Maintaining friendships or other relationships with supportive and caring people is the best and most realistic way to attaining and maintaining mental and emotional health. Depending on the level of mental or emotional illness, it might prove quite impossible for someone to maintain their own health merely by being popular, "strong inside", or physically fit. Although physicality does play a role in mental well being, one must have an external support system in place to bolster and reinforce any internal strides made toward wellness.