Let’s talk about mental health (1)

OLUFUNKE FROM PUNCH

While my phone rang endlessly and congratulatory messages poured in on the 24th of November 2019, the day this column made a debut, I was at a teaching hospital with someone very dear to me. She suddenly fell ill and we were told that she had to undergo emergency surgery. Although the surgery was successful, she was in very bad shape afterward.

On a particular day, one of her doctors walked in and said to her, “Aunty Grace, do not worry, you will soon go home.” When she was younger, she was like the “village belle” and was also from a high-profile family, so she was quite popular and younger people called her “Aunty Grace.” Here was someone who had no idea of her background calling her that name! She told me that immediately the doctor called Aunty Grace, memories of all that happened in our hometown while she was younger came flooding back and the urge to live suddenly enveloped her. Her health improved after that incident and she was discharged.

This story opened my eyes to the fact that mental health is important for overall health. October 10 of every year is World Mental Health Day and because our emphasis is mostly on physical health, I felt the need to talk about mental health.

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others and make healthy choices. According to the World Health Organisation, mental health is a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realise their abilities, learn well, work well and contribute to their community. It is an integral component of health and well-being that underpins our individual and collective abilities to make decisions, build relationships and shape the world we live in.

“Mental health is about the functionality of your brain and all that impacts it. Your mental health can impact everything about your life, including the ways you view and move through the world and your ability to handle the things life throws at you says Oludara Adeeyo, a psychiatric social worker and author of ‘Self-Care for Black Women’. According to Alison Seponara, a licensed professional counsellor and author of the book, ‘The Anxiety Healer’s Guide’, mental health helps determine how you handle stress, relate to others and make choices. She went on to say that caring for our mental health can lead to improved mood, reduced anxiety, clearer thinking, deeper relationships, and improved self-esteem and confidence.

Mental health is equally important for overall health. The mind-body connection is stronger than we may think. Experts have found that good mental health can have a direct and positive effect on physical health. The opposite is also true – poor mental health can have a negative effect on physical health. Now, this does not mean that if you have an occasional bad day or a stressful week your physical health is going to suffer as a result. However, it is an important reminder to not ignore or downplay mental health struggles or chronic stress and anxiety. In the same way you listen to your physical health needs, you also need to be mindful of your mental health needs.

Let us look at this situation for example. Not only can chronic stress and depression spur feelings of fatigue and a lack of energy, it can also affect your ability to get sound sleep. With a lack of sleep, symptoms related to stress, anxiety and depression can be amplified and in turn, make it even more difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. Eventually, this can contribute to the development of sleep disorders, including insomnia or sleep apnea.