Mental health
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When was the last time you thought about or talked to someone about mental or emotional health? You probably can’t remember. Mental/psychological illnesses or emotional problems, such as depression, various anxiety disorders (phobias, panic, PTSD...) and other mental difficulties, are discussed more frequently. The term mental or emotional health refers to the overall state of mental well-being that includes the way a person feels about themselves, the quality of their relationships with others, and the ability to cope with difficulties. Good mental health is much more than the absence of mental illnesses and difficulties and includes a number of positive characteristics, such as:
- a sense of satisfaction Precisely, due to the positive features of mental and emotional health, individuals can lead a fulfilled life and enjoy it through productive, meaningful activities and building healthy relationships with other people. People with good/preserved mental health have their feelings and behaviors under control. They are able to cope with inevitable challenges and stress. However, that does not mean that emotionally and mentally healthy people never experience adversity or encounter emotional problems. Changes, disappointments, losses, etc. are an integral and normal part of every person’s life. They inevitably bring feelings of sadness and anxiety, stress and tension. However, emotionally healthy people know how to recover after difficulties, trauma and stress. Such persons have developed or adopted ways of dealing with demanding situations and maintain a positive outlook on the situation. They remain focused, flexible and creative, both in difficult and good times. When bad things happen, they recover quickly and move on. Unfortunately, too many people take their mental and emotional health for granted and address the issues only when problems arise. Just as it takes time and effort to improve and maintain physical health, the same applies to mental health. The more time and effort invested in maintaining mental health, the better it is. There is a lot that can be done to improve mood, strengthen resilience, or simply enjoy life more. In order to do that, it’s needed to take responsibility for our own health, both physical and mental. When it comes to physical health, people are often willing to invest time and effort in maintaining it and seek professional medical help when difficulties arise. Unfortunately, this is not the case when it comes to mental health. It is important to take care of our mental health as much as possible, and when problems arise, to try and solve them in the best possible way. There is no magic or universal solution or recipe for solving problems; every person is different and everyone has their own way of coping with their problems “that works for them”. Therefore, it cannot be said that there is a perfect method that works for everyone. A good way is the one where a person is offered help in coping with their difficulties, recovering as soon as possible after difficult periods, without creating new problems in the process. Sometimes the problems are too big and/or too difficult for the person to solve on their own by relying on some of the existing ways of coping. Sometimes the person is simply overwhelmed and consequently fails to overcome them, or they are too much of a burden at the given moment. In such a situation, it is necessary to seek help. Sometimes the help of family members and friends, such as conversation and good advice is enough, but sometimes one feels as though nothing helps. That is a sign that the usual ways of dealing with difficulties are simply not enough and that it is necessary to seek professional psychological help. If you are a student, you can also seek professional psychological help from the Psychological Counseling Office at the University Counseling Center. You can also look for some other services among our links, but that list is not comprehensive. We advise you to ask and look for help - there are certainly solutions to your problems, you just need to reach out! Where there is a will, there is a way! :) |
