See problems as puzzles
to be solved.
Don't see problems as
something to ignore.
Nor should you see problems as something to complain about, moan and groan about, or to throw money, emotional energy, angst and sleepless nights, fretting and fuming at.
Nor should you see problems as something to complain about, moan and groan about, or to throw money, emotional energy, angst and sleepless nights, fretting and fuming at.
If you want to live a better life, start
seeing all problems as puzzles to be solved, rather than monsters over which
you have no control.
Learn to ask
questions.
Learn to seek solutions.
Learn to put on your thinking hat, and tackle the
problem.
Don't let it grow and become a bigger problem.
You should do this, even if you find the
problem embarrassing.
Don't suffer in private, because you can't risk
someone knowing you have a problem.
Don't let the problem get worse and worse in
secret.
Don't let a small problem grow into a giant
problem.
Get help as soon as you can.
Find out who can help you.
Find out what steps you can take.
Find out how others have overcome the problem.
You can be too private for your own good.
When I first got depressed, I decided to stay
quiet about it.
I didn't want to risk my image.
Everyone thought I was a person who
had it all.
I didn't want to blow this image.
I wanted keep my image intact.
It was such that my image mattered more than
the truth.
My image mattered more than my suffering.
My image mattered more than the reality
of my life.
The reality was I was not myself emotionally.
I was waking up every morning and bursting
into tears.
But I didn't want anyone to know that.
I couldn't bear the idea.
All I cared about was “my image”.
My image was that of a “successful
advertising consultant who had it all - money, success, a happy marriage.”
On the whisper circuit, I was rumored to be "the
best paid advertising copywriter in the city".
I desperately wanted to keep the image going.
Even at the risk of becoming more and more of a
basket case.
I kept my depression secret for months and months.
I hoped it would just vanish.
It had mysteriously come on.
I hoped it would just as mysteriously go
away.
Except…it didn't.
I finally picked up the courage to speak up
and tell someone.
One day, I got up in the morning and burst into
tears.
But on this day, I called a friend and told her.
I said, "……(her name), I don't know
what is happening. Every morning I wake
up and start crying."
She said, "It's a clinical depression,
Minoo. I had it some years ago". "I will give you the name and
phone number of a psychiatrist," she added.
I shuddered at the words
"psychiatrist".
There are some problems no one likes
to admit to - a financial problem, an addiction problem, a hoarding problem, an
embarrassing cosmetic problem, a weight problem, sexually related illnesses, a marital problem.
A mental health problem is in that
category.
It is hard to admit to.
But I was relieved after I spoke up.
The very first person I talked to had been
through what I was going through, and was able to point me in the direction of
a solution.
You know how my depression story turned out.
I covered it in a post I wrote a few posts ago, and in
my post If Life Is So Good, Why Do I Feel So Sad?
I was successfully able to resolve it and
get past it.
How can anything be solved if you keep it
under wraps?
Whatever the problem, you have a
better chance if you seek help and look for solutions.
You should look at every problem in your life
as a puzzle to be solved.
By seeking answers and solutions, ideas will
come to you, and you will discover things you can try.
My 2nd car is an older car.
When I bought it, I heard some noises
coming from under the hood.
I took it to a mechanic who diagnosed I had
a leaking rack and pinion.
He told me I could repair it for $1000, which
was the price I had paid for the car when I bought it.
I wondered what to do.
Tanita,my daughter, had a friend who worked at a
car mechanic shop - and we asked him for his advice.
He said if we kept the power steering fluid
filled, we could keep going without doing the $1000 repair.
By asking someone, we were able to find this
workable solution.
What problem are you facing today?
You would be wise not to ignore it.
You would be wise not to minimize it.
You would be wise not to let it whirl around
and around in your head, without doing anything about it.
Even if you are uncomfortable - you need to talk
about it, and get some inputs and strategies.
Find someone and share your problem with them.
The worst that will happen is they will say
they can't help – because they don't have any expertise or resources in that
area.
But they may point you to people and
resources that can be of help to you. You may need professional help, like I did.
So take out a piece of paper.
First thing you should do is write down what your problem is.
Then make a list of the things you can do about
it.
Make a list of people you can talk to, and
other ways to get information.
And after you have talked to people, and done
your research, pick a solution and start putting it to work.
If the first solution doesn't work, try
another.
If that doesn't work, try another.
