Life, Balance and Positive Mental Health
As human beings we each have basic psychological needs that need to be met… and when these needs are satisfied can lead us to greater happiness and success in life. Life is a balance and staying positive is a life long journey… the only way to remain positive throughout your life is by ensuring your are fulfilling your needs both mentally and physically. Positive mental health begins and ends with fulfilling your need to feel safe, to belong, to love, have respect for yourself, to continually build your self-esteem, to reach your full potential and to transcend your perceived limits. Perceived limits/limitations are ones that we impose on ourselves… When we think we cannot the truth is we cannot! What we fight or do not understand adds stress to our life. Life has it challenges, life will push us beyond our limits… As you experience a challenge or when you are being pushed beyond your limits… you will need to overcome the emotions and physical resistance that will inevitably come over you. The only way to overcome resistance like stress, anxiety, fears, anger, sadness and so on… is through awareness.
“It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it.”
~Lou Holtz
Resistance in the Form of Stress
Stress, fear, anxiety, anger sadness are all forms of stress that keep people from moving forward in life. As you grow it is almost impossible to avoid stress… Stress can be triggered by either a positive or negative experience depending on what has happened over someone’s lifetime. Stress is a normal function of our mind letting us know that for a moment it is momentarily overwhelmed. Stress can surface when you are pushed beyond your limits… stress can make your mind feel foggy and stress can force you to give up on your dreams if you do not have the ability to deal with it positively. Stress is a defense that comes in the form of fear, anxiety, anger, physical symptoms and depression. Being in a state of mind where stress is running you can be so unpleasant that you lose your sense of self. When you are in crisis and feel a form of stress coming on there are various stress techniques that can help you deal with what every comes your way… but in order to do so you must be aware of the symptoms of stress.
Becoming Aware of Stress Symptoms
Irrespective of how intelligent, strong or resilient you may be… if the challenges you are currently faced with are more then you can handle one or more symptoms of stress can manifest in your life. If you do not respond to the source of your distress the chances of them subsiding is highly unlikely. The symptoms of stress can vary from one person to another. The major types of stress one can experience include anxiety, anger, physical symptoms, depressionand psychosis. When encountering a tough challenge it is important to observe and recognize the distress signals that are alerting you… these signals are there to let you know that your stress threshold has been maximized which is the key to knowing what you need to do next. Stress symptoms can be very overwhelming and ever scary at times…
Stress Symptoms:
Anxiety: are thoughts, feelings and actions that indicate anxiety, nervousness, tension, worry and fear.
Anger: are thoughts, feelings and actions that are angry, unfriendly, hostile and mean.
Physical Symptoms of (stress): is the feeling of being ill and feeling a sense of illness.
Depression/Sadness: are thoughts, feelings and actions that are negative to the point they are beyond anything you can control.
Psychosis: are thoughts, feelings and actions that signal confusion, ambivalence, inconsistency, inappropriateness or paralysis as in you feel paralyzed by your stress. Negative inconsistent thoughts played over and over in your mind can lead you to scattered behavior, confusion, paralysis or exhaustion.
“Stay positive even when it feels like your life is falling apart.”
~Unknown
Staying Positive
Irrespective of how intelligent, strong or resilient you may be… if the challenges you face push you far enough… you may forget to fulfill the basic psychological needs that make you feel balanced. When your life is chaotic and balance has been forgotten… you end up sacrificing life itself! In order to stay positive you must remember that life has to be balanced! Realize there will be times when you will have to take a break and come back to the things you are trying to accomplish… this does not mean you have failed, what it means is you have brought enough awareness into your life to make sure you stay balanced. Creating a life balance will help you maintain a positive outlook moving forward… and when you are ready to get back up and try again… you will be amazed at how well you can face any challenge life throws your way!