Mental Health…

It is my belief that striving for healthy choices and a lifestyle focusing on 5 fields of health – emotional, physical, financial, spiritual, and mental – will help produce the optimal overall well-being.  Over the next five weeks, we will be diving deeper into each one of these.  This week, mental health.

Mental health, one “field” of health we tend to chat about a lot in this Blog.  It’s an essential component of overall well-being that affects how you think, feel, act, and interact with others. It’s important to know that mental health is not the absence of mental illness, but a state of well-being in which you can cope with day-to-day stresses of life, work productively, contribute to your community, etc. Mental health challenges are widespread and understanding these issues, as well as ways to promote strong mental health, is important.

Healthy mental well-being enables you to:

• Handle life’s challenges – whether it’s a tough day at work or a personal setback, a healthy mind helps in adapting to change and managing stress
• Work productively – mental health influences decision-making, creativity, focus, and motivation, all important qualities for productivity and success
• Build relationships – social connections and emotional well-being are tightly linked and positive mental health fosters healthy relationships with family, friends, and colleagues
• Lead a fulfilling life – mental health plays a key role in helping people pursue goals, experience joy, and engage fully with life

Conversely, when mental health is compromised, it can have a profound impact on every aspect of your life. Mental health challenges and conditions like anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, etc. can impede daily functioning and significantly affect relationships and quality of life.  They can be marked by:

• persistent feelings of worry, fear, and tension
• persistent feelings of sadness, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, fatigue, and thoughts of worthlessness that can even lead to suicidal thoughts or behavior
• extreme mood swings that include emotional highs and lows
• an impact on relationships, work performance, and overall stability
• invoked nightmares and heightened anxiety, often making it difficult to function in everyday life
• unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors (compulsions) as an attempt to alleviate anxiety
• effects in thinking, emotions, and behavior that may cause losing touch with reality and could include delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized thinking
• severe disturbances in eating behavior, often linked to distorted body image and emotional distress.

Mental health disorders are complex and can arise from a combination of genetic, biological, environmental, and psychological factors like gene composition, life experiences, chronic stress, chemical imbalances, physical health conditions, and substance abuse.

Mental health care is critical if you are struggling, and treatment (counseling, therapy, medication, etc.) can make a profound difference. Even if you’re not currently experiencing mental health challenges, it’s important to actively promote mental well-being. This can be done through practicing mindfulness, staying connected with meaningful relationships and social support, prioritizing self-care, setting realistic goals, and seeking help early.

Mental health is a vital part of overall health. Understanding the importance of mental health, recognizing some of these signs of mental health challenges, and knowing when and where to seek help can lead to a more resilient, happier, and healthier life.

Despite growing awareness, a stigma on mental health remains as a significant barrier. Negative stereotypes and misunderstandings about mental illness often cause people to hide their struggles or delay seeking help. This stigma is often reinforced by societal beliefs that mental illness is a sign of weakness or that people should simply “snap out of it.”

It’s time to shift the narrative around mental health to one that emphasizes prevention, compassion, and access to care for everyone, regardless of background or circumstance.

Join me in fighting this stigma.  Let’s help change attitudes, increase awareness, and promote open conversations about mental health. The more we normalize seeking help for mental health challenges, the better society can address and support those in need.

Each week we try to correlate these Blog Posts with our weekly newsletter.  In each you will also get a helpful Mindful Minute – this week, “G.I.V.E.” If you haven’t yet, enter your first name, email and click “yes, please” in the black box within the main Blog Page of this website to have these drop into your inbox each week. 

For additional tips on mindful living and topics like this, follow me @livinghealthyin5fields on social media.