INTRO TO MH

Intro to Mental Health

(Mental Illnesses, Depression + Suicide, Resources)

Mental, Emotional, Social Wellness

• Mental  - how we respond to life’s ups & down; how a person thinks, handles emotion, and behaves☺🡪 CHARACTER

• ​Emotional - inspires self-care, relaxation, stress reduction, development of inner strength

  • recognize positive & negative feelings and how to handle them 

  • the ability to learn and grow from experiences.

• Social - relationships we have & how we interact with others. 

  • building healthy, nurturing, and supportive relationships 

  • fostering a genuine connection with others

Emotions

• Emotions: Feelings that occur in response to an event.

  • Influenced by past experiences

Emotional Intelligence (EQ) = ability to recognize & appropriately express one’s emotions

Emotional Expression

• Negative

  • Many of us suppress or hold our emotions inside. 

  • Leads to resentment; anger/jealousy.

*Men tend to HIDE emotions; Women tend to SHARE/SHOW emotions.  STEREOTYPE!!

​Poor Expression

​Use “I” statements to ASSERTIVELY COMMUNCATE!

• Cry, talk about it, write it down (journal)

​Good Expression

Mental Illness

Can affect 1 or more areas:

(1)   Social or family relations

(2)   Performance of tasks  (including school)

(3)   Leisure time activities

​Disorders of thought, emotion, or behavior that cause distress and reduce a person’s ability to function (constant stress response)

​CAUSES

• Learned, inherited, or both.

• Brain damage from drugs, injuries, and diseases. 

• Unbalanced body chemistry

• May worsen with stress

​Affects ~58 million people (1:4 Americans)

Mental Illness Review

• Multiple Personality

• Addiction

• Schizophrenia

• Phobia

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Bipolar

• Panic

• PTSD

2 or more personality traits

Physical/psychological dependence

Can’t determine real vs fantasy

Extreme fear of object/situation,…

Changes in mood, thought, behavior 2+ wks (#1 MI)

Constant worry, high energy, constant stress response

Manic-depressive, highs and lows

Unexplained feelings of terror

Response to a terrifying event

​**Depression= most common mental illness**