Dear Reader, I have written this information for the purpose of providing public education about mental health. The information provided is of a general nature only and is not a substitute for professional recommendations based on an individual clinical assessment. For any specific queries about mental health please contact an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker or your General Practitioner. Kindest Regards, Geraldene Mackay.
13.11.11
By looking after your own mental health you not only experience greater wellbeing but you positively influence the social environment for others and so help entire the community. This is a win-win for us all. How do we make this happen- the evidence says
- Connect – with others , invest time developing this key part of your life
- Be active- go for a walk, exercise
- Take notice- practice mindfulness by being curious and not judgmental
- Keep Learning- there is always something new to learn
- Give- do something nice for someone else
[Source : The Five Ways to Wellbeing- a set of evidence-based public mental health messages aimed at improving the wellbeing of the whole population and also mental health. These ideas were developed by nef (the new economics foundation].
21.10.11
As an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker I understand that individuals exist in a complex network of political, social and environmental events. I understand that these events impact on our minds and bodies. That is, the mind, the brain, and the whole self are affected. In turn people, who have varying internal experiences, effect social, political and environmental events in a dialectical manner.
So what is needed is a complex analysis of the situation. C. Wright Mills (1959) in his book “The Sociological Imagination” describes this analysis as the “the capacity to range from the most impersonal and remote transformations to the most intimate features of the human self – and to see the relations between the two”. An approach that recognises complexity is needed for any intervention.
I have always been impressed about the capacity of my patients to understand complex psycho-education and how they have found this information to be helpful, I hope you enjoy reading this blog.
