Mental health is an incredibly important topic that affects us all, yet many of us aren’t educated on the basics of emotional wellness. Understanding the basics of mental health is key to achieving holistic wellbeing, so join us in exploring Mental Health 101: Understanding the Basics of Emotional Wellness.
1. Navigating Mental Health: Developing an Understanding
Mental health should be a priority, yet it’s often overlooked for more immediately pressing concerns. Fortunately, with a general understanding of mental health, we can all make an effort to learn how to better recognize and understand our own emotions.
- Start with Yourself – Before we can dive into understanding others’ mental health, we sometimes have to start with assessing our own. Think of how you’re feeling emotionally and try to articulate it. Increasing self-awareness is a crucial first step.
- Open Up the Conversation – I know it can take a lot of courage to start talking about the emotional state of yourself or others, but this conversation is hugely important for creating a more understanding and validating world.
- Educate Yourself – As well as just stating your own feelings, it’s also important to take action. Research different mental health problems and take note of the signs and symptoms someone with that might be displaying.
Ultimately, by taking control to more and more about mental health, we can help break down the stigmas and become more compassionate and accepting individuals. It all starts with you.
2. The Building Blocks of Emotional Wellness
Being emotionally well involves mastering the various building blocks that are part of emotional wellness.
Self-Awareness
Putting yourself first in order to be emotionally well requires self-awareness – recognizing your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviours, and understanding how they interact to influence your overall wellbeing. Self-awareness is a continual process of discovering or rediscovering yourself and being honest about your emotions and experiences.
Self-Trust
Building emotional wellness means learning to trust yourself. This means being able to understand and act on your instincts and preferences, and make decisions that you know will be in your best interests. This also includes developing a sense of self-efficacy – understanding that you can can do what is necessary to improve your emotional wellbeing.
Self-Care
An important aspect of emotional wellness is a commitment to taking care of yourself holistically. Self-care is the practice of looking after your emotional, physical, mental and spiritual needs. It is taking intentional action to nurture your own well-being and nourish your spirit. Examples of self-care include getting enough rest and nutritious foods, engaging in activities that bring you joy, and creating personal boundaries to protect your space.
Meaningful Connections
Humans are social creatures, and meaningful connections to others can provide significant emotional support. Building meaningful connections involves fostering strong relationships with those around you and creating a positive environment. It also involves staying connected to values, ideas, and sources of inspiration. Building emotional wellness necessitates investing time and energy in developing meaningful connections both inside and outside of your immediate environment.
3. Recognizing Signs of Mental Illness
Mental illness is a condition that can manifest in a variety of ways. It’s important to be aware of the signs – both physical and emotional – that may indicate a person is struggling with a mental illness. Here are a few recognizable indicators:
- Withdrawal: People with mental illness may withdraw from activities they previously enjoyed. They may no longer take an active interest in friends, family, and work.
- Excessive Mood Swings: Mental illness can cause rapid fluctuations in an individual’s mood. They may feel elated one moment and then suddenly be overwhelmed by distress or anger.
- Depression or Anxiety: A prolonged feeling of sadness or the experience of significant anxiety can point to a mental disorder.
Physical symptoms such as sleeplessness, appetite changes, loss of concentration, and feelings of physical pain are also indicative of mental illness. It’s important to take these physical symptoms seriously.
If you or someone you know is experiencing warning signs such as the ones listed, don’t be afraid to reach out for help. Knowing the signs of mental illness can help a person gain access to the care and support they need.
4. Combating Stress and Anxiety: Finding Support
Managing stress and anxiety can be daunting, so it’s important to find out how to balance and regulate these feelings. One of the main ways to alleviate stress and nervousness is by finding support. Identifying and utilizing a range of ways to access support from different sources can be enormously beneficial. Here are just a few ways:
- Therapy: Talk therapy can help build insights into origins of anxiety and provide various coping strategies. Finding a therapist is a great way to process emotions, gain perspective, and build resilience.
- Peer Support: Learning to interact supportively with people who are struggling with similar issues can be comforting. Having a conversation with someone going through what you are going through can be validating and allow you to recognize that your emotions are normal.
- Online Communities: Seeking emotional support over the internet can be extremely helpful, specifically when face-to-face support isn’t available. It can help you to feel less isolated and more connected.
Overall, avoiding stress and anxiety isn’t impossible. Developing a multifaceted approach to identifying how to address these issues can be hugely beneficial. This might involve not relying solely on one form of support, but having a few different options that suit you and your personal needs.
5. Promoting Positive Mental Health: Taking Care of Yourself
Everyone has days when they are feeling low, tired, or overwhelmed. That’s why it is important to practice positive self-care, so that you can give your best to the people around you.
Be Kind to Yourself
It’s easy to be critical of yourself, but this can be very detrimental to your mental health. Allow yourself to get some rest – try going to bed a little earlier or taking a nap if you need to. Allow yourself to have the occasional treat or splurge, even if it doesn’t fit perfectly into your diet. You deserve love and care, so don’t forget to give it to yourself.
Stay Connected
Our relationships have a huge impact on our mental health. Spend time with those close to you, or reach out to an old friend. You don’t have to catch up on every detail – sometimes it helps just to know that someone is there and willing to listen.
You can also benefit from connecting with people who share your interests. Join an interest group or a local club, or connect with others online.
Be Mindful of Your Habits
- Set small, achievable goals each day
- Exercise regularly
- Eat a balanced diet
- Take regular breaks
By focusing on your basic needs and forming healthy habits, you can ensure that you are in the best situation possible when it comes to your mental health.
Taking care of your mental health is essential to living a happy and balanced life. As you now understand the basics of emotional wellness, be sure to cultivate these practices and habits in your everyday life. Doing so will help you to better recognize bouts of anxiety or depression and manage them in healthy, effective ways. Practice self-compassion and be gentle with yourself as you strive to achieve a level of mental wellness that might have seemed elusive before. After all, emotional wellness is not a destination you arrive at once and for all – it’s a journey.
