Mental health is an important part of looking after yourself. If you’re not taking care of your mental health, then the rest of your physical well-being can suffer as a result. Fortunately, you’re not going to be alone when it comes to issues with your mental well-being. It seems to be the case that not many people address their own concerns when it comes to their mental health.
As a result, most end up pushing those worries or problems to the back of their mind, with many pretending that everything is ok. However, doing so is only going to bring the inevitable which is a breakdown to some degree.
There are certain signs to be aware of when it comes to your mental health and how well it’s doing currently. The warning signs of burnout or breakdown are something to take note of, especially as an event of either, can take a toll on your body.
Everyone is different, so it’s important to be aware of the signs that indicate you may need help with your mental health. Remember, your mental health can be impacted and show itself in a number of ways. Here are some tell-tale signs that you might want to address your mental health sooner rather than later.
You’re experiencing emotional outbursts
Everyone gets emotional. We all have emotions and those emotions can come to the surface in a number of ways. Emotional outbursts are peaks of emotion that can occur out of nowhere. Whether that’s anger or upset, these situations where your emotions are getting the best of you are a cause for concern.
It’s not about controlling those emotional outbursts but moreso where they’ve originated from. How have they come about at such a rapid pace? It could be that you were triggered by something or that it’s been bubbling away for some time now and there’s been one situation that has caused it to boil over.
An emotional outburst can feel overwhelming and for some, it can lead to embarrassment that the outburst has happened, especially if it’s been in the public domain. However, it should be a warning sign that your mental health might not be doing so well and that you need to seek help for it.
Trouble sleeping or not sleeping at all
Sleep is an important part of your day-to-day routine and if you’re not getting enough sleep, that has a knock-on effect on both your physical wellbeing and mental health. Ideally, everyone should be getting around seven to nine hours of sleep per night.
That’s the recommended amount of time for your body to recover from the day and to be recharged for the new day ahead. If you’re only getting half of that, this could certainly be contributing to how you’re feeling currently.
Sleep can be a complicated thing for many people. Whether that’s trouble falling asleep, oversleeping or not sleeping at all. Getting the right balance is important and it’s something you want to tackle proactively, rather than just learning to deal with the current situation.
If you have problems sleeping, you may want to adapt your bedtime routine or make changes to your sleeping habits to improve them. For others, it might be a case of getting professional assistance in your sleep habits where appropriate.
Weight or appetite changes
While it doesn’t always impact everyone, a sign of your mental health not being quite up to scratch is a weight or appetite change.
Those that are dealing with mental health troubles may stop eating, eat a lot less or eat a lot more. That can lead to weight gain or weight loss to a significant point that many people around you start to notice and comment on.
While commenting on anybody’s weight shouldn’t be so openly mentioned, it’s often important when there are other signs that your mental health is in disarray.
If you’ve noticed that your appetite has changed, perhaps you’ve not been feeling yourself in the way you feel because of the weight change, then it’s good to address it. When it comes to food, many people can have a strained relationship with it, which is only strained further when your mental well-being has been impacted.
Withdrawing from social events
A withdrawal from social events is something to be conscious of when it comes to your mental well-being. Often enough, if you’re finding yourself withdrawing from conversations moreso or you’re declining a lot of occasions to spend with family, friends, and work colleagues, then it might be a sign.
For some though, it could be that your social energy bar has depleted so much that you just want to spend a bit of time alone. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that but it’s recognizing the difference between having some time alone and those times where you’ve spent too much time away from people.
If you’re worried about your withdrawal from social events, the best thing to do is to speak to someone about it. Chances are, you’re not doing it as much as you think you are, while for some, it might have already been noticed by your loved ones.
Feeling guilty or worthless
There’s really nothing more upsetting than feeling guilty or feelings of worthlessness in life. That guilty feeling might come from everyday activities you’re doing and thinking that how you behave and what you do is wrong.
That guilt can be self-deprecating and often holds no truth in reality. However, we’re all our own worst critics, meaning what we believe in ourselves is going to be something we carry with us until others tell us otherwise.
Feeling worthless is equally hard to deal with, especially when it comes to your mental health. That worthless feeling can make you feel like you’ve got no direction in life or no purpose. That’s where it becomes dangerous for some and if you recognize it, it’s best to seek help immediately.
There are times when all of us may feel guilty or worthless at times, but it’s often a temporary hold that we have. When it comes more frequently, that’s when you should start to take concern.
A developing substance abuse
It’s not always common but there might be a need to visit Dual Diagnosis Treatment Centers where substance abuse has developed. It’s often found that those with a substance addiction, often have a mental health problem that has gone unaddressed or untreated.
Substance abuse can be anything from the following:
- Illegal substances – heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana
- Legal substances – alcohol, nicotine, and prescription medicines.
It’s the misuse of these substances that is considered an abuse of them on your body and mind. It is certainly common for people to lean on substances in an attempt to numb the pain and feelings felt by their mental health.
While this may be somewhat effective, it’s not beneficial to your general health and well-being. It’s therefore important to seek health sooner, rather than trying to tackle it with substance abuse ongoing.
Confiding in loved ones
Having a strong network of friendships and loved ones around you is abundantly important when it comes to your mental health. Managing your mental well-being alone isn’t always something that you can do effectively.
Sometimes, it takes speaking to others, to be able to process your feelings and to take control of your mental health. That’s why it’s always useful to find people you can trust enough to confide in about how you’re feeling.
Your feelings may shock or upset others you speak to, but that’s likely down to feeling helpless in being able to help or simply not realizing that this was how you’ve been feeling.
It’s better to confide in others than it is to bottle it up and hope that you’ll be able to get through it yourself without help.
Feelings of anxiety or worry
There are other emotional signs that indicate that you have problems with your mental health. Do you often feel worried or do you suffer from anxiety and/or panic attacks? If that’s the case, then you definitely want to consider getting help further.
Depending on the severity of these panic attacks, they could do some physical damage to your body. That’s why getting medical professionals involved, is a good option for many. Of course, it might not be needed for everyone and there are ways to manage worry or feelings of anxiety. Speak to a health professional if you think you might need that extra help.
Depression or rising periods of unhappiness
Finally, remember that many of us will experience a period of unhappiness or even depression in our lives. Typically triggered by certain events but this often passes. If you’re experiencing rising periods of unhappiness or a constant feeling of depression, it’s best to get help.
These signs are something to be mindful of and know that if they don’t go away, then it’s worth seeking further guidance or assistance. Your mental health matters and it’s something that is deserving of help whenever you may need it.
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