May Your Mental Health Matter
Growing up, you probably heard the saying “April showers bring May flowers.” You can take this in the literal sense; April can be hit or miss weather wise. This is something we know all too well being from Western Pennsylvania. But, after making it through the doom and gloom of winter comes the hopeful spring season. Flowers bloom, birds are singing and people tend to find ways to get outside and enjoy the warmth of the sun.
On the other hand, the saying can be applied to overcoming adversity. Life will undoubtedly deal you a tough hand sometimes, but there will just as sure be moments of good. Those moments can range from “I’m feeling okay today” to being so awesome that they would make it into the highlight reel of your life. It seems fitting that because May is the month mentioned as the season at the end of the storm, that it is also recognized as Mental Health Awareness Month.
What exactly is mental health and what does awareness around the topic truly mean? According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, mental health is defined as “…our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act, and helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices” (SAMHSA). If you think about that, your brain is literally the control center for your body. If your mental health begins to experience trouble, the whole system could shut down. People tend to easily talk about how important it is to eat healthy and exercise. “You only have one body,” “You should treat it like a temple,” etc. Every January, people make resolutions to be healthier. Gym memberships spike. Even in school, you probably had to participate in physical education classes and/or health classes. And while physical health is important, (you should take care of yourself) you are missing one huge piece to that puzzle if you choose to ignore mental health. It has been proven that physical health can suffer as a result of diminishing mental health. Going back to the definition, if your brain is not operating in perfect mental health, you could make poor choices that effect your overall well-being and you likely are suffering from stress which can take a toll on the body.
According to the CDC, nearly 1 in 5 adults live with a mental illness of some kind (CDC). That’s a pretty startling number. That means you know someone who is dealing with a mental illness, or you could be struggling yourself, yet it’s hard to talk about openly. There is a stigma associated with the topic. The reasoning some might feel like they can’t seek out help and support could vary from person to person, but it’s true that a lot of us will struggle in secret. That’s what Mental Health Awareness Month aims to fix. May wants to shine a light on all of the dark.
This year, NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) has a social media campaign running using the #MoreThanEnough. The description of the campaign says it so powerfully, “It’s an opportunity for all of us to come together and remember the inherent value we each hold — no matter our diagnosis, appearance, socioeconomic status, background or ability. We want every person out there to know that if all you did was wake up today, that’s more than enough. No matter what, you are inherently worthy of more than enough life, love and healing. Showing up, just as you are, for yourself and the people around you is more than enough.”
We hope that as you go into this new month that you remember that and make an effort to take care of yourself. Self-care is open ended and you might even require different care depending on the day. You’re only human and mental health isn’t a straight line. It’s very fluid. But, we hope that you keep in mind that you are not alone. The sites linked in this blog are a great place to find additional resources if you are having a hard time trying to find your way out of the April showers by yourself. And, you should never be afraid to reach out to a loved one or a friend. I’ve personally thought that talking about how I was feeling might seem like complaining. I’ve been in the mindset that there are people out there who have it a lot worse than me, so I should “just deal with it.” But, one day I read a quote that really stuck with me that said: “Drowning in 6 inches of water and drowning in 6 feet of water is still drowning.” It’s okay to acknowledge and it is okay to ask for help.
Because we are so passionate about mental health, we planned to release our new song “Hello, Friend” during May in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month. It drops on 5. 5. 2023 and we hope that you will listen to it.
Jamie