FOSTERING MENTAL HEALTH AND EMOTIONAL WELLBEING.pptx

Focuses on the increasing importance of mental health at the workplace

1. Strengthening Your Inner Well-Being!

2. Social and Emotional Wellbeing Health and wellbeing is more than just the absence of an illness . It includes our physical health and safety, social and emotional health, spiritual wellness and subjective sense of wellbeing. Social and emotional wellbeing is an important life aspect, and has an impact on physical health, quality of life and personal achievements. Mental health is a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realize their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community.

3. Mental and Emotional Well-being: What’s In It For Me? Mental and emotional well-being is essential to overall health. Positive mental health allows people to realize their full potential, cope with the stresses of life, work productively, and make meaningful contributions to their communities. Early childhood experiences have lasting, measurable consequences later in life; therefore, fostering emotional well-being from the earliest stages of life helps build a foundation for overall health and well-being.

4. Mental and Emotional Well-being: If It’s Not There

5. Characteristics of Emotional Wellness Emotional Wellness is the ability to be aware of and accept our feelings, rather than deny them; have an optimistic approach to life, and enjoy life despite its occasional disappointments and frustrations.

6. Inner Well-Being: A Deeper Dive Inner well-being comes from the connection and harmony between our inner life and the outer world. In other words: It is having inner peace It is the feeling of belonging and connectedness with the world It is about realizing and experiencing deeper meaning, and a sense of purpose, in the universe It is the feeling that we are part of something larger than the issues, stresses, and challenges of our everyday lives “We must stop OUTSOURCING our happiness.”

7. Inner Well-Being (cont.) The way to inner well-being involves acceptance of the world and transcendence (going above or letting go) of our everyday lives. Meditation, rituals, yoga and other practices can develop inner well-being. Your values, beliefs, principles, and morals help to define your inner self. Take time to consider what these are and if your behaviors and actions are in accordance and harmony with these factors. By cultivating  compassion, love, forgiveness, acceptance, trust, kindness, empathy, altruism, joy and fulfilment in our lives, we help our inner health.

8. “Happiness Is All In Our Mind” We are far more in control of our happiness and contentment than we usually realize!

9. Eight Golden Tips for Emotional Wellness Keep expectations of yourself and others realistic. Unrealistic expectations lead to disappointment and feelings of failure. Develop realistic goals and set out to achieve them, one day at a time. 3. Learn to accept the changes in your life. 4. Release the anger and the resentments. Or …keep carrying that baggage!

10. (More) Eight Golden Tips for Emotional Wellness 5 . Surround yourself with positive thoughts and (mostly) positive people. Gravitate toward people who are uplifting and supportive and away from those who operate in negativity. 6. Choose to be a good friend to yourself 7. Take good care of your body. 8. If you are experiencing emotional difficulty, talk to someone.

11. Resilience The term resilience is related to social and emotional wellbeing, but is not exactly the same. Resilience is the capacity to deal constructively with change or challenges, allowing a person to maintain or re-establish their social and emotional wellbeing in the face of difficult events.

12. Mindfulness Mindfulness . It’s a pretty straightforward word. It suggests that the mind is fully attending to what’s happening, to what you’re doing, to the space you’re moving through, here and now . Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.

13. The Power of Perception: What do your “sunglasses” look like? Sunglasses Analogy Stand outside on a sunny day, without sunglasses, and take a good look around. Notice how everything looks—take it all in. Now, put on a pair of nice dark shades and take the same look around. Don’t things look different? Your surroundings didn’t change a bit, did they? So...what made the difference? It was the way you looked at them! Expectations, beliefs and assumptions (your ‘ Shoulds ’) act as your “life sunglasses.” They alter the way you look at life’s realities! (including Stress and what causes it)

14. What is Depression? Depression is a medical illness with many symptoms, including physical ones . Sadness is only a small part of depression. Some people with depression may not feel sadness at all, but become more irritable, or just lose interest in things they usually like to do. Depression interferes with your daily life and normal function. Don’t ignore or try to hide the symptoms. It is not a character flaw, and you can’t “will” it away.

15. What are the signs and symptoms of Depression? Persistent sad, anxious, or “empty” mood Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and activities Decreased energy, fatigue, being “slowed down”

16. More Signs and Symptoms of Depression Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions Difficulty sleeping, early-morning awakening, or oversleeping Appetite and/or unwanted weight changes Thoughts of death or suicide; suicide attempts Restlessness, irritability

17. Self-Care for Depression Daily exercise, spending time outside in nature and in the sun, and eating healthy foods can also help you feel better. Get enough sleep. Try to have consistent sleep habits and avoid all-night study sessions. Your counselor may teach you how to be aware of your feelings and teach you relaxation techniques. Use these when you start feeling down or upset. Avoid using drugs and at least minimize, if not totally avoid, alcohol.

18. (More) Self-Care for Depression Break up large tasks into small ones, and do what you can as you can; try not to do too many things at once. Try to spend time with supportive family members or friends, and take advantage of campus resources, such as student support groups. Talking with your parents, guardian, or other students who listen and care about you gives you support. Try to get out with friends and try fun things that help you express yourself. As you recover from depression, you may find that even if you don’t feel like going out with friends, if you push yourself to do so, you’ll be able to enjoy yourself more than you thought. Remember that, by treating your depression, you are helping yourself succeed in college and after graduation.