Join Beach Cities Health District to raise awareness about mental health!

Mental health is an important part of overall health and well-being. It includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being, affecting how we think, feel and act (Source: CDC). It enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realize their abilities, learn and work well and contribute to their community (Source: World Health Organization). We all have mental health and need to take care of it just like how we take care of our physical health. 

When you are feeling physically sick, you may get some rest or call your doctor, but if you are mentally unwell, you may be less likely to take break. Mental health is just as important as physical health and should be taken with the same seriousness as any physical health problem. In fact, both mental health and physical health are connected and contribute to our overall health. For example, depression increases the risk for many physical health problems like diabetes, heart disease and stroke. Similarly, the presence of chronic conditions can increase the risk for mental illness. Self-care practices like exercise and getting enough sleep can benefit both your mental health and physical health.

People may have negative feelings and attitudes towards mental health. This can make it hard for people to talk about their mental health challenges and seek help. By talking about mental health in the same way and frequency that we talk about physical health, we can help normalize its conversation. We not only want to create a space where it’s okay to talk about mental health, but also encourage it. By talking about mental health, we can decrease the stigma and discrimination around it while empowering others to also talk about it.

It’s important to note that mental health and mental illness are not the same. A person can experience poor mental health and not be diagnosed with a mental illness, and a person can have good mental health and be diagnosed with a mental illness (Source: CDC).

Beach Cities Health District’s “Mental Health is Health” community-wide campaign aims to decrease stigma, increase help seeking behaviors, increase awareness of and access to resources for mental health, and build community capacity to support individuals who need mental health resources. Prioritize your mental health today and check in, get support and attend an event.