Mental, Emotional, Physical Wellness versus Mental, Emotional, Physical Illness is a positive way to talk about Mental Health Challenges. I also like to talk about the difference between mental health vs. emotional health vs. physical health because they all work together. Emotional Health is all about feelings, feeling balanced and whole, being happy and satisfied with life, and having a good mood. Mental Health is all about how your mind, thoughts and cognitive processes are working. Physical Health is all about how your body is operating and staying healthy and balanced.
The separation of Mental, Emotional illness vs. Physical illness has always confused me. Why are brain (mental health/emotional issues and physical health issues split into two categories? Psychiatry which started in the 1800’s stated that it was the “medical” treatment for “the mind”. Why didn’t medical treatment for the whole person, mind, body and spirit ensue? Isn’t your brain and your emotional self part of your body? I would think so.
At some point in the early 1800’s when Psychiatry, a new field started, anything to do with depression, psychosis, “odd or strange” behavior, personality traits, and communications started to fall under Psychiatry instead of going to the old family doctor. Many of these “odd or strange” behaviors may have been caused by Medical issues, childhood issues, trauma etc… but the person would be treated by a Mental Health Specialist or Psychiatrist versus a “regular doctor”. That may be when stigma increased and terms like “nervous breakdown”, “crazy”, “mental patient” and any other negative connotations about mental health challenges started growing and upsetting the actual care necessary for mental health. The other problem with the separation between medical and mental health care is that many mental and emotional health challenges have an organic and or medical cause, and that often was overlooked by Psychiatrists who wanted to find an emotional and or personal weakness as the cause. Many people die from having a Psychiatric diagnosis take over their treatment, when in fact the mental and emotional health issues were from a physical disorder. The ideal situation if one is having mental/emotional health issues is to have a Psychiatrist and a Physical Health Practitioner on one team. Often there is NO communication between the two disciplines causing lengthy and unsuccessful results.
Most people, though, who suffer from emotional, mental and or physical health challenges also may become disorganized, and have difficulty with motivation to clean and keep things organized. Emotional illness comes from having the mental state disrupted. Emotional illness can be from having the physical state disrupted. Sometimes emotional, mental and physical disruption is happening all at once, and then your self and space will be tremendously affected. Finding a team approach to help you get back to WELLNESS may be helpful, and put you back on track, so to speak, and on the fast train to recovery. Looking at old memories of hurt and pain, facing them and talking to a Licensed Therapist, examining your diet, exercise, addressing physical health issues, staying on a good medical/mental health regimen, and pulling all of your support and resources together is essential to recovery.
Finding out the source of why there is an emotional factor (negative and harsh feelings) would be the first step in addressing any self or space imbalance. Once you find out the source then the treatment can be organized so you can get organized and resume a balanced self and space.
If you are experiencing any mental, emotional and or physical issues, and you realize you want or require help, contact your insurance carrier and or any community resources in your area to address these issues immediately. You may want to contact a mental health consultant and or coach for guidance and resource coordination.