By Molly Duncan, Tattoos of My Soul
May is mental health awareness month, so in light of this, I thought I’d emphasize the importance of our mental health with this week’s newsletter. If you follow Tattoos of My Soul, you know by now that I am extremely passionate about this topic. After experiencing my own personal trauma, I saw firsthand just how important it is to have a good, clear, positive, and healthy mindset. When we do not have this, it literally affects all aspects of our life and can lead us down a very destructive path.
The term “mental health” gets tossed around a lot in today’s world, but what exactly does it mean? One definition I found said that mental health is “a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional well-being.” That’s a bit technical, right? To me, “mental health” simply means the state of my mindset and how I am feeling on a regular basis within my own thoughts.
Our thoughts are important because they are at the root of everything in our lives. Every emotion we feel, every word we say, and every action we carry out begins with an initial thought. If our mental health is suffering, how can we expect to have a happy and healthy life? The simple answer is we cannot.
As you probably know, there are many serious mental health conditions out there, and they deserve proper awareness. In today’s extremely fast paced world, where so much emphasis is put on our physical health and appearance, we need to make sure we are taking time to regularly ask ourselves, “How do I feel internally? Is there anything I need help working through and processing? How is my mood most days? Am I losing sleep over anything? Is anything blocking my ability to feel happy and peaceful?”
Checking in with yourself like this on a frequent basis is a proactive and healthy thing to do. You will know, based on how you answer these questions, if there is something you need to address mentally.
My number one piece of advice for mental health would be don’t put off seeking help when you know you need it. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. On the contrary, it is a great sign of strength. Don’t discount how you feel or what you are struggling with. It’s okay to not feel well on the inside. Just realize you do not have to stay that way and there is always an opportunity to improve and heal if you take it. Find a reputable life coach, counselor, or therapist to help you.
In addition to professional help, there are many great and easy things we can do to improve our mental health. Here are my top 8!
In closing, take care of your mental health! Be intentional towards creating positive thoughts daily. Implement things into your routine that are good for your brain and mindset and seek help when it’s needed. Everyone deserves good, happy, and healthy mental health…let us remember that this month!!
Be well, Molly
JOIN US MONDAY, MAY 15th @ 6:30pm AT SUNFLOWER YOGA FOR A FREE WORKSHOP WITH MOLLY!
