The novel coronavirus pandemic led to nationwide lockdown which affected 1.3 billion lives across the nation. Due to this lockdown, consciousness towards strong immune system has increased. People are trying to boost their immunity by yoga, regular sleep cycles, healthy food and a lot more. It is commendable that people are becoming more health conscious but it is also important to understand that there are two aspects of good health – good physical health and good mental health. While there is a lot of buzz for physical health, people don’t feel the need to discuss on mental health because of the stigma related to it.
WHY ?
Why do we need to talk about this issue ?
Even today, people think about mental health issues as a sign of personal weakness. Most of the people affected with depression think that they don’t need any counselling or treatment and time heals everything. They don’t share their issues because then the society will impose the title of “mentally ill” on them. This title comes with a lot of judgements and discrimination. People close to the patient start to behave in a different manner and the patient himself starts losing his or her self esteem. The fear of judgements and discrimination leads him or her to suffer in silence.
“People suffering from mental health issues are all around you, smiling with you, hiding their emotions, you just need to notice.”
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), 7.5% of Indians suffer from some kind of mental illness. For the treatment of these many patients, there are only 4000 mental health professionals across the country. This makes a huge treatment gap which worsens the situation of mental health in India. With increasing economical and social problems due to Covid-19, it is very necessary to address the issue and try to remove the stigma related to it. Now, that you have understood why it is important to talk about mental health. Let us understand- what exactly is good mental health ?
WHAT ?
What is good mental health?
Should one experience zero negative emotions or is meant to be happy, energetic and joyful all the time or is meant to have negligible problems in your life?
No. Good mental health doesn’t mean to have negligible problems in life. It doesn’t mean experiencing no emotional issues. But it means to be able to balance your positive and negative emotions. We all face problems and have bad times but to be able to fight those challenges and be optimistic in those situations is a sign of good mental health. The same goes for mental health. When you get disturbed by any unfortunate incident in your life, depending upon your mental health either you will bounce back or fall into depression.
Mental health is complex. In the book ‘The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind: My Tale of Madness and recovery’, Barbara Lipska, a leading expert on the neuroscience and mental illness, narrates her own experience of battling with a form of brain cancer and mental illness. Despite having an acute understanding of how our brain functions and studying about mental health for 30 years, she was not able to identify her own mental disorder as a consequence of her illness. Her experiences provide empathy and understanding for people whose behavior is beyond their control. Like her, many patients are not aware that they are mentally ill and hence they don’t try to seek help which worsens the situation. Unawareness about the problem, makes mental health more complex.
According to World Health Organisation, good mental health is a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.
“It’s okay to be not okay .
It’s okay to make mistakes .
It’s okay to feel lonely sometimes.
What’s not okay is to ignore yourself and your emotions.”
How ?
Now, that we’ve understood what actually is mental health, let’s discuss what should one do when he or she finds symptoms of mental illness. How should one improve his or her mental health?
- Share your feelings: Try to share what you are feeling with someone who can understand your problems. He or she can be your friend, your mother, your father or your grandparents. If you do not feel comfortable in sharing your issues with someone from your family or friends, then talk to a counsellor. They are trained professionals who have treated a lot of people going through the same situation which you’re going through right now. Their experience and education will definitely help you out.
- Take proper sleep : According to Harvard Medical School, sleep and mental health are closely connected. Sleep problems can increase the risk of mental health issues. Hence, if you are suffering from any kind of mental health disorder taking at least eight hours sleep every night should be your first priority.
- Exercise: Exercise helps in improving sleep and lowering blood pressure. It also releases feel-good hormones called endorphins. According to Dr. Michael Craig Miller (assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School), “In people who are depressed, neuroscientists have noticed that the hippocampus in the brain—the region that helps regulate mood—is smaller. Exercise supports nerve cell growth in the hippocampus, improving nerve cell connections, which helps relieve depression.” So, try to take out some time for exercise.
- Learn something new : A lot of researches have shown that learning something new not only helps in keeping you away from negative thoughts but also helps in regaining self-esteem. It can be anything, a new recipe or dance steps to your favourite song or reading a new book.
- Practicing gratitude: While suffering from mental disorder, it may be very difficult practicing gratitude with all the negative emotions coming up. But, it is possible with certain activities. One of the effective ways is to write three things you are grateful for, every night before sleeping. Try to make it a habit. It will bring contentment in your life.
“It’s easy to judge someone but it’s very difficult to understand. So, before you assume, learn the facts. Before you judge, understand why. Before you hurt someone, feel. Before you speak, think.”
Written by – Arjita Singh
Sources referred:
https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/sleep-and-mental-health
https://hbr.org/2018/09/to-cope-with-stress-try-learning-something-new
http://origin.searo.who.int/india/topics/depression/about_depression/en/
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