Promoting Mental Health

Mental Health The National Association of Mental Health defines mental health as: Being comfortable with yourself Feeling good about your relationships with others Being able to meet the demands of life THE DEFINITION MIGHT ALSO INCLUDE BEING ABLE TO EXPRESS EMOTIONS IN A HEALTHFUL MANNER

Mental Illness Mental illness is characterized by: Having a low self-esteem Being unable to relate to others Being incapable of coping with personal problems, such as extreme nervousness or shyness Having difficulty distinguishing among fantasy, imagination, and reality (psychotic) Not able to meet the challenges of day-to-day living

Personality and Self-Concept Personality: an individual’s unique pattern of characteristics These are a blend of physical, mental, and emotional traits Personality is influenced by four factors: heredity, environment, culture, and self-concept

Heredity This is the transmission of traits from one generation to the next. Just like you inherit whether or not you are tall, you may also have inherited the potential for the way you think, feel, act, reason, or learn.

Environment This includes everything that is around you and its influence upon you. Includes: Family Friends People around you Air you breathe Water you drink, food you eat

Culture This is a blend of the influence of the people in your home, city, state, and nation. In many ways you learn to act like the people with whom you spend most of your time.

Self-Concept This includes all of the beliefs you have about yourself including a self-evaluation of your strengths and limitations. Some people are unduly hard on themselves while others have a realistic view of themselves. Some people have parents that make them feel worthless…good news, is that you ALLOW people to let you feel certain ways. YOU have control here.

Expressing Emotions Emotions are feelings you have inside you in response to events and life situations. Your ability to give and receive love influences your mental health. What you learned as a child often affects how you behave as an adolescent. Happy feelings have a holistic effect on your lifestyle.

Experiencing Loss Some experiences in life may prevent a person from feeling loved or happy.

Loss of Love A loss of love may influence mental health Could be death of loved one Divorce of parents Friend, girlfriend, or boyfriend does not want to have that relationship anymore Rejection means to feel abandoned and unloved and no longer of any worth People dealing with this usually need to talk with friends and sometimes professionals

Loss of Control Some people feel they are worthy of love only if they have power, money, position, title, or influence. Their self-loving feelings are dependent on external sources. These people can set unrealistic goals and feel a loss of control and self-worth when they are unable to achieve those goals.

Loss of Self-Confidence Everyone experiences failure. Some people learn and grow from the failures, while others continually lose self-confidence. Fear of failure may limit mental and social growth.

Anxiety Anxiety relates to an anticipated or imagined situation. Fear relates to an actual situation. Your heart might beat faster, have a nervous stomach, or have sweaty palms. You might experience difficulty sleeping, eating, and relaxing. It is healthful to identify and deal with the sources of anxiety.

Anger Anger is the feeling of being irritated, annoyed, and furious. Anger usually follows hurt. When anger is not expressed in a healthful way, harmful mental and physiological changes occur.

Guilt Guilt is the feeling of having done wrong, or of being at fault. Adolescents often feel guilty when they are angry at parents or friends. The most common kind of guilt is when you do something that hurts another person. Admitting what you did, talking to the person, and apologizing is the adult way to deal with the situation and alleviating your guilt.

Defense Mechanisms Behavior you use to cope with uncomfortable situations or emotions. Suppression: delaying emotional responses to allow time to reason, plan, and think. Projection: you accuse someone of something you did, or blame them for some behavior that you are guilty of yourself. Repression: attempting to bury conscious thoughts into the unconscious part of the brain