I spend most of my time on this blog encouraging you to recognize the awesome power of the human mind and spirit and to take care of your mental health. Consider how almost limitless life can be by tapping further within yourself. When somebody follows their calling, they don’t let things hold them back. Instead, when they fight for what they want and what they believe in, life can be a magnificent journey. I believe this with all of my heart and have seen it happen not only in my life but in the lives of those who have been my clients. At times, it’s been even more awesome watching someone unlock their potential more than how I felt when I unlocked mine. Once you believe in yourself, the sky is the limit.

Except when it sometimes isn’t.

People have suffered for generations from many things. Take a look at the list below.

• Ludwig van Beethoven had bipolar disorder.

• Eric Clapton’s infant child fell from a window to his death.

• Abraham Lincoln battled debilitating depression, as did Winston Churchill.

• Benjamin Franklin was addicted to opiates.

• Walt Disney forever blamed himself for the death of his mother.

• Sylvia Plath, Vincent Van Gogh. and Kurt Cobain committed suicide within months of producing some of their greatest work.

• Napoleon Bonaparte had Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

• Jack Kerouac had schizophrenia.

• Thomas Edison was a cocaine addict and dyslexic.

• Jack Nicholson found out at 37 that his older sister was actually his mother.

And these are only some of the famous or historical figures who have dealt with great tragedy—the number of people whose names you’d recognize who have suffered physical and sexual abuse is tragically astounding and too long for this list.

What about those who are not famous, and those whose lives have been altered by Covid-19.

During the early days of COVID-19, a record number of people lost their jobs, schools told students to stay home and a collective worldwide pause overcame the world. Additionally, people have had to deal with other trauma-inducing events like the breakups of relationships, being forced to move from home and Mother Nature doing whatever she wants, whenever she wants.

Yet it’s amazing how, when something affects us deeply, one of our first instincts is to retreat and hide. Even when something harrowing that may not be our fault happens, most of us don’t want to deal with it because of fear, shame, sadness or embarrassment. There are times when we simply can’t be at our best, when it feels like the world is against us, or we make a monumental error in judgment; this isn’t being broken or defective, it’s being human. More importantly, it’s completely natural to need help, and it’s extremely healthy to seek it.

There is no shame in admitting that you can use a hand. During my first few years in America, if people had not stepped up and helped me, I might not be where I am today. Stubbornly, I didn’t always seek that help, but life is much easier when you know people are there who want to help.

The world hasn’t always been open to the idea of maintaining good mental health. For decades, if not centuries, the mindset seemed to be “If you can’t see the injury, it isn’t there,” which is not only ludicrous, it’s dangerous. If you believe that you have a mental illness or have developed a mental health condition, seek help it whether it stems from Covid-19 stress or not. You wouldn’t self-diagnose a heart condition or ignore a broken arm.

If you’re going to make the most of your life in ways that I talk about in my blogs, week after week, you need to be at your best, physically and mentally. You’ll be amazed at what you can achieve when you’re healthy, both inside and out.