MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS

What is mental health? Mental health to me is taking care of yourself and putting yourself before others at the lowest times in your life. Over the past two months I have experienced a downfall in my mental health due to events that contributed in sadness, anger, and disbelief. Although I will not get into those topics for personal reasons, I wanted to portray how important it is to take care of yourself when times are tough. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood" (What Is Mental Health? | MentalHealth.gov). Not only does mental health affect your emotions along with psychological and social well being, it also affects your daily life and interrupts routines that you once enjoyed but now have no effort to interact with.

Is a decrease in mental health common? Such as having anxiety or depression? According to the Imagine America Foundation and the National Center for Education Statistics, "almost 20 million students are enrolled in colleges and universities for the fall 2019 semester. Of those 20 million, 19.9 million suffer from mental health concerns including anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation and substance abuse. A survey from the American College Health Association indicates three out of five students experienced “overwhelming” anxiety, just in the past year" (100 Blog Topics I Hope YOU Write - Chris Brogan Media: Strategic Advisory and Executive Leadership Services). Although the study was brought on to only college students, children and adults also suffer from decreased mental health. Any symptom that can cause bad mental health can start from any age and can be brought on by numerous things. Such as, loss of a loved one, trauma, extreme changes in life, divorce, feelings of loneliness, weather, physical surroundings, lifestyle, sleep deprivation, body negativity, etc..

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR MENTAL HEALTH

There are many ways to improve your mental health. The real question is, how/where can I start? Personally, through my downfall in mental health, I have started a weekly journal that I keep my schedule planner in as well. Any free time that I have, I make sure to focus on my well being and try to make it as positive as I can. I know it sounds off or weird but complimenting your best abilities every morning can also help you start your day off right. If you have seen the movie Alice In Wonderland, before she slays the Jabberwocky she lists the things that she is capable of doing and has already done which also helps her confidence boost enough to do the things that she thought she was incapable of doing. Other things that you can do to improve mental health include; staying positive, practicing gratitude, taking care of your physical health, connecting with others, developing a sense of meaning and purpose in life, meditation, and finally relaxation techniques. It all depends on what works best with you and you may not find a coping method on your first try. Everything takes time and it will eventually get better as you start progressing. Mental health is common through everyone, don't ever think that you are alone in any situation.

National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255