Staying emotionally healthy …For women and men who are not afraid to be real

   

                         

                  

What is emotional health?

Emotional health is not just absence of depression, anxiety and other psychological problems, rather it includes the way you feel about yourself, the quality of your relationships, your ability to manage  your feeling and deal with difficulties a person is could be said to be emotional healthy if he or she has the following characteristics….

A sense of contentment

A zest for living with the ability to laugh and have fun

The ability to deal with stress and bounce back from adversity.

A sense of meaning and purpose; in both your activities and relationships.

The flexibility to learn new things and adapt change.

 A balance between work, play, rest and activity.

The ability to build and maintain fulfilling relationships.

.self-confidence and a good self esteem

Anybody possessing all or most of the above characteristics has indeed set the course for a successful productive performance and invariably a more fulfilled life

Warning signs of emotional ill-health

Thought patterns include forgetfulness, inability to concentrate, poor judgement, seeing only the negative, anxious thoughts or constant worrying.

Behavioral symptoms are eating more or eating less, sleeping too much or too little, isolating yourself from others, procrastinating or neglecting responsibilities, using alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs to relax.

Mood (emotions) irritability or short temper, agitation, inability to relax, feeling overwhelmed sense of loneliness and isolation, and general unhappiness

Physical (body) symptoms aches and pains diarrhea or constipation ,dizziness, chest pains, rapid heartbeat, loss of sex drive, or a feeling of ‘something’ crawling on the head or all over the body

The above signs and symptoms could also be due to major psychological or medical investigations and treatment(s) if then may be a pointer to an underlying emotional heath problem.

Tips on how to improve emotional health

Build resilience

The ability to bounce back from traumatic, adverse or stressful experience and leave the past behind. To be emotionally healthy, one has to be able to accept the disappointment and then move on.

Pay attention to your medical health

Your emotional health could infringe on your physical health; the reverse is also true. For example has been known not only to improve the function  of the heart but it leads to release of certain chemicals  called endorphins, which help elevates one’s mood. So rests well, eat health and avoid habits (e.g. limit alchohol) that will damage your health.

Build strong relationship

It is not good for man to be alone….so says the holy injunctions. I’m not talking about marriage. We were not to ‘built’ to work in isolation. because of their experiences and what they were told while growing up, some people believe that people cannot be trusted             !they just become superficial in their relationships  just waiting for another excuse to bail out and reinforce their beliefs. You cannot be emotionally healthy by often burning relationship bridges and reclining into world….be a joiner, forgive the offence and connect with people

Pay attention to yourself

To be emotional healthy, one has to strike a balance with a responsibilities one’s personal needs and feeling. Here are some few tips on how to do that.

Engage in meaningful and creative work. Do things that challenge your creativity and make you feel productive, whether or not you get paid for it. Things like gardening, drawing writing, or playing an instrument.

Get a pet. there is no love quite unconditional as the love a pet can give .animals can also get you out of the house for exercise and expose you to new people and new places.

Make leisure time a priority. Doing things just because they are fun is no indulgence.

Play is an emotional health necessity. Do things for no other reason than they feel good to do.

Make time for contemplation and appreciation, rather than worry, think about the things you are grateful for. Meditate, pray, enjoy the sunset, or simply take a moment to pay attention to what is good, positive, and beautiful as you go about your day.

Being and staying emotionally healthy is a worthwhile venture. Like every physical condition, prevention is better that cure. Sometimes in a bid to achieve emotional wellness, we may need to employ the assistance of a counselor (religious or medical), nonetheless I will encourage that you still practice all these tips.