Mental Health Month is an annual observance sponsored by the National Mental Health Association (NMHA) and the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare (NCCBH) and supported by the OSHE Division. It is designed to increase awareness about mental health and mental illness.
Good mental health is fundamental to physical health and is important to personal well-being. Poor mental health can affect a person’s ability to lead a healthy, balanced, and productive life. Problems with mental health can affect thought processes, the processing of emotions, and social behavior. These problems can become serious and disabling, leaving the one unable to function in the world. Many people fail to recognize mental health problems and as a result, never seek treatment.
Take time this May to review your mental health and well-being. Being over stressed may lead to mental health problems. Stress is everywhere, and can be a positive motivator, helping people accomplish things in times of a crisis. It can also build and become difficult to handle. While stress overload is a mental health problem, it can affect your physical health and cause physical symptoms or signs.
Signs of Stress Overload:
● Fatigue
● Headaches
● Loss of concentration
● Difficulty making decisions
● Inability to control anger
● Increased use of alcohol, caffeine, cigarettes or drugs
● Increased or decreased eating
● Feeling overwhelmed
● Thinking often about what you need to do
If you suffer from one or more of these physical symptoms, you may be overstressed. Examine your life and try to identify where the stress is coming from. There are two main sources of stress: life events and every day hassles. Review the chart below. If you have had one life event (left hand column) within the past year you have moderate stress. Two to three life events in the past year leads to high stress and more than three life events in the past year leads to very high stress. If you had one or two daily hassles (right hand column) the past week, you experienced moderate stress. Three to six daily hassles can lead to high stress and more than six daily hassles in one week can lead to very high stress.
Potential Stressors: Life Events
Moving
Getting married
New baby
Divorce or separation
Injury
Illness
New job
Loss of a job
Inheriting or winning money
Financial problems
Injury or illness of a loved one
Death of a loved one
Victim of a crime
Legal problems
New boyfriend or girlfriend
Broke up with a boyfriend or girlfriend
Stopped smoking
Went on a diet
New responsibilities at home
New responsibilities at work
No place to live
Hospitalization
Drinking or using street drugs caused problems
Potential Stressors: Daily Hassles
Not enough money to take care of necessities
Not enough money to spend on leisure
Crowded living situation
Crowded public transportation
Long drives or traffic back ups
Feeling rushed at home
Feeling rushed at work
Arguments at home
Arguments at work
Doing business with unpleasant people (sales clerks, waiters/waitresses, transit clerks, toll booth collectors)
Noisy situation at home
Noisy situation at work
Not enough privacy at home
Minor medical problems
Lack of order or cleanliness at home
Lack of order or cleanliness at work
Unpleasant chores at home
Unpleasant chores at work
Living in a dangerous neighborhood
Finding Solutions: Ways to cope with stress:
● Be aware of situations that caused stress in the past
● Schedule meaningful, enjoyable activates
● Schedule time for relaxation
● Have balance in your daily life
● Develop a support system
● Take care of your health
● Talk about your feelings or write them in a journal
● Avoid being hard on yourself
● Use relaxation techniques
● Maintain your sense of humor
● Exercise
● Make or listen to music
● Doing art or going to see art
● Developing a new hobby or playing games
These are all tools that can help you battle stress, after you have identified it.
More information about stress and the tools you can use to combat it can be found on the first link below.
http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/cmhs/CommunitySupport/toolkits/illness/workbook/handout7.asp
These tools are supplied to help you, but they might not be able to solve all mental health problems. If you think you or someone you care about may be suffering from a mental health problem that is affecting everyday life, seek professional help.
More information about mental health and how to seek help can be found on at
http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov
The first step is always awareness of your mental health.
Source: FEMA Intranet site.
