What is mental health?

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act as we cope with life. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood.

Why is mental health important?

Mental health is important because it can help you to

• Cope with the stresses of life
• Be physically healthy
• Have good relationships
• Make meaningful contributions to your community
• Work productively
• Realize your full potential

How can I improve my mental health?

There are many different things you can do to improve your mental health, including

• Staying positive. It's important to try to have a positive outlook; some ways to do that include
  • Finding balance between positive and negative emotions. Staying positive doesn't mean that you never feel negative emotions, such as sadness or anger. You need to feel them so that you can move through difficult situations. They can help you to respond to a problem. But you don't want those emotions to take over. For example, it's not helpful to keep thinking about bad things that happened in the past or worry too much about the future.
  • Trying to hold on to the positive emotions when you have them
  • Taking a break from negative information. Know when to stop watching or reading the news. Use social media to reach out for support and feel connected to others but be careful. Don't fall for rumors, get into arguments, or negatively compare your life to others.
• Practicing gratitude, which means being thankful for the good things in your life. It's helpful to do this every day, either by thinking about what you are grateful for or writing it down in a journal. These can be big things, such as the support you have from loved ones, or little things, such as enjoying a nice meal. It's important to allow yourself a moment to enjoy that you had the positive experience. Practicing gratitude can help you to see your life differently. For example, when you are stressed, you may not notice that there are also moments when you have some positive emotions. Gratitude can help you to recognize them.
• Taking care of your physical health, since your physical and mental health are connected. Some ways to take care of your physical health include
  • Being physically active. Exercise can reduce feelings of stress and depression and improve your mood.
  • Getting enough sleep. Sleep affects your mood. If you don't get a good sleep, you may become more easily annoyed and angry. Over the long term, a lack of quality sleep can make you more likely to become depressed. So it's important to make sure that you have a regular sleep schedule and get enough quality sleep every night.
  • Healthy eating. Good nutrition will help you feel better physically but could also improve your mood and decrease anxiety and stress. Also, not having enough of certain nutrients may contribute to some mental illnesses. For example, there may be a link between low levels of vitamin B12 and depression. Eating a well-balanced diet can help you to get enough of the nutrients you need.
• Connecting with others. Humans are social creatures, and it's important to have strong, healthy relationships with others. Having good social support may help protect you against the harms of stress. It is also good to have different types of connections. Besides connecting with family and friends, you could find ways to get involved with your community or neighborhood. For example, you could volunteer for a local organization or join a group that is focused on a hobby you enjoy.
• Developing a sense of meaning and purpose in life. This could be through your job, volunteering, learning new skills, or exploring your spirituality.
• Developing coping skills, which are methods you use to deal with stressful situations. They may help you face a problem, take action, be flexible, and not easily give up in solving it.
• Meditation, which is a mind and body practice where you learn to focus your attention and awareness. There are many types, including mindfulness meditation and transcendental meditation. Meditation usually involves
  • A quiet location with as few distractions as possible
  • A specific, comfortable posture. This could be sitting, lying down, walking, or another position.
  • A focus of attention, such as a specially chosen word or set of words, an object, or your breathing
  • An open attitude, where you try to let distractions come and go naturally without judging them
• Relaxation techniques are practices you do to produce your body's natural relaxation response. This slows down your breathing, lowers your blood pressure, and reduces muscle tension and stress. Types of relaxation techniques include
  • Progressive relaxation, where you tighten and relax different muscle groups, sometimes while using mental imagery or breathing exercises
  • Guided imagery, where you learn to focus on positive images in your mind, to help you feel more relaxed and focused
  • Biofeedback, where you use electronic devices to learn to control certain body functions, such as breathing, heart rate, and muscle tension
  • Self-hypnosis, where the goal is to get yourself into a relaxed, trance-like state when you hear a certain suggestion or see a specific cue
  • Deep breathing exercises, which involve focusing on taking slow, deep, even breaths

It's also important to recognize when you need to get help. Talk therapy and/or medicines can treat mental disorders. If you don't know where to get treatment, start by contacting your primary care provider.

