by Mpendulo Lizwe Ndlovu 

2 August 2019

 

Title: Mental Health 

 

Mental health is a state or level of psychological well-being or an absence of mental illness. One may say mental health is being sane, but realistically it is the state of someone who is functioning at a satisfactory level of emotional and behavioural adjustment. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being. So basically, mental health affects how we feel, think, and act. Not forgetting how it can help us determine how we handle stress, relate to others and also make life choices. 

 

Stress is not a psychiatric disease, but it is linked to your mental health in two significant ways which are: stress can cause mental health problems and basically make existing problems worse. For example, if you struggle to manage the feeling of stress you are likely to develop a mental health problem like anxiety and depression. 

 

When you improve your physical health, you will automatically experience greater mental and emotional well-being. Regular exercise or activity can have a major impact on your mental and emotional health problems. It relieves stress, improves one’s memory and helps you sleep better. 

 

I strongly believe that to stay mentally strong during a crisis is to: 

 

• Accept reality

• Prioritize what needs to be done

• Seek support

• Practice self-care

 

Simple ways to make yourself happy everyday: 

 

• Listen to yourself

• Forgive yourself

• Accept yourself as you are right now

• Eliminate toxic people in your life and workplace

• Breathe and prioritize your health

 

I believe that mental health consists of individual’s ability to enjoy life and also creating balance between life activities and efforts to achieve PSYCHOLOGICAL RESILIENCE (the ability to cope with a crisis)