One thing that the difficult times of Covid have taught us is to take care of both our mental and physical health. ‘Sirf Tum’ actor Vivian Dsena talks about the importance of mental well-being.
“Mental health is very important and means everything to me. If I am mentally fine, I can give my 100 per cent to everything that I do in life. Your self-worth is what is in your head. In any kind of job or work you do, you use your brain in the first place. If your brain is working fine, you could do anything in life, you would be able to work better and give your family a good time and balance everything,” he says.
Often the pursuit of a career and ambition in the rat race in metros take a toll on both our mental and physical health. While many of us go for walks, do regular exercises or visit a gym, but most often neglect our mental health.
“Of course, we do. We are so busy in looking good rather than thinking good. In fact, we ignore thinking good. The times we are in are very competitive, and we are always thinking of being famous and looking good. That does all the harm,” he adds.
Many blame the fast-paced lifestyle in metro cities for poor mental health. Agreeing, Vivian DSena says, “People in my hometown are much healthier than Mumbai, as they don't lead such a fast lifestyle. We are running faster and that's why we are achieving faster, but in the bargain, we are putting a lot at stake. To do better, we should at least be stuck to our roots and give some time to our mental well-being,” he says.
Vivian DSena feels the entertainment industry is generally targeted when it comes to depression and anxiety. “People who are famous are usually targeted, while unknown people are not because nobody gets to know anything about them. Hence the one known is always the easy target,” he shares, adding how people associated with showbiz go through a lot of stress.
“It is a stressful job. It requires a lot of physical and mental commitment. Including long-distance travel to work almost every day, without having any constant weekly holidays. Especially while exterior locations where you are working outdoors despite of the adverse climatic conditions. While I would not like to compare showbiz with any other industry, I would just say survival here is quite tough,” he adds.
So how does he deal with times when he feels low? “I stand in front of my awards and I think about how I started and what I have achieved in life remembering my whole journey. Then I go and remember my fans, and how much they have supported me throughout. It makes me feel better every time. We should always be grateful for what we achieve in life,” he says.
Suicide cases in the country have also increased a lot compared to how it was before. And the situation has become a cause for concern. “If you are thinking well then you can do anything in life. Mental health has been considered a serious arena of concern for years. Only recently people have slowly started to understand its importance,” he adds.
