Mental Illness and the Importance of Proactive Self-Care
Whether you have a mental health diagnosis or not, life is difficult and stressful. Triggers, that can activate or increase your mental illness symptoms, are lurking everywhere. They can be family-related, work-related or health-related. That's why I'm a big proponent of engaging in behaviors that are preventive and proactive rather than reactive.
Using Healthy Coping Skills to Manage Mental Health Triggers
Healthy coping skills are always discussed or developed after we have psychiatric crisis or we see a crisis about to occur. I support proactive self-care being a model for practicing healthy behaviors and having healthy coping skills.
I found walking, listening to music and writing/blogging to be healthy coping skills. They have very high positive impact on mental health but are fairly low-impact activities that require little effort. I play music while driving to and from school. I go for a short walk when going to buy groceries.
In my opinion, proactive self-care should be easy to do and the healthy coping skills you use should not become additional stressors or triggers in your life.
APA Reference
S.
(2012, October 24). Mental Illness and the Importance of Proactive Self-Care, HealthyPlace. Retrieved
on 2024, December 22 from https://www.healthyplace.com/blogs/bipolargriot/2012/10/the-importance-of-proactive-self-care
Author: S.
I just found out that I have bi-polar 2. I sprained my back and i am in bed resting on ice or taking a great relaxing herbal bubble bath.
My 1st priority love myself and have compassion for the bast 47 years of my life. I want the rest of my years filled with value and quality. So this is my first exercise. I think the sprained back was a blessing time to slow down and make sense of my life.
I agree that self-care can be very important in maintaining recovery from mood disorders. Unfortunately, when depressed, it is hard to do any of it. I'm trying to build it back into my life.