People who are not physically healthy may have trouble staying mentally healthy. People living with chronic (long-term) health problems such as diabetes and heart disease are often more likely to have higher stress levels, depression, and anxiety. Researchers are not sure which problems happen first, but many people have a chronic disease and a mental health condition. Having a chronic disease does not always mean you will have a mental health condition, but if you are struggling with both, know that you are not alone. Support groups and health care professionals can help. Healthy habits, like eating healthy and getting exercise, that help improve many chronic diseases may also help improve mental health conditions.

Physical activity can help your mental health in several ways:

• Aerobic exercise can boost your mood. Your body makes certain chemicals, called endorphins, during and after your workout. Endorphins relieve stress and make you feel calmer.
• Getting physical activity during the day can make it easier to sleep at night. Creating a routine can help you stay motivated and build a habit of getting regular physical activity.
• Physical activity may help with depression and anxiety symptoms. Studies show that regular aerobic exercise boosts your mood and lowers anxiety and depression.
• Physical activity may help slow or stop weight gain, which is a common side effect of some medicines used to treat mental health conditions.

Regular physical activity can benefit your health over the long term. Getting active every day (at least 30 minutes a day of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, like brisk walking) helps maintain your health. All Americans should also do strengthening exercises at least 2 days a week to build and maintain muscles. Your doctor or nurse may recommend exercise in addition to taking medicine and getting counseling for mental health conditions.

The foods you eat and what you drink can have a direct effect on your energy levels and mood. Researchers think that eating healthier foods can have a positive effect on your mood.

• Getting the right balance of nutrients, including enough fiber and water, can help your mood stay stable. Sugary, processed foods increase your blood sugar and then make you feel tired and irritable when your blood sugar levels drop.
• Some vitamins and minerals may help with the symptoms of depression. Experts are researching how a lack of some nutrients is linked to depression in new mothers. These include selenium, omega-3 fatty acids, folate, vitamin B12, calcium, iron, and zinc.
• Drinking too much alcohol can lead to mental and physical health problems.
• Drinks with caffeine can make it harder for you to sleep, which can make some mental health conditions worse. Also, drinking caffeine regularly and then suddenly stopping can cause caffeine withdrawal, which can make you irritable and give you headaches. Don’t have drinks with caffeine within 5 hours of going to sleep.

Eating nutritious foods may not cure a mental health condition, but eating healthy is a good way to start feeling better. Ask your doctor or nurse for more information about the right foods to eat to help keep your mind and body healthy.

Deep breathing, mindfulness, and a practice of gratitude are some of the most effective ways to manage stress and take care of your emotional health.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness means being present with your thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment. Mindfulness is also without judgement—meaning there is no right or wrong way to think or feel in a given moment. When we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we’re sensing in the present moment rather than rehashing the past or imagining the future.

Anything that keeps you present in the moment and gives your prefrontal cortex (the reasoning and thinking part of your brain) a break is practicing mindfulness. Mindfulness can be a slow walk; looking intently at the grass, trees, flowers, or buildings; and being aware of what you are sensing and feeling. Mindfulness can be sitting quietly—even sitting still in a quiet place for as little as a few minutes can reduce heart rate and blood pressure.

Developing a practice of mindfulness is easier than you may think:

• Slow down. From brushing your teeth, to washing your face, to shampooing your hair—can you take the speed out of getting ready in the morning? Focus on the activity, pay attention to what you are doing, stay present (this means don’t think about what happened last night or what’s in store for the day, just stay focused on the activity), and take your time.
• Focus on your breath. How fast are you breathing? Is your breath coming from your chest or your belly? Can you feel the air come through your nose on the inhale? Can you slow down the exhale? Can you feel your body relax when you slow the exhale?
• Connect to your environment. Walk for a few minutes, focused on the world around you—look at the leaves on the trees or the light at the corner, listen to the sounds around you, stay with your surroundings, and observe what you see and hear around you.

“We can’t change the world, at least not quickly, but we can change our brains. By practicing mindfulness all of us have the capacity to develop a deeper sense of calm.”

— Rick Hanson, author, Resilient

Deep Breathing

When people hear mindfulness they often think meditation. While meditation is one method of mindfulness, there are many others that may be simpler and easier for you to practice. Deep breathing helps lower stress and reduce anxiety, and it is simple yet very powerful. A daily mindful breathing practice has been shown to reduce test anxiety in college students. A 2-4-6-8 breathing pattern is a very useful tool that can be used to help bring a sense of calm and to help mild to moderate anxiety. It takes almost no time, requires no equipment, and can be done anywhere:

• Start by quickly exhaling any air in your lungs (to the count of 2).
• Breathing in through your nose, inhale to the count of 4.
• Hold your breath for a count of 6.
• Slowly exhale through your mouth to the count of 8.

