HOW TO GUARD AND IMPROVE YOUR MENTAL HEALTH IN 2021?
2020 and the subsequent years such as 2021 have been and will be important years in mental health research. For close to a year now in Uganda and more than a year in some other countries, COVID-19 has scavenged people’s hope, created fear, anxiety about what could happen in both children and adults. The measures alone, which I prefer stay to reduce the spread of the pandemic, such as social distancing make people feel isolated and lonely triggering stress. This is because a good interaction between individuals and in societies are critical in promoting mental health.
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| Author; Kansiime Onesmus 2021 |
In addition, the traditional poverty levels, loss of jobs and business in Uganda due to COVID19 may have increased the weight of the problem. The anxiety and disappointment caused by the elections saw more people plunge into the ditch of depression. Anxiety for the coming elections and resultant disappointment will see rise in stress.
The COVID-19 and the political environment may have interrupted and will continue to interrupt our habits which causes mental illness since mental health has a huge correlation with our habits. Many Ugandans, stretching from March till now, have had changes in sleeping and eating patterns, worsening health problems and mental illness, addiction to substances among other indicators of mental illness.
Like we are all ripe for death since we have a breath to lose, we are all also ripe for mental illness since we have a brain that can be lost to a distractive thought pattern. Mental health is not a zero sum game; we can all have it. Mental illness is not a zero sum problem; we can all have it. Mental illness is a global pandemic, a major cause of the overall disease burden, responsible for the 1 suicide per 40 seconds worldwide, the 9.9% suicide prevalence in Uganda, a 20 years reduction in life expectancy worldwide amongst affected people compared to the general population and is the second leading cause of accidents after alcohol regardless of the little attention we give to mental health, evidenced by: only one tertiary Mental Hospital (Butabika), less than 50 psychiatrists in the country to serve millions of people, only 1% of the health funding devoted to mental health.
Even though the facilities we have are insufficient and the psychiatric expertise is overwhelmed, only 2000 to 3000 cases of mental illness are reported in a year. This means that tens of thousands go unreported due to lack of straightforward symptoms, ignorance and taboo that surround the subject which leads to neglect or misdiagnosis of mental health issues at structural, communal and individual levels. This ignorance and taboo has led misconceptions of people with mental illness as extremely happy, tough or even bewitched: That is why many people affected by mental illness are taken to traditional healers in an effort to expel “clan ghosts and bad fortunes for stepping on a victim’s grandfather’s tombstone.”
Whereas there is much to be done by government and psychiatry in efforts to fully integrate mental health into public health, create awareness on mental health and its link with physical health, individuals can do something in their potential to prevent or heal from mental illness. The individual efforts aim at increasing one’s positive functionality to constructively manage change and emotions. Like many others have propounded, mental health disorder is mainly a result of an individual’s habit disorder and mental health wellness is also a result of good habits of an individual. There are many commandments that are important for individuals to promote their mental health and to overcome mental illness. I will share only three:
Good nutrition is everyone’s wish list component. However, we seem to either misinterpret it or fail to practice it. Sometimes, we are so strict to sing the creed of a good nutrition religiously but for only a week and then resort to our bad old habits for the rest of the year. Let us start from the basics before worrying about what should be eaten and focus on how it should be eaten: A good nutrition takes into perspective having enough meals and in the right time. Nutritional psychiatry may be a new thing but it simply means that we need to monitor the effect of what we eat on our mood over a significant period of time of at least a fortnight. Mental health is an issue of the brain which works every time to take care of thoughts, movements, heartbeat etc. Proper brain structure and functionality needs constant supply of energy from the food we eat. Ultimately, this affects mood, stress levels and our mental condition.
Let us exercise, activate our bodies for the good of the brain. A direct and indirect relationship between physical and mental health can be proven. There is a metabolic syndrome sweeping the world. In addition, people are engrossed in living individualistic lives infested with social withdrawal. To modify our lifestyles will improve our health and subsequently our mental health. To exercise is to practice a good habit. Exercise will improve efficiency, improve mood, cause mental alertness, reduce your anxiety, help an individual overcome social withdrawal and reduce blood pressure through reducing cholesterol and improving cardiovascular fitness. This year, we need to find time and get out of our heads into our bodies, devote at least 15 minutes to exercise daily. This will reduce your psychological stress that is a leading cause of mental illness. Inactivity is one habit we must discard.
Show and express Gratitude this year. It is obvious that we are happy while expressing genuine gratitude. Sometimes, we are blinded by a cloud of problems from identifying a small stars of achievements that we can be grateful for. This year, write at least 2 things you ae grateful for every week, thank people and yourself for making them possible. This will improve your mood, make you more hopeful, concretize your social being which will subsequently improve your mental health.
“The experience I have had is that once you start talking about [experiencing a mental health struggle], you realize that actually you’re part of quite a big club.” — Prince Harry
Everyone with a head and a brain in it is ripe for mental illness. Starting with this year, all of us need to get interested in the mental health issues, acquire knowledge on prevention and treatment.
By Kansiime Onesmus. 2021
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