Healthy Mental Health

Resiliency and Good Mental Health

Looking at the big picture, persons with good mental health have the following characteristics:

• A sense of contentment with their lives

• A zest for living, laughing and having fun

• Able to deal with stress and to bounce back from adversity

• Flexibility to learn new things and adaptability to deal with change

• Able to build and maintain healthy relationships

• Self-confidence and high self-esteem

• Good balance between work and play

• A sense of meaning and purpose in life, including activities and relationships

Still, being mentally and emotionally healthy doesn't mean that people never go through hard times or suffer through some painful situations. Sure, disappointments, loss, and change are all a part of life. And they do cause stress, sadness, and anxiety in the healthiest individuals.

Here’s where the importance of resiliency comes in. Individuals who have good mental health are able to bounce back from the adversity of a lost job, relationship, illness, sadness, or other setbacks. They see the circumstance or situation for what it is and set about righting their emotional balance.

In fact, resiliency is all about emotional balance. And you can teach yourself to become more resilient and, thus, have better mental health. Being able to recognize your emotions ensures that you don’t become trapped in negative mood states or in depression or anxiety. It also helps to have a good support network – family, friends, co-workers, counselors, and others – who can help you in times of need.

Resiliency, according to the American Psychological. Association (APA) is not a trait that people either have or don’t have. It involves actions, thoughts, and behaviors that can be learned and developed – in anyone. The APA suggests 10 ways to build resilience. They are briefly excerpted here:

• Accept that change is a part of living. All of life involves change. Accepting that fact, you will be better served by focusing on things that you can change and putting a plan together to do so.

• Make connections. Good relationships are important: family, friends, co-workers, and others. Accept help if you need it, and don’t be afraid to ask for it.

• Avoid seeing crises as insurmountable problems. You can’t change what’s happened, but you can look toward the solution and act accordingly.

• Take decisive actions. Acting decisively, even during stressful or adverse situations, helps build self-confidence and resilience.

• Move toward your goals. Create realistic goals and take steps to achieve them. Even small steps are a sign of progress. Keep moving forward.

• Look for opportunities for self-discovery. You can often learn something good from any situation, even tragedies and hardship.

• Nurture a positive view of yourself. Develop your confidence, and problem-solving ability helps to build resilience.

• Maintain a hopeful outlook. Try visualizing what you want instead of worrying about how you’ll attain it.

• Take care of yourself. Pay attention to the physical and mental aspects of personal care-taking. This keeps the mind and body primed and ready to deal with situations requiring resilience.

• Keep things in perspective. Try to look at the broader, long-term view and avoid blowing things out of proportion.

• Find additional ways of strengthening resilience. These may include journal writing, meditation, or spiritual practices.

On the Annual Wellness Visit, there are several self-administered tests to help identify mood, depression, or thoughts that maybe worth addressing with your Primary Care Provider and perhaps seek out a mental health evaluation and counselling to address them. It is your responsibility to learn various tools that will assist you in obtaining and maintaining good mental health despite the adversities that are thrown our way.

Our focus is deep. Our perspective is wide. The landscape is rugged. Together we survey the entire landscape to pick the best route to your destination.