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What Can Impact Mental Health?
Your mental health is linked to your experiences, although genetic and biological factors can also play a role. Most people go through times when they have feelings of isolation, loneliness or disconnection. Your ability to deal with these feelings will define the condition of your mental health.
Any number of events in a person's life can trigger these negative feelings, including divorce, death, poverty, or living in a nursing home. But they are also affected by personal factors, like chronic illness, disabilities or low self-esteem; social factors, like violence, neglect, or poor parental involvement as a child; or community and cultural factors, like discrimination, housing conditions or lack of public services.
The key is to keep these feelings from interfering with your everyday functioning. Below are some key issues that you may want to consider when assessing your own mental health.
- Stress
Stress is a major factor that can influence your mental health. In a 2002 Canadian survey on mental health, physical problems (11.5%), financial situation (11.0%), and time pressure (8.5%) were ranked as the top sources of stress. Other sources of stress included: school, health of a family member, personal or family responsibilities, personal relationships, work situation, and caring for a child.
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Social Support
Social connections are crucial in influencing your mental and physical health. If you are isolated or lonely, this is bound to have a negative impact on your mental health. People who volunteer and who are involved in social activities are more likely to have better overall health than people who are not involved in regular social activities.
- Chronic Physical Conditions
Mental health and physical health are connected. Just as people who are under significant stress are more likely to develop infections or have a chronic health problem worsen, people with chronic physical health problems are at high risk for developing depression: 75.2% of people without chronic physical disease conditions have a positive perception of their mental health vs. 62.9% of those with a chronic physical condition.
- Spirituality
People have the need to connect to something beyond themselves, whether it be religion, books, music, art, nature or service to others. Many people find that a spiritual connection will enhance their mental health. Those who don't have this spiritual connection may lose perspective and the ability to bounce back from stressful situations (resilience), and may tend to dwell on negative issues.
The best way to ensure good mental health is to seek help early and focus on maintaining or improving your mental wellness.
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