It Just Takes Balance

In several years of writing Crisis Survival Insider, we have covered physical threats (hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, wildfires), financial threats (market crashes, bank runs, currency crashes, bond defaults), military threats (including the prospect of nuclear war), and social threats (riots, crime, the breakdown of civilization). That’s quite a list!

Yet, one danger to your physical and financial well-being we have not covered is mental health. That may be the most important crisis survival measure of all. If your mental health is not balanced, that will stand in the way of high performance in the face of any other crisis whether it be physical, financial military or social. On that basis, it’s worth some consideration.

Achieving Good Mental Health

To be clear, I’m not a mental health professional. I have a lot of advanced degrees, but none of them are in medicine, psychology or psychiatry. That said, I have a no doubt biased view that most mental health professionals go into that field because of their own mental health issues.

In effect, they study the science because they’re trying to cure themselves. Instead, as practitioners they end up causing confusion in the minds of a lot of their patients. My approach is much simpler. Just to do what’s most beneficial based on common sense and observed experience. It’s a pragmatic approach. Just do what works.

The place to start for good mental health is with good physical health. If you’re burdened with obesity, lethargy, oxygen deprivation, pulmonary problems, high blood pressure or other syndromes or diseases, it’s difficult to put your mind at ease. Of course, some of these conditions are hereditary or contagious and perhaps can’t be helped. But most are either a matter of self-control (diet, exercise, drinking in moderation) or can easily be treated (I have asthma, but I have treated it successfully for over twenty years and it has never inhibited my mountain-climbing expeditions!)

Exercise is a key to mental health quite apart from the physical benefits. Most people either don’t have the time or money to spend two hours per day, five or six days per week in a gym with a professional trainer. Here’s the good news: You don’t have to! The science is clear that 30 minutes of walking at a moderate-to-brisk pace four of five days per week will give you 90% of the cardiovascular benefits of an intense workout at 0% of the cost. All you need is nice weather and a relatively small amount of time.

Diet is mostly a matter of self-control and moderation. There are a million diets out there. Most of them are fads and whatever weight you lose will soon be regained and then some. (Believe me, I know). One diet that does seem to work well is n class="subhead"ot about the food, it’s about the timing. It’s called intermittent fasting.

The basic idea is you finish dinner around 7:00 pm (or earlier) and then don’t eat again until 8:00 am the next morning. No after-dinner treats or midnight snacks. Of course, that habit can reduce calories, but the real benefit comes from the 13-hour stretch between meals. It gives the body ample time to make use of the last meal in a way that doesn’t add body fat. Those long stretches between meals are akin to the way humans lived before food abundance and refrigeration. Cro-Magnon Man had a meal and necessarily went a long time before the next one. Back to the future!

Get Outside

Apart from diet and exercise, just being outside is healthy. We spend too much time indoors in front of TV or computer screens. This situation was made worse by the pandemic lockdowns, which were ridiculous in themselves but made the indoor default position worse.

Being outside gives you fresh air (as opposed to stale, recirculated or air-conditioned air) and more importantly gives you exposure to the sun. You don’t want to get sunburned, but moderate exposure to the sun is a natural source of Vitamin D among other benefits. Since outdoor exposure can be combined with your 30-minute walk, it’s a two-fer.

Drinking to excess is obviously harmful, but a glass or two of wine once or twice a week can be relaxing and has health benefits of its own. The same goes for tobacco. Habitual smoking can lead to numerous diseases including cancer, emphysema and pulmonary diseases. Still, a nice cigar on the veranda once a month or so can be an enjoyable and relaxing experience. Just make sure the cigar is expensive, preferably Cuban or Dominican. A spot of whisky or rum on the side won’t hurt. And it’s not a guy thing. Some of the most interesting women I know enjoy a cigar as much as the guys.

Achieving Balance

A good hobby or even a side business is a great way to keep balance in your life and avoid being totally wrapped up in your job. Online venues like eBay and Etsy make it easy to set up your own shop.

Collecting is a great pastime whether it’s wine, cigars, cars, watches, coins or stamps; (Janet Yellen lists her stamp collection in her mandatory government financial disclosure forms). Don’t just collect. Spend time learning about the history and technical terms in the areas you chose for collecting. I have a modest watch collection and, yes, I do know the purpose of a double-axis tourbillion in a watch movement. Most people express interest in others’ collections. You’ll never be at a loss for dinner conversation.

Traveling, reading and sports are all great ways to live a more interesting life and get out of mental and physical ruts. Sailing is a great example of how to combine all three: Sailing is a sport; you travel when you’re sailing, and there are tons of books to read about the places you’re sailing to. Mountain climbing, bicycling, hiking, tennis and trekking are other good examples. Photography is a great avocation that can be combined with all forms of sport or travel. Reading is the cheapest and easiest way to unwind. Books are relatively inexpensive and a good one can take your mind a million miles away.

The Spiritual Component

Finally, we come to the greatest sources of relaxation that help to maintain mental health – religion and meditation. I’m not here to prescribe a particular religion. I happen to be Catholic, but I’ve studied every major religion from Judaism to Buddhism and I know they all offer their practitioners comfort and peace of mind. (The non-religious can still meditate; that works too).

Miracles and visions are real (I’ve experienced quite a few), and they remind you that that the mysterious and supernatural world is much bigger and more interesting than our own relatively confined existence. And, yes, prayers are answered. That’s another source of comfort.

We’ve offered a list of things to do to improve mental health. I have a short list of things not to do to achieve the same goal. Avoid cable TV and political podcasts. I have to absorb a lot of political information to do my analyses, but I receive almost all of it in written form where I can control the tempo and easily discard the garbage. TV sports may be fine, but avoid the political junk. Joe Scarborough (on the left) and Sean Hannity (on the right) are both out to push your buttons. Don’t let them.

There’s a lot more to write on the topic and I’m sure you can make your own additions to my suggestions. The point is to break out of your habits and engage in new and healthy pursuits in the form of outdoor activities, sports, hobbies, reading, religion, meditation and travel. Balance the routines with something new. Good mental health is just a question of balance. With a balanced mind, any other crises can be taken in stride.

We’ll be back next month with more analyses of what types of catastrophes to expect and specific guidance on how to prepare for and survive them. Until then, stay safe.