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Discussing Mental Health

What size is your cup today? What will make your cup overflow? These are questions everyone can ask themselves when considering how they’re feeling on a daily basis. Mental health is an internal resource that helps us balance our feelings, how we cope with daily stresses and how we build resilience and grow from these experiences.

 

Mental wellness consists of four components:

Mental, emotional, social, and psychological, each playing an important role in affecting our mental health. There are five key points of mental wellness:

1. More than just the absence of mental illness. Someone may not have a mental illness but still have low mental health.

2. It is an active process. We need to take steps to strengthen our resources, to work towards a flourishing mind state.

3. Shifting from stigma to shared humanity. We need to be able to connect with each other, to have each other’s backs, and support one another.

4. Promoting mental wellness before a crisis. It is important to take care of ourselves before we reach that breaking point.

5. Mental health has a physical effect. We carry our emotions in our bodies and our bodies reflect and react to our emotions.

 

The seven pillars of wellness:

– Financial: Are you managing, budgeting your money within your means?

– Intellectual: Do you feel that you are challenging yourself, developing your own opinions?

– Social: Are you engaged with your community? Do you have a support system?

– Environmental: Do you feel like you are creating a sustainable environment for future generations?

– Emotional: Are you able to relax? Do you feel good about who you are? Can you share your emotional concerns with someone?

– Physical: Do you take care of your body? Do you eat healthily and exercise? Do you feel rested and refreshed?

– Spiritual: Do you have a purpose? Can you self-reflect? Can you care and advocate for others while being able to forgive and be compassionate?

 

Mental illnesses are disorders that affect mood, thinking, and behaviour that can lead to significant distress and impaired functioning. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders defines mental illness as a syndrome characterized by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behaviour that reflects a dysfunction in several components of their mental functioning. They are typically associated with significant distress or disability in important daily activities. As a teacher, our role is not to diagnose. Diagnoses are not always necessary and should be taken with a grain of salt – it is an aspect of a person, not a whole person.

 

So how has your mental health been? Make sure to take care of yourself and talk to someone if you’re going through something. Speaking up about mental health can not only bring awareness to the issue but also begin the process of healing.

 

Oak Learners has great day school and tutoring options. You can check out the day school where students learn all kinds of skills. If you want personalized one on one tutoring online or in-person sessions as well, Oak Learners offers private tutoring here!

 

Kelly Farrell

Kelly Farrell is the Founder and Director of Oak Learners. She is dedicated to supporting learners of all ages and abilities reach their goals and love the learning journey. Kelly’s philosophy of education is based in the understanding that every child has the capacity to excel and succeed when they are given the tools and taught the skills to help them on their journey.
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