Welcome…
Before embarking on this journey, please know that you can visit this site to read hundreds of blogs on mental and physical health.
Mental Health 101 is always a good place to start.
Mental Health 101
The World Health Organization has this definition for mental health:
“Mental health is a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to make a contribution to his or her community…”
If you were to break that definition down and apply it to yourself, what might you find?:
– Do you feel that you are in a state of well-being? That you feel well most of the time, are happy with who you are, can think clearly and feel connected to others?
yes
no
– Are you aware of your own abilities—you know, the stuff that you are really good at and the things you are working on?
yes
no
– Can you deal with basic life pressures like scheduling your day, planning meals and meetings, and maintaining balance and positive attitude while you’re at it?
yes
no
– Can you set yourself to a task and get it done without any problems? For example, can you set the dinner table without falling apart over it?
yes
no
If you answered yes to these questions, then you fall into what the World Health Organization has defined as mentally healthy. If you stumbled through some of these questions and were a bit unsure, keep reading. Our mental health has good days and bad days too!
However, if you answered no to all of them, you may want to consider reaching out for help.
Being mentally healthy is arguably the most important part of your health. Feeling good about who you are and making good decisions for yourself and those around you is the cornerstone of a happy and healthy life. Feeling good starts from the inside and works its way out. This means, it starts with the very thoughts you have inside your own head.
When you are aware of and able to manage your thoughts, feelings, and reactions/responses, you feel more confident and in control of your life. As such, you feel good about who you are and then you are more likely to make solid decisions about your future. All of these things start in your mind—they are part of your mental world: hence, the term mental health.
As a society we struggle with the misconceptions of mental health. Many people think a diagnosis of a mental disorder is a sign that something is so horribly wrong with someone and that they can no longer be associated with that person. This mentality must shift. We ALL have varying degrees of mental health. Some of us “catch a cold,” while others may “have the flu,” while others may “struggle with diabetes,” Meaning, some people will have small periods of a mental disorder that pass quickly, while others really struggle and their lives are disrupted for a period of time, while others will need to manage their mental health for a lifetime. We are all different but we all have thoughts and feelings, which means we will all have variations in our mental health.
Likewise, you have probably heard of people going to a therapist, a psychiatrist or a counselor. These professionals help all sorts of people (like you, your neighbor, the man at the grocery store) with problems big and small. You go to a physician for your body (like when you have something like a cold, a broken arm or cancer) and you go to a mental health professional for help with your mental state.
Some people believe that, “only really messed up people go to therapists. You know what I mean. You’ve got to be off your rocker to see a psychiatrist.”
That’s actually a common misconception and part of the stigma that needs to change. Some of the most mentally healthy people see therapists on a regular basis. It’s like preventative medicine for the mind. Remember, your mind is a muscle—just like your heart or even bicep—and keeping it healthy requires work and regular maintenance. But, more to the point, seeing a doctor for your mind is just simply like seeing a doctor for your broken leg: you can recover and lead a happier life if you go.
By learning about mental illness you are beginning that shift and reducing the stigma. When we are ignorant of something, we are more likely to fear it and speak negatively about it. But when we have information, then we can understand something and seek to make it right.