Mental Health
The words mental health get thrown around all the time - but is it really just all in our heads?
The words “mental health” get thrown around like it is something that isn’t connected to who we are - to our bodies or our “selves”. But in truth our bodies and our minds are intimately and intricately linked. They are inseparable and together they make up who we are.
Why do top athletes all have sports psychologists? Because they understand that when we talk about being healthy, and being our best self, we have to think about both our body and our mind. They are two halves of the same coin affecting, each other in subtle ways that even science and medicine don’t yet fully understand.
Taking care of our body is important for our mind.
When we exercise or engage in any physical play, our body releases chemicals called endorphins (natural mood lifters), dopamine (rewards and motivation), and serotonin (regulates emotion and happiness). It also releases BDNF, which boosts memory and neuroplasticity. In short, it makes our brain happy. It's our body's way of giving us good feelings and a boost of pleasure, which helps our mind feel happier. Eating natural foods ( food that is not heavily processed), getting enough sleep, and avoiding harmful substances like smoking, alcohol, drugs or too much sugar, also makes our mind feel better. When our body is healthy and being properly nurtured (i.e., we are looking after it properly), we can think more clearly, feel more confident and are more likely to continue with long term healthy habits. We are more resilient. We feel better. Our mental health is better.
Taking care of our mind is important for our body.
When we feel anxious, stressed, worried, sad or depressed, our body doesn’t feel great. Our body becomes flooded with cortisol and adrenaline. Poor or failing mental health can give us headaches, body aches, a racing heart, funny vision, make our muscles tense, and our stomach feel sick. If we're really stressed or sad for a long time, it can even affect how our heart works, how we sleep, and how our immune system works. So it makes our body sick. In other words, not looking after your mental health muscle - your mind - can literally affect your body in a bad way.
Doctors like Gabor Mate, and other clinicians worldwide, have found all sorts of research that shows just how much this is true. It's important to take care of our mind by socialising, talking about our feelings (acknowledging them and taking action, but not over-focussing on them), writing our own life stories, finding ways to relax and destress, and asking for help if we need it – including seeking professional help before you get too bogged down in your own mind.
Our body and mind are a team.
Our mind, brain, and body, work together. They talk to each other all the time.They are like an exceptionally advanced computer and feedback system. The body/mind feedback system is designed to keep us alive. If we break a bone or strain our muscles, we need to get help, to take positive action. Just the same way - if we are sad or worried, or overly anxious or depressed, it means we need to take some type of action, we need to talk with an expert.
So, if we want to be our best "selves" we can’t look after just our body - or just our mind. We need to take care of our whole self, our body and mind together.
Mental health and physical health is really “whole of self” health. We can’t survive with just one or the other. By looking after both we can help our body and mind be happier and stronger together.