Why YOU Should Care About Mental Health

Mental Health is the new catchphrase we cannot seem to escape — and for good reason! Mental illness has existed in the shadows for far too long and we have ignored the importance of caring for our mental health. It is time we shine light on the reality that humans are more than just bodies filled with organs.

What Is Mental Health?

 Here is the World Health Organization’s official definition for mental health: "a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and can make a contribution to his or her community." 

I don’t know about you, but there have been multiple times in my life when I did NOT meet the definition of mental health. Contrary to popular belief, even psychologists need therapy. Sometimes it was because I was over-stressed and, even though I kept up with my obligations in the world, I felt awful on the inside. Other times I could not keep it together inside or from my outside appearance. 

This might be a good moment for a tiny pause to thank the professionals who supported me through the times when my mental health was far from optimal. 

How Ohio Ranks For Mental Wellbeing

 Ohio ranks right in the middle of the pack for its mental health rating at #27 in the country. We aren’t doing too bad as a state, but we could certainly do better.

• Adults with any mental illness (AMI): #41

  • 21.4% or 1.9 million Ohioans 18+

• Adults with substance use disorder in the past year: #26

  • 7.6% or 680,000 Ohioans 18+

• Adults with serious thoughts of suicide: #40

  • 5.2% or 461,000 Ohioans 18+

• Youth with at least one major depressive episode (MDE) in the past year: #16

  • 9.1% or 79,000 Ohio children and teens

• Youth with substance use disorder in the past year: #25

  • 3.97% or 36,000 Ohio children and teens

• Youth with severe MDE: #16

  • 9.97% or 15,377 Ohio children and teens

Pandemic Uncertainties’ Impact on Mental Health

The pandemic really brought our human struggles to light as we faced a global trauma, and its effects caused countless personal traumas. Normally social creatures, we experienced this turmoil in singularly isolating circumstances. 

• Many people experienced job loss and economic devastation

• Millions of us experienced illness and lost loved ones

• Literally everything presented a potential threat to our mortality — humans, objects, air!

• We couldn’t wrap our minds around what was happening because the “facts” shifted on a daily basis and predictability and security were in short supply.

Our nervous systems got tapped out from being in crisis all the time and rates of anxiety, depression, suicide and substance misuse spiked.

Mental Health Awareness Growing Positively

Thankfully, people are becoming more aware of mental health and conversations about therapy and medications are working their way into mainstream culture. Gone are the days when One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was the way mental illness was portrayed to the masses. 

That decades-old portrayal is being replaced with legitimate mental health organizations making public service announcements to de-stigmatize and normalize the importance of caring for our mental health the same as we would care for our physical health. 

When you think about this, doesn’t it make sense to check up on our mental health along with our annual physicals, trips to the dentist, and eye exams? After all, these things are all literally connected and we can’t hardly achieve health if we neglect the body or the mind. 

How Can Therapy Help Mental Health?

Therapists do for your mental health what physicians do for your physical health. We assess, we diagnose and we treat. 

Some of the specific treatment modalities used in our practice include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and clinical hypnosis. 

• A good therapist will provide education, give feedback and use interventions to help alleviate your suffering. 

• A good therapist will also create a safe and compassionate environment for you to be reflective and inquisitive.

• A great therapist will help you become reliant upon your own wisdom and abilities with the ultimate goal of reaching mental health, that "state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and can make a contribution to his or her community." 

If you are ready to work on your mental health with the help of great therapists contact us to learn more.