by you
• Ask for support/help when you need it--don't hesitate!
• Help others build their mental wealth
• Perform “random acts of kindness”
• Regularly take stock of what’s going right in your life and be grateful!
• Observe young children at play (NOT in a creepy way—the purpose is to remember what it’s like to live fully, without fear of being judged!)
• Meditate rather than medicate
• Exercise a genuine curiosity about life!
• Contribute to a cause that's bigger than filling your bank account (although having sufficient financial wealth often reduces the drain on your mental wealth)!

For many years, being mentally healthy was good enough for me; however, now I realize that by becoming mentally wealthy, I will be in a better position to thrive in this crazy VUCA world we find ourselves in and to help others do the same!