Walking The Road To Better Mental Health - 2024

Mental and emotional health is scary.

Symptoms that show that you may be on a

rocky road of mental health include:

 Persistent sad, anxious, or “empty”

mood

 Feelings of hopelessness or

pessimism, or irritability

 Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or

helplessness

 Loss of interest or pleasure in

hobbies and activities

 Decreased energy or fatigue

 Moving or talking more slowly

 Feeling restless or trouble sitting still

 Difficulty concentrating,

remembering, or making decisions

 Difficulty sleeping or oversleeping

 Appetite or weight changes (or both)

 Thoughts of death or suicide, or

suicide attempts

 Aches or pains, headaches, cramps,

or digestive problems without a clear

physical cause

You are likely familiar with PTSD.

P___________

T___________

S___________

D___________

Have you heard of Secondary Traumatic

Stress Disorder? Sounds serious, eh?! Well,

this is a syndrome of symptoms almost

identical to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

This is common among indigenous

populations. However, I believe that there

may be another culprit.

Vicarious Traumatization

In my opinion, this may be a category that

many of us in this room may fall into.

Signs & Symptoms of

Vicarious Traumatization

 Exhaustion

 Reduced ability to feel sympathy and

empathy

 Anger and irritability

 Increased use of alcohol and drugs

 Dread of being around certain people

 Diminished sense of enjoyment of

life

 Heightened anxiety or irrational fears

 Intrusive imagery or dissociation

 Hypersensitivity or the opposite...an

insensitivity to emotional things

 Absenteeism – missing school or

work, taking many sick days

 Inability to make decisions

 Problems with feeling close to others

and personal relationshipsEMOTIONAL WELLNESS

This is also known as emotional health or

emotional wellbeing, is a person's ability to

handle their emotions and the varied

experiences they encounter in life.

Nurturing your body, brain, and social

connections can help you bounce back from

stress. Develop healthy physical habits.

Healthy eating, physical activity, and regular

sleep can improve your physical and mental

health.

Practical Ways to Build Resilience

Olympian Jim Thorpe

SLEEP!

 Boosts immunity

 Reduces Stress

 Heals

 Repairs

Practice Gratitude

Take time to note things to be thankful for

each day.

“Gratefulness and rebellion cannot

cohabitate.” Dr. Kelly

Practice Purpose

Find the meaning and purpose of life.

Seek the Creator’s purpose for your life.

Think about how to guide your life by the

principles that are important to you.

Surround yourself with positive, healthy

people.

Notes:

Communicate

Acknowledge to yourself and to others what

you feel helps when you are in an emotional

spiral or feel stressed. Many stressful

situations can’t easily be changed by one

person you may need the help of others.

Find Your PeopleFind Your Strengths

Stress can cause wear and tear on the body

and brain. Chronic stress has been linked to

an increased risk of many health conditions.

These include depression and anxiety.

Note that resilience isn’t just about

eliminating stress. It’s also about tapping

into your strengths.

Researchers call these protective factors.

Protective factors can buffer and minimize

stress and promote wellness and well-being.

SET BOUNDARIES

Benefits of Boundaries

 Decreases resentment.

 Reduces emotional fatigue.

 Protects what we love.

 Improved understanding of those you

love, care for and spend time with.

 Provides a cushion for stress.

 Better performance outcomes.

Protective Factors

Other protective factors involve nurturing

your body. You can manage your stress and

the is the KEY to resilience because a

healthy body is going to deal with stress

much better.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF

Express Your Emotions! This is a tool of

resilience! Express your feelings rather than

bottling them up.

You have 3 choices with your emotions:

R_______________ This is denial.

S_______________ This is resistance.

E_______________ This is honesty!

As a man thinks in his heart so is he.

Proverbs 23:7

THOUGHTS become….

A_______________

H_______________

A_______________

L_______________

HURT turns to…

A_______________

B_______________

W_______________

M_______________

M_______________Helpful Words from the Creator:

He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue

him and honor him.16 “With a long life I will

satisfy him And let him see My salvation.

Psalms 91:15

1 Kings 19:1-8

1Now Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah

had done, and how he had killed all the

prophets with the sword. 2Then Jezebel sent

a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the

gods do to me and even more, if I do not

make your life as the life of one of them by

tomorrow about this time.” 3And he was

afraid and arose and ran for his life and

came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah,

and left his servant there. 4But he himself

went a day’s journey into the wilderness,

and came and sat down under a juniper tree;

and he requested for himself that he might

die, and said, “It is enough; now, O LORD,

take my life, for I am not better than my

fathers.” 5He lay down and slept under a

juniper tree; and behold, there was an angel

touching him, and he said to him, “Arise,

eat.” 6Then he looked and behold, there was

at his head a bread cake baked on hot stones,

and a jar of water. So he ate and drank and

lay down again. 7The angel of the LORD

came again a second time and touched him

and said, “Arise, eat, because the journey is

too great for you.” 8So he arose and ate and

drank, and went in the strength of that food

forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the

mountain of God.

Job 6:11-14

“What is my strength, that I should wait?

And what is my end, that I should endure?

Is my strength the strength of stones,

Or is my flesh bronze?

“Is it that my help is not within me, and that

deliverance is driven from me?

“For the despairing man there should be

kindness from his friend; So that he does not

forsake the fear of the Almighty.

Deuteronomy 32: 9-11

“For the LORD’S portion is His people;

Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance.

“He found him in a desert land,

And in the howling waste of a wilderness;

He encircled him, He cared for him,

He guarded him as the pupil of His eye.

“Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,

That hovers over its young,

He spread His wings and caught them,

He carried them on His pinions.

Notes:

©Dr. Kelly Bushéy

[email protected]