Here’s the thing. Life after 40 comes with a strange mix of wisdom and wobbliness. One day you’re confidently managing work, family, and your aging parents; the next day you’re tired for no reason, irritated at everyone, and Googling “Is this stress or am I just old now?”
That’s when mental health stops being a concept and starts being a lived experience.
The workshop moment that cracked something open
I was leading a workshop recently when my co-resource person tossed out a comment that stuck with me long after everyone packed up.
She said CGHS still doesn’t cover psychological or psychiatric treatment.
So I checked. She was wrong.
Then she added that people hesitate to take those claims.
On that part, she was absolutely right.
And for a minute, I just sat there thinking…
How can a country that talks endlessly about wellness, meditation, yoga, and inner peace refuse to treat the mind as part of health?
It took me back to when my father was undergoing Ayurvedic treatment. Not one insurance company was willing to cover it. Not one. This is supposed to be the land of Ayurveda, remember?
The big ironical question
If yoga, meditation, mindfulness, gym routines, aerobics, Ayurveda — basically, all the things that keep you mentally and physically well — are not covered by insurance, then what are we really protecting?
Only disease?
Only breakdowns?
Only things that have already gone wrong?
What this really means is:
We wait for people to collapse mentally before we give them access to care.
It’s like refusing to cover a helmet but happily covering a head injury.
Why this hits harder after 40
Before 40, your mind is distracted. You’re chasing goals, raising kids, pleasing family, building a career. You don’t have time to process anything deeply.
After 40, everything you avoided quietly taps you on the shoulder.
Hormones shift, responsibilities increase, friendships thin out, sleep becomes precious, and suddenly emotional fatigue becomes a real thing.
The world calls it maturity.
Your body calls it burnout.
Your mind calls it overdue maintenance.
And in that fragile space, imagine seeking help… only to realise half the systems don’t even believe your mind deserves attention.
The everyday stigma nobody admits
Most people still think mental health means
“Madness.”
“Weakness.”
“Something you hide.”
You say counselling and they say,
“Bas baat karne se kya hoga?”
or
“Hum bhi depression se guzre the, humne toh handle kiya.”
Everyone becomes a homemade therapist with DIY advice cooked in personal experience.
But mental health isn’t a story-swapping activity.
It’s not a Sunday gupshup.
And it’s definitely not something that magically fixes itself because family said “be positive.”
So, why is this confusion so big?
Because:
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Insurance doesn’t cover preventive mental care.
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Families don’t understand emotional breakdowns.
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Workplaces want productivity, not vulnerability.
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Society still whispers the word depression like it’s a scandal.
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And the individual… well, after 40, they’re too tired to explain what they’re feeling.
This is why mental health becomes a silent crisis.
Not dramatic.
Not visible.
Just slowly eating away at your energy, clarity, and joy.
Where do we go from here?
Start by accepting this simple truth:
You can’t fix what you refuse to acknowledge.
If your knee pain deserves a doctor, your mind deserves one too.
If cholesterol needs monitoring, so does anxiety.
If insurance covers bypass surgeries, it should also cover the stress that leads to them.
You don’t have to wait for a mental emergency to take your mind seriously.
And you definitely don’t have to justify your feelings.
This journey after 40 isn’t about falling apart.
It’s about finally understanding yourself — without filters.