Lifestyle Choices

Sailing

Sailing is a delight for the freedom of moving with the wind in the fresh air, but it is more often than not a lot of hard work too—both mentally and physically. Problems appear from nowhere and you have to cope—and you do. It is a demanding, rigorous sport and it gives you a great sense of achievement every time you do it. You can be any age to learn to sail, and you don’t have to be fit in order to take it up. Start either by joining a club where you can get instruction or by crewing on friends’ boats. If you don’t know any sailors, look at the advertisements in one of the yachting magazines; there are always people looking for crew, either experienced or inexperienced, and it costs you nothing— they get help on the boat and you get experience. (more…)

Those more influenced by external authority have a greater tendency to be depressed. Obedience to something outside yourself and lack of freedom of action involve repressing your own vitality and your own inner authority. The outside authority may be a forceful parent or spouse, or the inflexible regime of the institution you may live in or work for.

The most extreme example is being literally imprisoned. Your anger at your loss of freedom is likely to be repressed after a while; you are likely to be bored; you may well lose hope; in addition, you will lose the freedom and sometimes the capacity for self-regulation. Regulating yourself, making your own decisions, assessing your own risks and choosing your own paths are essential aspects of living life to the full. On the other hand, being in prison is very safe: it provides free housing and free food, and does not involve a great deal of personal responsibility. Most people in fact choose at least some form of relative imprisonment in order to feel safe and secure. The American psychiatrist Abraham Maslow, reckoned that only five per cent of people were truly autonomous, the other 95 per cent following without challenge the rules of life that had been dictated to them. (more…)