ACHIEVING GOOD MENTAL HEALTH

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ACHIEVING GOOD MENTAL HEALTH
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CHARACTERISTICS OF GOOD MENTAL/EMOTIONAL HEALTH

• The ability to accept yourself and others, adapt
  to and manage emotions, and deal with the
  demands and challenges you meet in life

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FIVE CHARACTERISTICS

• Positive self-esteem generally feel good about
  self, accept challenges, face failures
• Sense of belonging attachment to some people
• Sense of purpose goals, engage in activities
• Positive outlook generally see a bright side
• Autonomy confidence to make good decisions

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PYRAMID OF NEEDS
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MASLOW

• Level 5 Self-actualization
• Level 4 Feeling recognized (achievement)
• Level 3 Belonging
• Level 2 Safety
• Level 1 Physical

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MEETING YOUR NEEDS

• HOW DO YOU FULFILL YOUR NEEDS?
• Respectful, loving relationships
• Gangs, sexual activity, drugs

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PERSONALITY

• Complex set of characteristics that makes you
  unique (everyone is different)
• Influences
• Heredity-physical traits, intelligence,
  temperament, athletic, artistic
• Environment
• Modeling
• Behavior, aspect of personality over which you
  have the most control

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CONDITIONING
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PROMOTING MENTAL/EMOTIONAL HEALTH

• Knowing factors that influence mental/emotional
  health helps us choose behaviors to improve
  health
• Meet needs in a healthful way
• Coping with emotions aids physical health
• (i.e. stress)

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POSITIVE IDENTITY

• Identity, sense of self as a unique individual
• Interests
• Likes/dislikes
• Talents and abilities
• Values/beliefs
• goals

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DEVELOPMENTAL ASSETS

• Building blocks of development that help people
  grow up as healthy, caring, and responsible
  individuals
• Figure 7.3 in book
• Support, empowerment, boundaries and
  expectations, constructive use of time,
  commitment to learning, positive values, social
  competencies, positive identity

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WORKING TOWARD A HEALTHY IDENTITY

• Self-acceptance and self-improvement
• Recognize strengths and weaknesses
• Demonstrate positive values
• Develop a purpose in your life
• Form meaningful relationships
• Contribute to the community
• Avoid unhealthful risk behaviors

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SELF-ESTEEM AND POSITIVE OUTLOOK

• Healthy identityincreased self-esteem,
  mental/emotional health
• You are unique and valuable
• Positive outlookbetter general wellness
• There is always hope
• Bumps in the road, make a plan, its an
  opportunity

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REALISTIC PATTERNS OF THINKING

• Try to see things realistically, we tend to be
  negative
• Constructive criticism-nonhostile comments that
  point out problems and encourage improvement
• Self-talk, analyze it, everyone makes mistakes
  (dorks), give yourself a pat on the back
  (sometimes hard)

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EMOTIONS
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EMOTIONS

• Signals that tell your mind and body how to react
• Joy, brain chemicals released-warmth, sense of
  well-being
• Fear, fight or flight-adrenaline
• Strong emotions can cause strong physical
  reactions

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IDENTIFYING EMOTIONS

• Important to know how to behave/react to
  emotions, hormones are released
• Happiness, sadness, love (several kinds) empathy
  (imagine and understand how someone else feels),
  fear, phobia (exaggerated, unreasonable fear),
  guilt (acting against values), anger (problem
  when handled wrong), hostility (intentional use
  of offensive/unfriendly behavior)

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DEALING WITH EMOTIONS IN A POSITIVE WAY

• Find effective ways to communicate emotions and
  deal with them
• Look below the surface-why do you feel?
• Will it matter next week?
• Dont take immediate action, until consideration
• Use positive feelings, do something to relieve
  negative feelings
• If you cant get over it, see help

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MANAGING DIFFICULT EMOTIONS

• Recognize emotions, learn to cope (relaxation,
  etc)
• Defense mechanisms protect from strong stressful
  emotions

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DEFENSE MECHANISMS
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REPRESSION
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SUPPRESSION

• Consciously pushing unpleasant thoughts from
  mind, same kind of picture as repression
• Repression is involuntary

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RATIONALIZATION
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REGRESSION
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DENIAL
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COMPENSATION
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PROJECTION
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IDEALIZATION
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HANDLING EMOTIONS

• Fear - identify the fear, talk about it, self or
  others, irrational?
• Guilt find underlying source, have you hurt
  someone, make amends
• Anger find underlying source, find a way to
  cope