By Hala Bader al-Humaidhi
“Mental health is an integral part of health. Indeed, health is not complete without mental health” – written by the World Humanitarian Organisation in a 2018 article. Mental health has great importance that accrues to the individual and society, as it cultivates happiness, stability and integration among individuals, and it also has an important role in choosing proper and balanced treatment methods for social problems that may affect the integrity of the individual’s psychological development process. Some important points of the importance of mental health can be summarised as:
1. The individual’s self-stability, so his life is free from tensions, fears, and a relatively constant feeling of calm, serenity and self-security.
2. Mental health creates stable and normal individuals, so the more parents have the appropriate amount of mental health, the more they are able to raise children who are mentally healthy; a psychologically stable family enjoys cohesion, synergies, internal and external strength, and thus it increases community strength and cohesion.
3. Mental health is effective for the individual, as it gives him an opportunity to open his horizons and the ability to understand himself and others around him, and make him more capable of controlling emotions and desires, and properly directing behaviour away from abnormal responses.
4. The individual’s enjoyment of mental health makes him more likely to positively deal with various problems, balance emotions when falling under various life pressures, overcome them, and assume responsibilities without running away and withdrawing. Mental health makes the individual compatible with himself, adapting to his society, so his behaviours are often healthy, likable, and satisfying to those around him.
5. Mental health is also of great importance in the economic and production levels, and achieving the principle of social development, as the individual who enjoys mental health is capable of taking responsibility and using his energies, abilities and competencies to the maximum, so the integrated personality of the individual makes him more effective and productive.
Methods of promoting mental health:
There are many ways and methods to enhance mental health in the life of an individual for himself and for those around him by following the below steps:
1. Meeting the basic biological needs of food, drink, sleep and rest.
2. Helping to form a positive image and a healthy attitude towards oneself through positive self-suggestion in all situations.
3. Relaxing as much as possible in all life situations, and moving away from sources of psychological anxiety, tension and fear.
4. Paying attention to general appearance and maintaining personal hygiene, elegant and tidy appearance.
5. Setting a clear goal for life and the continuous and relentless pursuit of it.
6. A healthy family upbringing without violence towards children and adolescents.
Let’s aim for a healthier, happier, and a stable population!
* The author is a consultant in Public Relations and Personality Types. Instagram: @Tipsbyhalahill
