 if you're somebody who struggles with depression, having an existential crisis can just fuel that depression and it's really difficult to snap out of. So in this video, we're going to talk about one of the best fixes to get out of that crisis. So stay tuned. What's up everybody. This is Chris from the Rewired Soul, where we talk about the problem, but focus on the solution. Yes, today we will be talking about the good old existential crisis. But first, I want to give a shout out to another YouTuber by the name of Katie Morton. She is a therapist. I will put a link to her channel in the info card above. She's a therapist who makes YouTube videos and I highly, highly, highly recommend checking out her channel. She does a lot of videos on various forms of mental illness as well as different struggles people deal with mentally and she she gives a lot of very helpful advice and she is a licensed therapist. So go check out the Katie Morton channel, but anyway, she just did a video on what is an existential crisis and whenever I, whenever I hear about this, I laugh a little bit because, you know, I feel like I found, you know, the perfect way to get out of this crisis. But first I'll share a little bit with you about my experience with depression and having this type of crisis. So many of us, this isn't just somebody for people who struggle with depression, but a lot of people just struggle with this idea of like, who are we and what are we here for and what's the meaning of all this? And one of the reasons why it becomes toxic is because first off, we feel like our life has no purpose. But second off, it starts driving us towards these things that we think we need in order to have this purpose. We think we need to get that job or make this amount of money or buy this thing or go to this fancy place or travel or whatever it is. And all these are well and good. But when we think that those are going to fix this and those are going to be our purpose, it becomes something that's actually fueling our depression too. Because often we find out once we get that thing that we're no happier than we were before. But this can also be very difficult for relationships because some people believe that their life, their life's purpose is to find the one and to get married and have kids. And sometimes this involves getting into a very toxic relationship because you think that your purpose is to find somebody else to complete you, right? And this situation gets even worse when you think that you have to have a child in order to complete you. Because now we're bringing another human being into this world to try to fix a hole that you have inside of yourself about not knowing what your purpose is, right? So when you're having an existential crisis, you're looking for meaning, you're wondering what the meaning of all this is. And I have friends, you know, like myself who are really into science and like, man, you listen to like one Neil deGrasse Tyson like talk, you'll be like, whoa, I am really meaningless in the grand scheme of things, right? But Neil also has some great tips on how to deal with this. But anyways, one of the best ways I feel like the fix for this is to be a service to your fellow men and women on this planet. Like when I started using that as my purpose of my meaning, like I just laugh when I hear people talk about this existential crisis. I'm like, wow, like all you got to do is make your purpose about helping others. And not only you're helping yourself, but you're making this world a little bit better of a place. And this might sound crazy to you. It might sound crazy, right? I remember when I first started working on my mental health, people were telling me, they said, Chris, on your worst day, call somebody else and ask them how they're doing. And I'm like, you must be crazy. Like that is so counterintuitive because when we're sad, when we're depressed, when we're sitting curled up in a ball and in the good old fashioned pity party, we want people to call us and reach out to us. The last thing on our mind is how we can be there for other people. But I just took the suggestion and I started to do it and something amazing would happen. I remember just calling people when I was struggling and just calling them up and saying, Hey man, how are you doing right now? And so many times I would call these people and they'd be like, dude, I'm glad you called right now. Like I was really having a bad day. Thank you for calling and we talk about it. And what what I found was by giving them suggestions, by giving them advice, by talking to them, by just being an ear to listen, sometimes not even giving them advice. It was being very therapeutic to me. And what happens is inside the brain, when you start to practice some altruism and just helping others, you actually get these little spurts of dopamine. So when you're very purposeful about helping other people and you recognize how good that feels, it starts this new feedback loop in your brain. So you start wanting to help more people, right? And not in a codependent way. And I'll do some other videos on codependency, but simple stuff. You know, if you live with your parents, help them with the groceries. If you have a child, help them with their homework, do some things to assist them. When I first started working on my mental health, my mom, she tore the ligament in her knee. I just started asking her like, how can I help? How can I help? How can I help? And I would run errands for her. I would clean the house. I would walk her dog, you know. And now I'm in the greatest career that I could ask for because my job is at a drug and alcohol treatment center. And every day I get to go to work and be of service to other people who are struggling. And the last thing I want to touch on is I don't think that enough people take that into consideration. Chances are that if you're watching this video, you've been through some struggle in your life. All right? This could be anything from losing a job, to having your heart broken in a relationship, to being broke, to some worst things that could have happened to you in the past. Like me, I overcame addiction and, you know, I'm the child of an alcoholic mom. But for any struggle that you've been through, you now have something that can provide somebody else with hope. So the way you can be of service and help out other people is by simply being there for someone who's going through something that you've already been through. And you can give them advice and suggestions of how you got through it and it might help them. So if you're somebody who struggles with an existential crisis, like please take this into consideration. The next time you're wrapped up in your head wondering what your purpose is, try making your purpose, your North Star. Try making it helping other people and see how that works for you. All right? So if you like this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you're new here, I'm always making videos to help you out with your mental health. So make sure you click that little round subscribe button as well to the left of me. You can click or tap on one of those thumbnails. Check out some of the other videos on this channel. So thanks for so much for watching. Go out there and help somebody else out today. I'll see you next time.