Mental health is just as vital as physical health, and it is one of the greatest wealth that needs to be saved at all costs. Along with physical health, mental health is the only other asset that one needs to keep themselves sane. We get so caught up in our daily routines, juggling between work and home that we forget how important it is to dig deep inside ourselves to realize that self-worth and learn to love and value ourselves.
Unlike physical illness, mental illness is something that most people overlook or try to ignore until it becomes too difficult to manage.
The term “mental health” is neglected in our society, with so little to no awareness around it. If you ask your parents or grandparents what mental health is, you will find the majority of people in our society, in every home without a doubt with no answers to what it is and would categorically state… It’s all in our heads, therefore there’s no such thing as mental health.
But we all know this isn’t true; the first priority should be understanding mental health, especially in India.
On the occasion of World Health Day, it is time for us all to get involved in the conversation about mental health because mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of. It is like a medical problem just like heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes.
Let us start by defining what is mental health and why it is important for each one of us to take it seriously?
Mental health is all about focusing on yourself, staying stress-free, taking enough sleep, spending quality time with yourself, and having a good time .. simply like YOU being YOU.
You should be able to have the energy to enjoy each and every moment of your life without stressing over things that maybe aren’t even in your control.
WHO has clearly said out loud that there is literally no health without mental health. As a result, there is an understanding at the highest levels of healthcare as well that you cannot be a healthy person without also paying attention to mental health.
What are the components of describing one as a mentally healthy person?
Understanding yourself, relating to your needs, dealing with your emotions, communicating your needs to others, being empathic towards others, and being able to settle your challenges without breaking down or overstressing yourself are all ways to achieve the pinnacles of mental health stability.
Myth and Facts about Mental health
Ways to manage mental health
Keep a cool mind
Trying to function under duress at work or at home can invariably lead to a catastrophic situation. Panicking or working under extreme pressure can lead to mistakes. So, keep your mind cool and focused to avoid any unwanted mistakes. Think less and think right so that our emotional and mental health is in our control.
Talk your heart out
Talking about your feeling can help you to stay in good mental health and allow you to deal with situations in which you feel challenged and troubled. Talking to someone close or even to a counsellor can help to cope with problems that you might have been carrying in your head for a while. Listening and speaking your heart and mind out can help you feel supported or comforted on so many levels.
Not everyone is the same and not everyone has the same mental issues and so the approach to dealing with every individual’s mental health would be different.
Take a break
Change of scene or slowing yourself down is very essential for mental health. Whenever
you feel too stressed out, or under pressure and start to feel out of breath it is advisable to take a pause, a 5-minute pause from every activity that you must be doing at that time. And Breathe .. backwards 10,9,8,7…..2,3,1.
Give yourself some time to relax and de-stress. You can do yoga asana and meditation to help relax both physically and mentally.
Quality sleep
If you are stressed and are not able to concentrate on your routine activities, it indicated your work has started taking a toll on your mental health. Listen to your body if you feel really tired and take a good quality sleep.
Why is it essential to spread mental health awareness?
We must make a concentrated effort to raise mental health awareness. Simply put, we need to change the way our society thinks about mental health.
The only solution to this is to have deeper and difficult conversations as and when needed and to accept that there is a problem that needs to be immediately addressed.
One who is having mental health should not have any fear or shame in saying out loud about their concerns. But this can only be done when our society comes out of this myth that mental health is fake.
It’s understandable that it takes a lot of courage to ask for help and for this one needs to balance their mind and take the first step toward self-improvement.
Common Mental Health Conditions
Though there are innumerable mental health illnesses, below are some of the most common ones
- Depression, anxiety, and uncontrollable stress
- Panic attacks or panic disorders
- Eating disorders
Wondering how mental health can affect your chances of fertility?
Infertility is a word that in itself can take a toll on a patient’s mental health and we all know that dealing with infertility is not an easy task. Once you are diagnosed with infertility, it immediately disrupts your mental health thereby decreasing the chances of pregnancy. The first thing that we need to address is our mental health. For this, Birla Fertility & IVF is soon coming up with counsellors who can help patients deal with the stress of infertility. Not being able to conceive can cause serious stress to your mental health, and getting yourself treated in the hopes of conceiving can also lead to infertility stress, therefore, making it a vicious cycle.
On this note, CK Birla Hospital and Birla Fertility & IVF organised an event where Brahma Kumari Shivani Ji, shared with us her insights on how one can Unlock the treasures of the mind. Sister Shivani is a teacher in the Brahma Kumaris spiritual movement in India.
To learn and understand more about her preachings and how she has been able to help millions of souls to heal and soothe their minds, you can read sister Shivani’s quotes in hindi and english on google.
One of her many quotes to remember is….
“Invest a little time and energy in teaching your own mind to release the expectations”