This is one round. Do not repeat the quick exhale again. Instead start round two with an inhale through your nose to the count of 4, hold for 6, and exhale to 8. Repeat for three more rounds to relax your body and mind.

With practice, 2-4-6-8 breathing will become a useful tool for times when you experience tension or stress.

Meditation

Dan Harris, a news reporter at ABC, fell into drug use and suffered a major panic attack on national television. Following this embarrassing period in his life, he learned to meditate and found that it made him calmer and more resilient. He’s now on a mission to make meditation approachable to everyone. Dan used to be a skeptic about meditation but now says that if he learned to meditate, anyone can learn to meditate! Dan reminds us that we ARE going to get lost, and our mind IS going to stray, and that’s ok. Simply notice when you’re lost and start over. Every time your mind strays and your start over, it is like a bicep curl for your brain. Start with 3 minutes and slowly work your way up to 15 or 20. 

Some great meditation apps include Insight Timer, CALM, and Headspace.

Gratitude

Too often people think it is the external factors that bring us joy and happiness, when really it’s all related to internal work. According to UCLA’s Mindfulness Awareness Research Center, “Having an attitude of gratitude changes the molecular structure of the brain, and makes us healthier and happier. When you feel happiness, the central nervous system is affected. You are more peaceful, less reactive and less resistant.”

Numerous studies show that people who count their blessings tend to be happier and less depressed. In a UC Berkeley study, researchers recruited 300 people who were experiencing emotional or mental health challenges and randomly divided them into three groups. All three groups received counseling services. The first group also wrote a letter of gratitude every week for three weeks. The second group wrote about their thoughts and feelings with negative experiences. The third group received only counseling. The people in the group who wrote gratitude letters reported significantly better mental health for up to 12 weeks after the writing exercise ended.

This would suggest that a healthy emotional self-care practice is to take note of good experiences or when you see something that makes you smile. Think about why the experience feels so good. According to Rick Hanson, author of Resilient, “Each day is strewn with little jewels. The idea is to see them and pick them up. When you notice something positive, stay with the feeling for 30 seconds. Feel the emotions in your whole body. Maybe your heart feels lighter or you’re smiling. The more you can deepen and lengthen positive experiences the longer those positivity neurons in your brain are firing—and the longer they fire the stronger the underlying neural networks become. Repeat that process a half dozen times a day and you’ll feel stronger, more stable and calmer within a few weeks.”

As you age, your body and brain change. These changes can affect your physical and mental health. Older women may face more stressful living or financial situations than men do, because women live longer on average. They may also have spent more time staying home to raise children or care for loved ones instead of working outside of the home.

In the years leading up to menopause (perimenopause), women may experience shifts in mood because of hormone changes. They may also experience hot flashes, problems sleeping, and other symptoms that can make it harder to deal with stress or other life changes.

The chemicals in tobacco and alcohol can change the chemicals in your brain, making you more likely to feel depressed or anxious. People with mental health conditions are also more likely to smoke and drink alcohol.

Using illegal drugs, or misusing prescription drugs, is also linked to mental health conditions. Researchers are not sure whether drugs can cause mental health conditions, whether mental health conditions cause addiction, or whether both are linked to another health problem. People who have experienced trauma, whether physical or emotional (or both), are more likely to misuse drugs and alcohol.

Two out of every 3 women have experienced at least one serious traumatic or negative event during childhood, increasing their risk of adult health problems, including mental health conditions.

• Traumatic events can include physical or sexual abuse, neglect, bullying, neighborhood violence, natural disasters, terrorism, and war. While many people in the United States experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, most don’t suffer long-term problems as a result.
• Negative events during childhood can include abuse (physical, emotional, verbal, or sexual), neglect, or a problem with an adult in the home, such as seeing domestic violence or having a caregiver go to prison. The more negative childhood events you have experienced, the higher your risk of a serious health problem as an adult. Learn more about negative (adverse) childhood events.

Women are more likely than men to experience certain types of trauma, such as sexual abuse or assault, and are at higher risk of developing a mental health condition.

