When it comes to your overall health and well-being, your mental is something that needs to be kept in check and evaluated. We’re not referring to intelligence, but rather your mental and emotional stability that can easily get out of whack if proper precautions are not maintained.
Mental health is something of vital importance that can lead to harmful and disastrous consequences when not taken care of. When not handled properly, poor mental health can result in problems such as depression, anxiety disorders, substance abuse issues, and more.
Why Mental Health is Important
Before we dive into why it is important to take care of your mental state, let’s first get a better understanding of what mental health even is.
Mental health is an overarching term to refer to emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It is something that affects how we think, feel, and act and is affects us throughout our entire lives.
Your mental health is affected by a number of things including genetics, life experiences, family history, and more.
Obviously, there is a lot that goes into your mental health and when it is properly taken care of, it can help people cope with stress, work productively, make better choices, and live better overall lives.
It is also worth noting that your mental health is something that can even have a big effect on your overall physical health and can lead to issues such as increased risk of stroke, diabetes, and heart disease.
Coping with Poor Mental Health
People who are struggling with their mental health, will look to cope with their struggles in various ways. Now, there are both positive and negative coping mechanisms which will either help you overcome these problems or exacerbate the issues, respectively.
Positive Coping Mechanisms
If you are struggling with issues such as depression or anxiety, one of the best things you can do to help your situation is exercise. Exercising is a great tool at your exposure to improve various mental health problems and get you on the right track forward. Evidence has shown that exercise can have numerous benefits for your mental health. This isn’t something you need to dive into headfirst, you can start slow – a walk around your neighborhood, a light jog – and work your way up to other things like yoga or weight training.
Negative Coping Mechanisms
While exercise is a great method for helping people work through certain mental health shortcomings, there are many negative coping strategies that people will often employee in place of the positive ones. For example, excessive alcohol use, like binge drinking, or even drug use are things that people can sometimes turn to when dealing with negative thoughts and feelings. Unfortunately, this can lead to a vicious cycle of addiction. It is best to avoid substances when feeling in a mental lull.
Overall, when it comes to your well-being, it is vital that you understand that your mental health needs to be managed in a clean and healthy way. Along with exercise, things like meditation, diet, social activities, and more can all help you work to improve your mental health. Whatever you do and however you choose to help yourself, ensure that you are making your mental health a priority in your life.