Today is World Mental Health Day. World Mental Health day concentrates on our mental health wellbeing; something we must all continue to work on.
Good Health
Good health is characterised by a person’s ability to feel, express and manage a range of positive and negative emotions. As children, we trust family will have our backs around mental health, it’s not something we ever stop to question.
We trust we will be cared for.
Experiences and Mental Health
Experiences can sometimes be the catalyst for mental health issues, or having a family predisposition to problems with mental health. I have had to deal with mental health issues. Do we ever get over mental health issues? I think we can help ourselves. Whatever our mental health issues are, it is important we acknowledge what happens to us. It is important to recognise and accept what you feel and to make sure that what you do feel doesn’t continue to intrude in other parts of your life.
Trust in relationships
It is important to understand relationships and the people in it also. If you don't have trust it is important to work on trust. Trust is the invisible thread that supports positive mental health. You don’t see it, but you know it’s there.
What happens to us shouldn't have power over us, sometimes it's the realisation that what happened, happened for as long as it did. When mental health issues happen under your watch, it’s hard to let go.
We need to be proactive – on our mental health. We can't always assume we will have good mental health. We can't assume anything.
If you fancy reading either of my books that deal with mental health, you can grab paperback and Kindle copies on Amazon, or through the following link https:thecpdiary.com/my-books
Yes, we definitely need to be proactive around our mental health which your site has helped me tremendously.
Last night was a prime example of why I need to address my issues, since I didn't really get any sleep due to my mind racing. There are times when this happens, especially in the fall, seeing as that was always the worst time in my life as a child.
My parents would make a mess of things and we would have to move, usually with little warning, which also meant going to new schools. It seemed to happen around this time of year, which is why I'm always expecting the worst.
Half the battle is acknowledging my issues, my parents acknowledging their issues is something they never did, so we always ended up suffering the consequences. The current times are a prime example of this, where we have a President who isn't taking the virus seriously even after getting the Coronavirus himself.
I could easily freak out over the fact they chose to play hockey games just down the street from me, so now pretty much the whole town has been exposed; the referee has the virus. People are freaking out around me, but with the amount of chaos I grew up with, it isn't fazing me.
My girlfriend doesn't get that what I have been through has desensitized me, so it may seem like I don't care but of course I do. I'm not sure how I feel about anything right now, since during times like this, I tend to shut down and disconnect from my feelings whether they be good or bad.
I have been getting into some of the old habits of trying to feel something, but that hasn't been working so I need to stop doing those things. Most people don't have a clue as to what it's like to disassociate, but it's not pleasant since you end up not feeling anything at all.
I want to be able to enjoy being happy, or at least be able to feel like a normal human being like everyone else for a change.
Thanks Randy. Yes, I get you, there are two trains of thoughts here.
Yes, disassociating and not being in touch with your feelings can cause problems in terms of connecting with your thoughts and feelings which both need to be addressed, but unless you're going to deal with your feelings that can be problematic too.
Being in tune with your feelings is important, it's also important not to deny that your feelings exist, or that your feelings don't matter, because they do.
It also means you're fully prepared to accept and deal with what you feel, even if means coming out of your comfort zone to do it.
World Mental Health Day is important. For us to stay well for longer we must all deal with and make sure we're mentally ill. When we fail to deal with our emotions, we will inevitably become physically unwell.
Randy's first sentence resonated with me today. On your website Ilana, every day is a 'World Mental Health Day' 365 and 24/7.
Thanks. Yes, Randy is absolutely right, we must be proactive, we must take control, no matter how difficult it is.
I literally thought about that myself on 'World Mental Health Day' for the reasons you have mentioned. I know what it's like to struggle with mental health. I've struggled for most of my life.
Where you say, "on your website Ilana, every day is a ‘World Mental Health Day’ 365 and 24/7" - thank you, that's kind. I see my blog very much as a team effort.
We all contribute to make it what it is. I am grateful.
Randy's entire comment was heartfelt. He perfectly described how our emotional, psychological and social well being is at risk during this pandemic. He rightfully asserted that our leadership has failed, I agree.
Thankfully, The CP Diary has been instrumental in helping us handle stress during these uncertain times. This is a World Mental Health site, in and of itself.
Yes Randy did, I am pleased he mentioned it. Sometimes these things have to be said and thanks Tim. It means a lot to me that you have pointed out that my blog is a 'World Mental Health site, in and of itself.'
Honestly, as a child even though I didn't know what mental health was, I wanted to talk about things, even though I was never sure what everything really meant.
Starting my blog 10 years ago, I still didn't know how everything would work, or whether I was capable of stringing words together.
I tend not to connect straight away, but with your comment tonight, I am more than happy to own the accolade. Thank you so much.