Mental health conditions affect women of all races and ethnicities. But your environment — where and how you live — can have an effect on your mental health. Women who grew up in poverty or who live in poverty as adults and women in a sexual minority (such as women who identify as lesbian or bisexual) may be more likely to experience mental health conditions, such as depression.

• Some studies show that children who grow up in poverty can have a higher risk of developing certain mental health conditions, including depression and post—traumatic stress disorder, as adults.
• Children who witness domestic violence (also called intimate partner violence) are more likely to develop mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety, as adults.
• Lesbians and bisexual women are at higher risk of mood and anxiety disorders than heterosexual women.

No. Many people experience major stress in life, including poverty, unemployment, trauma, abuse, family difficulties, or chronic health problems. Experiencing these stressful situations does not mean you will definitely develop a mental health condition. But if you do experience serious, stressful situations and develop a mental health condition, know that it is not your fault. You can get help and treatment for mental health conditions.

Learning ways to manage stress and reaching out for help when you need it can help you protect your mental health.

Mental health includes emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, act, make choices, and relate to others. Mental health is more than the absence of a mental illness—it’s essential to your overall health and quality of life. Self-care can play a role in maintaining your mental health and help support your treatment and recovery if you have a mental illness.

About Self-Care

Self-care means taking the time to do things that help you live well and improve both your physical health and mental health. When it comes to your mental health, self-care can help you manage stress, lower your risk of illness, and increase your energy. Even small acts of self-care in your daily life can have a big impact.

Here are some tips to help you get started with self-care:

• Get regular exercise. Just 30 minutes of walking every day can help boost your mood and improve your health. Small amounts of exercise add up, so don’t be discouraged if you can’t do 30 minutes at one time.
• Eat healthy, regular meals and stay hydrated. A balanced diet and plenty of water can improve your energy and focus throughout the day. Also, limit caffeinated beverages such as soft drinks or coffee.
• Make sleep a priority. Stick to a schedule, and make sure you’re getting enough sleep. Blue light from devices and screens can make it harder to fall asleep, so reduce blue light exposure from your phone or computer before bedtime.
• Try a relaxing activity. Explore relaxation or wellness programs or apps, which may incorporate meditation, muscle relaxation, or breathing exercises. Schedule regular times for these and other healthy activities you enjoy such as journaling.
• Set goals and priorities. Decide what must get done now and what can wait. Learn to say “no” to new tasks if you start to feel like you’re taking on too much. Try to be mindful of what you have accomplished at the end of the day, not what you have been unable to do.
• Practice gratitude. Remind yourself daily of things you are grateful for. Be specific. Write them down at night, or replay them in your mind.
• Focus on positivity. Identify and challenge your negative and unhelpful thoughts.
• Stay connected. Reach out to your friends or family members who can provide emotional support and practical help.

Self-care looks different for everyone, and it is important to find what you need and enjoy. It may take trial and error to discover what works best for you. In addition, although self-care is not a cure for mental illnesses, understanding what causes or triggers your mild symptoms and what coping techniques work for you can help manage your mental health.

For other ideas for healthy practices for your mind, body, surroundings, and relationships, see the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Wellness Toolkits.

When to Seek Professional Help

Seek professional help if you are experiencing severe or distressing symptoms that have lasted two weeks or more, such as:

• Difficulty sleeping
• Appetite changes that result in unwanted weight changes
• Struggling to get out of bed in the morning because of mood
• Difficulty concentrating
• Loss of interest in things you usually find enjoyable
• Inability to perform usual daily functions and responsibilities

Don’t wait until your symptoms are overwhelming. Talk about your concerns with your primary care provider, who can refer you to a mental health specialist if needed. If you don’t know where to start, read the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Tips for Talking With Your Health Care Provider fact sheet. Learn more about how to get help or find a provider on the NIMH’s Help for Mental Illnesses webpage.

What to Do in a Crisis

If you are thinking about harming yourself or attempting suicide, tell someone who can help right away or dial 911 in an emergency. You also can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (Lifeline) at 1‑800‑273‑TALK (8255), or text the Crisis Text Line (text HELLO to 741741). Both services are free and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All calls are confidential.

Contact social media outlets directly if you are concerned about a friend’s social media updates, or dial 911 in an emergency.