MENTAL HEALTH by Evaline Achieng

Well! Well! Well! It’s about time we talked about mental health given this is a very vital aspect of human health and it definitely does affect our physical health. Hoping you are excited to dive into this very amazing journey with us as we share different stories with one another regarding our mental health journeys and get not only to unpack all the things burdening us in the inside but also heal and help others heal.

Your anxious mind is probably eager to understand Mental Health and also distinguish Mental wellness and Mental Illness. Naturally, people get excited when they can talk about their personal experiences to help people understand the bigger picture. Due to this, WOVOP created a virtual safe space where people can talk about their mental health journeys and as a result demistify healing and stigmas surrounding mental health.

So, what is mental health?

Similar to physical health, mental health is a part of human life. While physical health is the state of your body, mental health is the state of your mind, feelings, and emotions. Being mentally healthy contributes to feeling, thinking and acting in a manner that helps you appreciate life and cope with its challenges. Struggling with mental health can make you to feel low and unhappy, be unable to think clearly, or be overwhelmed by stressful situations.

While mental health is always there and may be positive or negative, mental illness affects a person’s ability to function over a long period of time. Mental illness is not the same as feeling, unhappy, stressed or sad due to difficult situations. Mental Illness may make one feel distressed regularly and may not feel in control of their lives. Mental illness can impact how we view ourselves, the lens through which we view the world around us and how we relate and interact with the world.

It is very possible to have good mental health even if you have a mental illness. Many people with mental illness experience tough times but they can also have periods of better or good mental health just like with other conditions. Taking care of your mental health is important not only for you as an individual but also for everyone else around you.

Wait a minute, what really is Mental health?

Mental health is a state of mental wellness that enables people to cope with life stresses, own their power and capabilities, learn positively and work positively, and be resourceful to their communities in which they live. It is a vital component of health and wellness that underpins our individual and collective abilities to make decisions, build relationships and shape the world we live in. It is a basic human right and is crucial to personal, community and socio-economic growth and development.

You may think mental health the absence of mental disorders . However, it is experienced differently from one individual to the next, with varying degrees of difficulty and distress and potentially very different social and clinical outcomes.

Do you know the Determinants of mental health?

Well if you are not aware, here are some to take note of:

1. Social and structural determinants may combine to protect or undermine our mental health journeys.

2. Psychological and biological factors such as emotional skills, substance use and genetics can make people more vulnerable to mental health problems.

3. Exposure to unfavorable social, economic, geopolitical and environmental circumstances – including poverty, violence, inequality and environmental deprivation – also increases people’s risk of experiencing mental health conditions.

4. Risks manifest themselves at all stages of life, but those that occur during developmentally sensitive periods, most particularly early childhood, are detrimental. For instance, harsh parenting and physical punishment is known to undermine child health and bullying is a leading risk factor for mental health condition.

You may be wondering, why is mental health important?

Well, Mental Health helps determine how one handles stress, relate with others, and make healthy choices. At every stage of life, mental health is very important from childhood all through adulthood. In today’s world, mental health is very crucial as it profoundly influences every aspect of human life. Mental health can impact one's feelings, thoughts, actions, and interactions. It empowers us to make informed decisions, build meaningful relationships and navigate challenges.

Some specific benefits of taking care of one's mental health include Improving our mood, reducing our anxiety, creating an enhanced sense of inner peace, thinking more clearly, improving our relationships, increasing our self-esteem and generally aiding us in our daily functionality.

WOVOP has a program known as Mental Fridays happening weekly on Fridays that offers a virtual safe space for young people to talk about their mental health journeys and demistify healing and stigmas surrounding mental health. After all this information, I know you must be very interested in coming on board and helping stop the stigma surrounding mental health by sharing your mental health journey. It is very simple, just click this link https://forms.gle/8Ko6eghPfgJrnLet8 and fill in your details to get to be part of our mental health community. CHAO!