Embracing Your Mental Wellness Journey
This post was originally published on October 18, 2023
Your mental wellness is a precious aspect of your life journey, and we want to focus on you, your emotions, and your needs in this article. The World Health Organization beautifully describes mental wellness as "a state of mental well-being that enables you to navigate life's challenges, recognize your unique abilities, grow, and thrive while contributing to your community”.
Let's embark on a journey to explore the very first part of this definition: stress! Let’s delve into what stress truly means, how you can effectively manage it, and ultimately find that essential balance. Chances are you've encountered some of this information before, as many individuals seeking counseling support have, but we understand that implementing lasting changes for improved mental wellness can be a challenging journey. That's why we're here to guide and support you!
Understanding Stress: Your Unique Experience
Stress, for you, is any form of mental or emotional pressure, demand, or threat that disrupts your inner equilibrium. It's crucial to acknowledge that stress doesn't wear a one-size-fits-all mask; it manifests uniquely in each person's life. And, importantly, stress is not always a negative force. The good news is, if stress is taking a toll on your health and well-being, there are steps you can take to regain your balance.
Common Sources of Stress: Your Personal Landscape
In our lives, various stressors can emerge, affecting our mental wellness. Some of these include:
Personal Stressors: These may come in the form of relationship problems, self-doubt, fears, or questions about your self-worth. Unrealistic expectations, whether from yourself or others, can also add to this load.
General Environmental Stressors: Financial challenges, housing issues, or living in an unsupportive physical environment can exert stress on your mental well-being.
Special Environmental Stressors: These are related to specific aspects of your environment, such as work-related pressures or family events, which can become sources of stress.
The Many Faces of Stress: Recognizing Your Struggles
Stress often reveals itself through a variety of symptoms that can be categorized into four groups: physical, emotional, psychological, and behavioral. You might be familiar with some of these:
Poor eating habits, excessive dreams, teeth grinding, playing with your hair, non-cardiac chest pains, high blood pressure, low energy levels, a clenched jaw, a desire to hide, feeling easily startled, restlessness, apathy, mood swings, excessive fear, confused thinking, poor decision-making, difficulty concentrating, memory lapses, reduced interaction with family and friends, and an overwhelming sense of loneliness. It's important to remember that some of these symptoms could have other underlying causes apart from stress.
Chronic Stress: A Path to Additional Concerns
If you've been grappling with chronic stress and are concerned about the symptoms you're experiencing, it's a wise step to reach out to your counsellor and consider scheduling a visit to a healthcare professional.
Nurturing Your Mental Wellness
Stress is an inescapable part of life, a natural facet of your journey. While quick fixes may be tempting, the key to effective stress management lies in weaving a stress management program into your ongoing self-care plan. This program encompasses three core components:
Self-Awareness: This entails recognizing your physical, mental, and emotional experiences without distortion or denial. It's the foundation for self-regulation, and you can draw from the insights you've gained in understanding your unique stress.
Self-Regulation: This involves the conscious and unconscious management of your physical, mental, and emotional experiences.
Balance: Achieving balance is a natural consequence of practicing self-regulation, which is made possible through self-awareness.
As we venture on this journey, remember that it's all about you and your mental well-being. You have the inner strength and guidance to navigate stress, embrace self-awareness, and ultimately find the balance that your heart desires. Your emotions and well-being are at the heart of this transformation, and the counsellors at The Wellness Collective are available to support you every step of the way.
Christine Semenuk works with youth, families and adults struggling with anxiety, depression and self-esteem issues using CBT, solution-focused and person-centered methods. In her free time, Christine can be found baking, exercising, listening to an audiobook, learning something new, or spending time with family and friends.