This is how, sooner or later, you will make
strides towards resolving your problem.
Even problems you have had for years and years.
A friend of mine told me what inspired her
to become so interested in, and inspired by, nutrition.
She had eczema as a child.
Her parents had taken her to doctor after
doctor, and they had tried treatment after treatment.
Nothing worked.
When she was in her early twenties, she decided
to radically change her diet.
She started eating raw foods instead of
processed foods.
Her eczema went away.
Her eczema had been a constant companion all
of her childhood and teenage years, but she was able to find a solution in her
20s.
What problem has been a constant companion all
your life?
See it as a puzzle to be solved.
Don't see it as something to ignore.
And don't see it as a hopeless case either.
Problems are not there to give us
things to complain about, moan and groan about, or throw money, emotional
energy, angst and sleepless nights, at.
Problems are there to help us grow.
I don't know about you, but I love growing,
so I am going to say, "Bring it on" to problems.
How about you?
I hope you will too.
Acknowledgements:
Thanks for the feedback, (comments, likes, shares) on Part 1 through 8 of
this series. I appreciate the kudos from old friends, new friends, and
relatives who have become friends. You keep me going
NEXT, Thanks to all readers, current and future, for sharing my journey to wisdom,
meaning and a better life. Like you, I am trying to find my way through
this complex maze we call life, and I am honored to have you share my journey,
as I continue to seek the wisdom hidden in plain sight.
FINALLY, A Happy Birthday shout-out: to those with September birthdays. I
hope you will use your birthday month to start looking at problems as puzzles. Put on your thinking hat and start communicating, so you can tap into ideas and solutions for your problems, you may not be aware of now.
To all my readers, have a blessed “growing through successfully tackling problems week, and see you next week.
P.S. Not sure if you
have time, but if you do, you may enjoy these other posts:
Friendships
The United States of Friendship – Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6,Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12
Family
Our Cake Boss Family, Family Songs, The Nightdress Brigade, Family Advice I Am Grateful For, The Porki And Bonkers Tradition, No Need for 23 and Me,Letters to Lucas, Flying Lessons
Pets
A Fresh Perspective on Pets, Secrets of The Super Models In Our Family,BowWow, Meoww, Why You Should Not Abandon Your Pet
Nature
Hobbies
Managing Your Money
Yoga for Investors, How to Turn Your Girl Scout or Cub Scout Into a Stock Scout, Financial Piece of Mind, Financial Piece of Mind – Part Deux, A Retirement Planning Formula You Won’t Find on Oprah
Simplifying Your Life
You know what Wesabi is, How About Wabi Sabi? The Simple Life, The Element of Simplicity and Its Hope for Living a More
Satisfying Life
Getting Over Your Self-Consciousness
The Element of Release From Inhibition, The Element of Being Less Self-Centered and Its Hope for Seeing
Things in The Correct Light, The Element of Getting Out of Our Comfort Zone and Its Hope For
Experiencing More of What Life Has to Offer
Learning to Laugh
How To Deal With The Sheldon Coopers in Your Life – Part 1, Part 2, Part 3,Part 4, The Nightdress Brigade, You Aced the SAT, How About the LAT?, How To Cause Atmost Confuzen at the Scripps Spelling Bee, How To Go From Madonna to Lilly to Myrtle in The Course of A
Single Evening - And Even Have a Sex Change, A Facebook Face-Off, A Short Stint in Advertising
Learning to Relax
How To Become a Low Maintenance Person, Connected Minds, How To Become The Kind of Person People Want to Work with, How Many Times a Day Do You Visit Ireland? The Art of Carrying Things Lightly
Health
Raising the Bar, 4 Healthy Eating Ideas I Learned from My Friend Julia, The Element of Becoming More Focused and Precise In Our Goals
and Its Hope for Achieving Powerful Results
Pursuing A Dream
What’s Next For You? The Element of The First Step and Its Hope for Getting Big
Things Started In Our Lives, She Victories
Changing in Good Ways
Maybe Its Time To Become More Receptive, Maybe It’s Time To Live More Purposefully, Maybe It’s Time To Bust Some Myths, Maybe It’s Time to Walk In The Direction Of Your Fears, Maybe It’s Time To Understand What Freedom Is, Maybe It’s Time To Turn the Page, Maybe It’s Time To Rock The World, Maybe It’s Time For Freshness
