No health without mental health
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Author bio
The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
No health without mental health – A guide to understanding the importance of taking care of your mental health.
In this guide, we are going to discuss the importance of taking care of your mental health and why this is just as important as physical health.
No health without mental health
We have always heard the importance of taking care of our physical health.
Since we are young, we have seen how our parents take us to the hospital to see that everything is under control.
If you discover something we see a great concern that this generates and begin to follow the doctor’s instructions, something sensational.
It is interesting to see how people daily strive to have a better body.
They know that the right diet and the right exercise helps to be in better shape and to prevent diseases.
We have seen how hundreds of people in the field of medicine and the fitness world promote a healthy life and how every day people decide to change to have a better state of health.
Let’s think for a moment if this whole movement of eating healthy, going to the doctor regularly to see how our body is doing and exercising is the same in the field of mental health.
Let us think carefully and analyze whether mental health is being given due importance if the rise of caring for our mind is equal to or greater than that of caring for our physical body. We know what the answer is.
While it is true that today there are many campaigns, organizations and people in general who are raising a voice against the importance of mental health, we know that even more work is needed.
There are still taboos concerning mental health. There are still many people who are ashamed to talk about their mental health.
They see this as a sign of weakness and it is what stops us from moving forward and raising awareness about mental health.
An example of the aforementioned is when it is discovered that a person has died due to suicide.
Then it is discovered that the person suffered from depression but never talked about it.
But when it comes to talking about a physical illness such as cancer, everyone comes to help and support.
This does not mean that diseases such as cancer are less important but that they are still struggling to raise awareness that it is okay to talk about mental health.
Mental health is as important as physical health. There is no health without mental health. You might wonder: how is that?
How is it that there is no health without mental health? Well, the same question is the same answer.
There’s no health without mental health, do you know why? Because a person who does not feel well mentally can be physically well in most cases.
Several studies have confirmed the role that the mind plays when a person has or generates a disease.
People who suffer from a mental illness such as anxiety and depression tend to develop physical discomforts and aggravate some physical illness.
The central nervous system is responsible for most of the body’s functions.
The mind tells the body what to do and if the mind is well, the body will be fine, but if the mind is not the body will not be well and this is a great reason to understand why there’s no health without mental health.
Various agencies around the world work hard to help people have mental health.
The World Health Organization has said that by 2020 depression will be the leading cause of disability, something alarming, right?
More than 300 million people are suffering from depression and within this amount, there is a percentage that commits suicide. This is not OK.
A person who has high levels of stress, who suffers from some mood disorder or other disorder, in general, is not well.
It cannot work the way it did before and this is a symptom that it has no health.
It is sad to see how there are still companies and organizations that do not understand that a person when it is depressed needs help.
Not only suffering from a physical illness is a reason for license or support, so are mental illnesses.
It is important to deepen the concept of mental health and what it represents when a person does not feel well psychologically.
It is time for each person to understand that there’s no health without mental health.
Embarrassing bodies mental health. Physical health of the people who suffer from mental illnesses like these suffer greatly.
What is mental health?
Wikipedia defines mental health as the level of psychological well-being or the absence of mental illness.
It is the status of someone who is functioning at a satisfactory level of emotional and behavioural adjustment.
A person who has mental health is someone who is in control of their emotions and recognizes their moods.
A person with mental health can identify when things are not going well emotionally and when he should ask for help.
In the technological world we live in, mental health has been hit with the massive use of social networks.
People have found imbalance and nonconformity in their life due to the comparisons they make of their life with others.
A person who looks at another with things that it would like to have and sees that it does not have it can take it to the point of depressing it and revealing the problems of self-esteem that it has.
The fact that a person has mental health does not mean that he will never suffer from any mental illness such as depression or anxiety or that he may not know how to deal with an emotionally difficult situation, but that it is someone who at the moment he presents will have the ability to investigate and act.
It must be recognized that there are people who have little capacity to deal with certain emotional situations, which is normal but the positive is that there are various methods and treatments to which a person who does not feel well mentally can go.
In earlier times talking about mental health was difficult. People did not understand that depression is a disease.
Many tended to label someone who had no mental health as weak or immature, which caused the person with some mental illness to retreat and did not want to seek help.
Many people can develop a mental illness due to physical illness and physical illness can lead a person to develop mental illness.
This saying also makes it clear that there’s no health without mental health.
How can a person develop a mental illness?
Mental illnesses do not have a single cause, they are multifactorial. There are several factors by which a person’s mental health can deteriorate.
Among the most common causes are genetic and cultural aspects.
It should be noted that mental illnesses do not have a race, gender or socioeconomic status, anyone can be at risk of developing a mental illness, although there are always some that are more prone than others.
When we talk about the genetic aspect it is that studies have been done where they highlight the relationship of genetics for a person to develop depression.
It may be that it is inherited through a mother or father who has had depression.
In the cultural field, there are several causes for which a person can develop a mental illness.
There are aspects related to a traumatic event.
A person who has lost a relative has gone through a difficult emotional breakdown or has been on the verge of death through an accident, may be more vulnerable to developing a disease.
It is common for disorders such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress to occur.
Having a serious physical illness can lead to destabilizing a person’s mental health.
The person with a disease such as cancer may become depressed due to the diagnosis and the various medications that he has to take for the disease.
The uncertainty of their health can lead to a person having sadness and symptoms similar to depression.
Any situation in which the person is unable to face and the negative interpretation it generates can affect their mental health.
The many responsibilities of daily living can lead to a person being in a situation with high levels of stress.
How to take care of my mental health?
Taking care of mental health is as important as taking care of physical health.
There’s no health without mental health, so the person should know more about mental health.
For a person to take care of its mental health, it must be aware of its emotions and feelings.
If you feel bad, you must identify why you feel that way.
It is normal not always to have the same mood, but if you see that it becomes a recurring feeling badly analyze and think that it might be causing you to feel that way.
Another way to take care of your mental health is to learn to deal with the situations of daily living.
As human beings that we are, we will not always have control of things that happen to us daily.
You might find yourself in the situation of dealing with something like the loss of a job or the death of a loved one.
It’s normal if you feel sad and heartless at first, but over time you can’t let that still affect you.
Life is about getting up in the face of stumbling blocks.
Having a positive attitude is essential for mental health.
A person who learns to look at the good in each situation is someone less prone to stress or anxiety.
Learn to see any difficult situation like learning and you will see that in the end, it is not so bad.
FAQs about no health without mental health
How can I learn more about mental health?
The internet is an excellent way to learn about mental health.
There are different websites focused on mental health and providing help in case of any mental illness.
How do I identify if I suffer from any mental illness?
Mental illnesses are diverse, so it is important to investigate about mental illnesses and how they manifest themselves.
The DSM-V is the book that talks about mental disorders, which can give you an idea.
If your symptoms are related to sadness repeatedly and some others similars, talking with a mental health professional can help clarify your doubts
How to help a person suffering from any mental illness?
The best way to help someone suffering from a mental illness is by giving them support and motivating them to go to a mental health professional.
What treatments exist for mental illness?
The treatments focused on psychological and pharmacological therapy are the most used and combined give very good results.
Can I prevent a mental illness?
Mental illnesses cannot be prevented, anyone can suffer from it, but taking care of your mental health will help you deal with any situation that may be a trigger for mental illness.
Conclusion
It is impossible to talk only about physical health, you also have to talk about mental health.
Each person must understand that there’s no health without mental health. The body and the mind are connected and when the mind suffers the body also suffers.
Having mental health also means having physical health.
A person who is aware of their emotions and their surroundings knows how to recognize the dangers of anything around them and take action.
Recommended links
References
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