Mental Health Awareness

Mental Health Awareness Month

People with mental health conditions don’t just manage it one month out of the year.  They manage their conditions and are being treated all year long.  Unfortunately, far too many people suffer daily, even hour to hour, without the necessary support to stabilize their conditions and manage the symptoms effectively.

Mental health conditions and substance use have risen 13% since 2017, especially due to post pandemic trauma.  According to the 2023 MHA study…

• 21% of adults have a mental illness.
• 5.44% of adults have severe mental illness.
• 4.8% of adults reported thoughts of suicide.

Our mental health affects our thoughts, how we feel, our behavior and how we manage stress.  It affects how we interact and relate to others and the choices we make.  Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being.

One in four adults report more stress this year, which is up 20% from last year. The workplace is the number one cause of stress according to the Center for Disease Control/National Institute on Occupational Safety & Health.  Unfortunately, reports indicated that 120,000 people die from work-related stress.

The stigma of mental health stigma leads to people not taking care of themselves and overlooking their health. Many factors contribute to mental health conditions, including:

• Biological factors, such as genes or brain chemistry
• Life experiences, such as trauma or abuse
• Family history of mental health problems

Some mental health topics include:

• Antisocial personality disorder
• Anxiety disorders (including generalized anxiety, panic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), phobias, and social anxiety)
• Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Bipolar disorder
• Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
• Depression
• Eating disorders (including Anorexia Nervosa, binge eating Disorder, and Bulimia Nervosa)
• Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Schizophrenia
• Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)
• Self-harm
• Suicide and suicidal behavior

Understanding that mental health conditions affect everyone from young adults to the elderly. It affects different people in different ways. Just like physical health is prioritized, your mental health should be too, in fact your mental health can affect your physical health. For example, depression can increase your risk of stroke, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. Your mental health can affect how you think, feel, and act. It can also change your relationships, how you make choices and how you deal with others. Mental illness is a very common health condition in America. According to the CDC 1 in every 5 Americans will experience a mental illness in a year. Some causes can be feeling lonely or isolated, trauma, history of abuse, chemical imbalance in the brain, drugs, alcohol and more.

Dealing with your mental health can:

• Help you at work
• Make you physically healthy
• Help with your relationships
• Reach your full potential
• Help cope with stress

Signs to look out for:

• Mood swings
• Low energy
• Thoughts of self-harm
• Abnormal eating patterns
• Abnormal sleeping patterns
• Feeling helpless or hopeless
• Avoiding friends or family
• Having unexplained aches or pains
• Feeling numb
• Feeling confused, angry, or on edge
• Inability to do normal daily tasks

Early Warning Signs & Symptoms

Not sure if you or someone you know is living with mental health problems? Experiencing one or more of the following feelings or behaviors can be an early warning sign of a problem:

• Eating or sleeping too much or too little
• Pulling away from people and usual activities
• Having low or no energy
• Feeling numb or like nothing matters
• Having unexplained aches and pains
• Feeling helpless or hopeless
• Smoking, drinking, or using drugs more than usual
• Feeling unusually confused, forgetful, on edge, angry, upset, worried, or scared
• Yelling or fighting with family and friends
• Experiencing severe mood swings that cause problems in relationships
• Having persistent thoughts and memories you can’t get out of your head
• Hearing voices or believing things that are not true
• Thinking of harming yourself or others
• Inability to perform daily tasks like taking care of your kids or getting to work or school

Ways to help

There is not just one way to start dealing with your mental health. There are medications, therapies, doctors, that can help you on your journey to healing. Here are just some ways you can help cope with anxiety, a common mental health condition that affects 40 million adults each year.

Write things down

Journaling is a great way to handle stress and anxiety. Being able to write your thoughts on paper can be very therapeutic. You could write all the negative sad thoughts down, happy thoughts, write a success journal or a gratitude journal. This will help improve the way you handle your stress and allow yourself to get everything out.

Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy uses calming essential oils scents such as lavender, rose, sandalwood, and more to relax the mind, body, and spirit, which can help both your mental and physical health.

Practice breathing techniques

When people feel anxious sometimes they begin to not breath properly which can lead to panic attacks. Using deep breathing techniques can increase the supply of oxygen to the brain and help you calm down. Some easy breathing techniques:

• Box breathing – exhale to the count of 4, hold your breath to the count of 4, inhale to the count of 4, hold in air to the count of 4, and repeat. This technique is also called 4- square breathing.
• Belly breathing – lay down, place your hand on your belly and chest, breathe in slowly through your nose and out through pursed lips.
• Lions breath – stick out your tongue and roar like a lion. Helps relax the muscles in your face.
• Mindful breathing – focus on your breath and bring your attention to the present without letting your mind drift off.

 Listen to music

Soothing music is known to affect your mood, emotions, and be a stress management tool. It can slow the heart rate, lower your blood pressure, and be a good distraction.

Tap into your creative side

Art therapy and artistic expression, in general, is good for the soul. Many people can benefit from this healing property of art therapy, especially during the holiday season and over the cold winter months. Creating an art piece from scratch has a variety of therapeutic elements.

At Spring Hills Senior Communities, we are proud to offer a variety of art therapy opportunities for the seniors in our care. We understand that this time of year can be difficult for them so we aim to use art therapy as one of many tools to help improve their mental health during this time of year. To learn more about our Signature Touches, contact us.