Mental health conditions are more common than you think. In America, there are almost 1 in 5 adults who live with a mental health condition, which equates to 52.9 million. Mental health encompasses a range of conditions varying in severity.
A person’s mental health includes psychological, social, and emotional well-being. The condition of your mental state will impact how you act, feel and think and plays an important role in the way that you function in your life and how happy you feel. This is why when you are struggling with your mental health, it can become upsetting, frustrating, isolating, and begin to impact your life. Many people who are struggling with their mental health will find that their personal life, professional life, and even relationships begin to suffer.
Mental health isn’t always just good or bad. Sometimes it can fluctuate depending on the time of year and personal circumstances. In other cases, it can get better or worse depending on events in a person’s life, and their environment.
If you find that you are struggling with your mental health, you must identify what you are struggling with, so you can seek the right support and move forward to improve your wellbeing. This is essential if you want to live a happy, and fulfilling life.
To help you on your journey, here are some top tips for identifying whether your mental health is declining, and what you can be doing.
Identifying your mental health struggles
This is where it is important to understand the signs and symptoms of mental health decline, as it will help you catch it early on. This is vital for anyone who wants to lead a happier life, and important if you have children, so you can continue to support them. Understanding the signs and symptoms can also be helpful to know, you can spot them early on in your children too. If you need help to assist your child suffering with mental health then it is important to consider counseling, you can find different services such as Thrive counseling centre at vancouver counseling or another similar in your area.
This is where it is important to understand the signs and symptoms of mental health decline, as it will help you catch it early on. This is vital for anyone who wants to lead a happier life, and important if you have children, so you can continue to support them. Understanding the signs and symptoms can also be helpful to know, you can spot them early on in your children too.
Signs and symptoms
Each mental illness will have its own symptoms and diagnosis, but there are some common signs of mental health decline that may be problematic if you are experiencing them in excess, which is helpful to know.
- Feeling low or sad
- Fear and worry
- Extreme changes in mood
- Angry
- Irritable
- Trouble sleeping
- Avoiding social activities and interactions
- Feeling confused
- Having trouble concentrating
- Memory loss
- No/low energy
- Not able to relate to others
- Changes in eating habits
- Low sex drive
- Unexplained physical aches and pains
- Difficulty in carrying out normal daily activities
If you are worried about your children, you may also see that their school performance begins to change, they are avoiding school, have nightmares, experience hyperactive behaviors, and more.
Getting a Diagnosis
If you resonate with any of the symptoms above, then you must seek support from a medical professional to get the correct diagnosis. A diagnosis will be able to tell you what you are experiencing, validate your feelings, and provide you with the information that you need to get help with your struggles.
Your doctor will assess you by asking you a range of questions and sometimes conducting different tests. This may include talking about your feelings, symptoms, and experiences, how long you have been experiencing them, and what kind of impact it is having on you and your quality of life.
You may have to complete some forms and questionnaires that will give your doctor more information on your thoughts, behaviors, and experiences, which will help them identify your mental health struggles and provide you with a diagnosis. You may need more than one session with your doctor to complete the diagnosis, and you may be referred to a specialist, such as a psychiatrist, for more information.
Having a diagnosis does not mean there is anything wrong with you. Instead, it will help you label your struggles and move forward strategically. Many people live normal lives with mental health problems, as they learn how to manage them and function at home and work. The kind of support you need will depend on what you are struggling with and how much it is impacting your everyday life.
There are a range of different mental health conditions that you can be experiencing, for example, some of the most common ones are:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Addiction
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Borderline personality disorder (BPD)
How to support yourself and your family if you are struggling with your mental health
Now you have identified what you are struggling with, you can seek the relevant support. There are a range of different things you can do to help yourself. The type of support that you seek will depend on what mental health struggles you are experiencing, what you need, what is accessible to you, and your preferences. If you are not sure what you need, your doctor can help you find the right solution. Here are a few examples of support that you can seek when you are struggling with your mental health.
Therapy
Therapy is a common treatment for people struggling with their mental health. During therapy, you will work one-to-one, or in a group setting with a mental health professional, who will provide you with a safe space to open up and talk about your struggles. Your therapist will help you develop positive changes in your life and coping mechanisms. The use of a hypnotherapist is a newer part of the holistic approach to mental healthcare, a hypnotherapist may wish to explore the idea of past lives with you, as a way of tackling anxiety and everyday stresses by finding a rooting theme between your current lived experience and another. If this sounds like something that might help or you’re curious, you can likely find an expert by searching for past life regression therapy near me.
There are different types of therapy that you can seek, depending on what you need. Some of the most common types of therapy are:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
- Interpersonal therapy (IPT)
- Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)
- Hypnotherapy
- Yoga therapy
Medication
Medication may be prescribed by your doctor if they feel it is necessary for your mental health. Some mental health conditions are caused by a chemical imbalance in your brain. If this is the case, then medication can help relieve your symptoms by adjusting your hormone levels.
Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is a great way to seek support for alcohol and drug addiction or severe mental health conditions. You will usually go and stay in a professional facility, where they will administer the relevant support, such as therapy, activities, and medication. A change in environment can be helpful for recovery. The length of alcohol rehab can vary depending on how severe your symptoms and struggles are and can vary by person.
Support groups
Support groups are run by volunteers who have experienced the same kind of struggles as you. These are usually set up in your local area, and more recently are held on zoom. They are particularly helpful, as you will have the opportunity to listen and speak (if you want) to a group of people who are going through the same things as you. These are usually free to attend and can be helpful in your recovery.
Self-help
There are plenty of things you can be doing to help support your mental health. Self-help should be something you do, regardless of whether you are seeking other support. Self-help will include learning about your condition, changing your habits and behaviors, eating a healthy diet, going outside, and exercising regularly. These simple steps can have a huge impact on your mental health. There are a plethora of studies that show just how impactful things like exercise and nutrition are for your mental health. This will also help you take control of your health.
Life can be difficult if you are struggling with your mental health. Follow these top tips to help you identify your mental health struggles and seek relevant support.
Mental Health Workbook: 6 Books in 1: The Attachment Theory, Abandonment Anxiety, Depression in Relationships, Addiction, Complex PTSD, Trauma, CBT Therapy, EMDR and Somatic Psychotherapy (Paperback)Attached, Emily, Fernandez, Marzia, Mackesy, Gino
|
||||||
You must log in to post a comment.