Mental health has become the forefront of conversation in the most recent times. The past year has shown us that more than ever, it is increasingly important to focus on maintaining our mental health and wellness. A contributing factor to our mental health is our relationships. A healthy or unhealthy relationship can severely impact our wellness.

Self-care is an incredibly critical part of our lives.  Trying to go about it on our own can be terrifying at the worst and nerve-wracking at the least. For those who are single, it can be even more challenging to find someone to turn to for support. 

That is why seeking out resources is so important.  Mental illnesses and disorders require treatment and management, of course.  Everyone needs the right tools to take care of themselves.  Even the happiest of people have days where they feel sad or anxious.  

If you’re looking for ways to manage these feelings and improve your wellness overall, keep reading.  Personal development is never something to let fall by the wayside.

What is Mental Health?

Before we can discuss treatments or methods of managing how we feel, we should probably define what it is.  If you are entirely unfamiliar, you might want to read further on this topic here: https://www.mentalhealth.gov/basics/what-is-mental-health.  Put simply, it is our social well-being, our psychological well-being, and our emotional well-being.  

Of course, throughout our lives, our well-being and sense of self can fluctuate.  Several factors influence this, too.  First, there is genetics.  This might sound surprising or unlikely, but if family members have a certain mental illness, you are more likely to develop it as well.  This includes things like substance misuse disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorders.

Life experiences play a huge part in how our mental health develops.  Unfortunately, traumatic events will have a negative impact – sometimes a severe one.

This could include abuse.  Unfortunately, this is a common trauma to experience, be it verbal, physical, or even sexual.  In some cases, the sufferers will develop post-traumatic stress disorder.  However, many impacts to our wellness are not so extreme.

Some people who have chronic illnesses also experience higher levels of mental illnesses.  Something to keep in mind is that fifty percent of Americans will be diagnosed with at least on in their lifetimes.  Clearly, these are not rare.  This is why care is so important to discuss.

Warning Signs

It is good to know the signs that might mean you should seek some help.  Of course, that assistance can come in many ways.  Comprehensive treatment plans involving therapy and even a personal development app can work together to give you increased mental wellness.

Before you can get there, though, we of course need to discuss some symptoms and signals of an illness or disorder.  A lot of them involve sudden or gradual changes in behaviors and patterns.  Disruptions to normal routines might show that something has gone wrong.

Withdrawing from social events is one part of this.  If you used to love going to parties but find that now, you don’t really want to, examine why you feel this way.  Sensations of dread or sadness surrounding get togethers might mean that you are suffering.

Abnormal energy levels could also demonstrate this.  Feelings of lethargy are an example of that.  Additionally, alterations to a sleep pattern for seemingly no reason could be a sign.  Finding that you sleep a lot more often than you usually do, or that you get very little sleep, isn’t “normal.”

Many of these symptoms come down to our thoughts and the emotions that we have.  If you view the world with numbness, and believe that nothing matters (even fleetingly), it might be time to talk to someone.  Hopelessness and helplessness are also red flags.

These disorders can end up manifesting physically sometimes as well.  You might find that you have more aches and pains than you are used to.  If you’re younger and your muscles hurt all the time for seemingly no reason and this is in conjunction with other symptoms…well, it might be a sign.

Now, you could also experience tensions in your relationships that you usually do not.  This might be fighting with family members or friends.  Mood swings that result in more disagreements could be a problem as well.  Of course, this could all be from something other than a mental illness, but it’s good to keep in mind anyway.

Finally, these disorders can impact the way we go about our lives.  In particular, things like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder can make you feel like you cannot get anything done if left untreated.  This is sometimes called executive dysfunction.  

This is probably one of the most insidious symptoms, because even if you are otherwise fine, you just cannot get out of bed, or leave a chair.  It might prevent you from being on time for important things like picking up children or getting to work.  

Getting Help

There are plenty of ways that you can get treatment if you feel that that you are suffering from depression, anxiety, sadness, or something more severe. You can access resources online and practice at home. The get the support that you need use an  application on your phone or a website. This can keep you accountable, as well as track your progress. 

Spending time with others can also alleviate symptoms.  If we are struggling, surrounding ourselves with patient and understanding people is crucial.  They can serve as a life jacket if we are drowning in a mental health crisis.

Some other methods are to find positive coping methods that work for you.  This could be something like engaging in creativity, connecting with nature, or taking time to self-reflect. Just make sure it’s not something like drinking alcohol or doing illegal drugs, because that will often worsen the problem in the long run.

Instead, you could try being physically active if that is possible for you.  Maybe in your app, you can set a goal to go for a walk every day.  Trying something like walks or other simple exercises might clear your mind.