Mental Health Awareness
Mental illness is a topic that people should become more aware about, it may be a little touchy in some areas but it is always good to stay informed. Your first question may be what is a mental illness? Well mental illnesses can take many forms, just like a physical illness.
Personally I suffer from anxiety and panic attacks, which I will later explain in this post. For me I have found ways to suppress how I feel or try to prevent them from happening but just like a lot of things, I find that I have very little control over it. Just because there is nothing wrong going on in my life does not mean I won’t have anxiety or panic. I’ve come to conclusions that it has been and will be a part of me whether I like it or not. For others it may be different, though you may have the same type of illnesses it does not mean you will exactly react in the same way. I know people that take medications to help with there anxiety or have other outlets to let out what they are feeling.
Here are a few mental illnesses (By the way having a mental illness does not mean there is anything wrong with you! You are as amazing as you think you are and you are also never alone.)
Anxiety Disorders
Everyone may feel worried or nervous at times. That feeling can help in a way to inform ourselves about danger. On the other hand, anxiety disorders cause unexpected or unhelpful anxiety that can seriously impact ones life, how they may think , feel or act.
When I get anxiety I tend to fear the things that are really unrealistic or things that don’t matter right at that moment in time or multiple situations that probably will never happen. Some times people who have anxiety disorders may experience anxiety attacks or panic attacks.
Panic Disorder
Panic disorder involves multiple and unexpected panic attacks. A panic attack is a feeling of intense fear or terror that last for a short period of time. Some symptoms may include; racing heart, shaking, shorten breath, nausea, chest pain, dizziness and sweating.
Here is a video that I show many family members to help them understand how I may be feeling: p.s the first one is my all time favourite video!!
A Virtual Panic Attack – New Age Creators ( Soul Pancake )
Depression and Bipolar Disorder
Depression and Bipolar disorder are two mental illnesses that change the way people feel and make it hard for them to go about their daily routines.
Depression can affect a persons mood – the way they feel. It is more than a ‘bad day’ or feeling ‘down’. People who have depression tend to lose interest in the things they used to enjoy and may withdraw themselves from others in a form of isolation. Depression can change the way people eat and sleep.
The video below may be able to explain a little better than I can.
What is depression? – Helen M. Farrell (TED-Ed)
Thing Nobody Told Me About Depression. – BuzzFeedYellow
Bipolar disorder also affects the mood, people experience episodes of depression and episodes of mania. Mania is an unusual high mood for the person, they may feel as if their thoughts are racing and may feel hyperactive. Mania can affect the way a person sleeps. They may also act without thinking and do things that could cause them harm, that they wouldn’t normally do.
I’m Bipolar, But I’m Not … – BuzzFeed
The ones I have spoke about above come close to heart whether they are what I have myself or I am close with someone who does. I obviously don’t have PhD in psychology and I am not expert on any of these disorders. The videos above also help to explain or inform others how I feel or how someone else may feel about there disorder.
Here are a few more mental illnesses that I would like to share but since I personally do not have them and do not know anyone that does, I think these videos will suffice in explaining 🙂
Eating Disorders
What It’s Like Living With An Eating Disorder – BuzzFeedÂ
Blythe Baird – ” When the Fat girl gets skinny” NPS 2015 – Button P0etryÂ
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
“OCD” – Neil HilbornÂ
At the end of the day Mental Illness is not who the person is, it is just a part of them. It does not define the person because there are so much more to people then that illness. You are not able to see a mental illness like a physical illness but it does not mean that it is not there.
If you or anyone you know has a mental illness, just remember that you are not alone.
Here are some links to learn more:
http://kidshelpphone.ca/teens/home/splash.aspx
www.NoStigmas.org
Crisis Text Line – TEXT “START” TO 741741
I really liked this post, cbaluca! I think mental health Monday’s at Gonzaga really help those who deal with any type of Mental illness, whether its anxiety or an eating disorder, it really does bring awareness to our school community and help others understand that they are not alone.
I really enjoyed reading this, and learning more about mental health awareness. I think that the reflections that take place on Mondays (mental health Monday’s) really help students and relate to students and what we are going through. Also, I liked the videos that you implemented in this blog, as the message that they implied and implemented was strong and drove a good message. I leaned new things about mental health, and this blog was very effective and helpful.
Thanks!
Buzzfeed on youtube have many amazing videos on understanding Mental Illnesses on an easier level. Personally it is how I explain to my family or friends instead of getting them to read up about it, because not everyone can fully understand all the information or misinterpret it.
Thank you!
Are there any certain things a person can do that can help them overcome their mental illness in the future?
Personally I have always been taught that to overcome a mental illness is very difficult. You can always find things to cope but it will not make the illness disappear. When it comes to taking medication, it can affect people in different ways. Some people get affected negatively and it makes their illness worst. For others it may benefit them a ton. I am personally not on medications because I would not like to be dependent on them. It is very hard, to almost not possible to start these medications and then get off of them.
I think that these videos are a great way to make people aware of these mental illnesses. Also, is there a way where people can cope with these illnesses?
When coping with Mental Illnesses it varies in person. Personally suffering from Anxiety and Panic attacks, exercising really helps me. It is an amazing stress reliever. Other people may cope listening to calming music, drawing, dancing, baking… it really all depends on the person. Two of my favourite things to do are, boxing and yoga. Yoga is very calming and lets you stretch out your whole body as well as adding meditation really helps with breathing. Boxing gets my heart rate going but at a good pace, it lets out any anger or stress.
This post is very neat, cbaluca. i learned a lot about Mental Health Awareness, From suffering from anxiety, panic attacks and more this post is very helpful for those who do not know/lack knowledge on this subject. You did a good job and i believe this can bring awareness to our school community and help others understand.
I really enjoyed reading this post. The video’s that are posted on your post is an excellent way to spread around message to people/students that may not know what mental health awareness is. I think that mental health Monday’s is an excellent way to help students that have any types of mental disorders to know that they are not alone and that it is it fine to admit it.
I loved this blog. I watched all the videos,and I got teary eyed and it taught a important message about Mental Health Awareness. However, you explained it perfectly too. I learned a lot more about Mental Health Awareness now then I did before. Amazing job Chev! Keep it up!
Thanks for bringing so much attention to the mental health issue, cbaluca! I think it’s important to put mental health more into the spotlight because it isn’t just a temporary thing that goes on in someone’s head. I wish to see mental illness treated the same way as a physical disorder is treated, and stop pretending as if it doesn’t exist and harm students. Hopefully the people who experience any type of mental illness are able to express themselves safely in school environments!
Knowing you are not alone while battling mental illnesses and the points you touched upon in this article are very relevant. We often don’t see someone’s pain by just looking at them. Many people go through hard ships in their life and I think these videos and your content actively expressed the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of mental illness while also expressing that it is okay to reach our in times of need, because most people are often too afraid to do so. Anxiety is something I feel strongly about and though it is unnoticeable to the common eye, it lies within a person deep down and it is hard to deal with. Thank you for touching upon sensitive topics that are not only hard to deal with personally but hard to talk about publically. I, personally enjoyed those informative videos and the Mental Health Monday’s on the money morning announcements.
Thanks Cat! It was a very hard topic to speak about at first, I am glad you enjoyed the videos and my mental health Monday reflections.