3 Dangers of Poor Mental Health: How to Avoid

Danger 1: Identity Crisis

In order to live a life with meaning and purpose, you have to “know thyself,” as the ancients have said. They knew that the key to true freedom is embedded within the knowledge of self. “What does it mean to have an identity crisis?” you might ask.
Let’s find out. According to Google Dictionary, identity crisis is defined as “A period of uncertainty and confusion in which a person’s sense of identity becomes insecure, typically due to a change in their expected aims or role in society.”

Now that we know what it means to have an identity crisis, can you recall a point in your life when you experienced it? How did that experience make you feel? Have you now found purposeful meaning in your life?

If for whatever reason you feel as though your life has no meaning, or that you do not belong, never fear, for it is the Universe’s way of telling you that you have detoured from your path, and this is an opportunity for you take a step back, look within yourself, remember who you are, your why, and get back on the path of your purpose. The longer you take to identify the crisis, the longer your identity will be in crisis.

Danger 2: Substance Abuse

Substances such as prescription drugs, alcohol, and other drugs happen to be a top go-to when one is dealing with poor mental health, unfortunately. It provides a seemingly “sweet escape” from the current reality, which is only temporary and fleeting. When dealing with poor mental health, it is crucial to not rely on substances to “ease your troubles” but to get to the root cause and treat it from there.

The thing about substances is that they give you a carefree attitude as if nothing else exists. However, once you become sober again, the problems come right back (in some cases worse than before), and you are caught up in an unhealthy cycle, just “around the corner” from substance abuse.

Along with the unhealthiness of drugs and alcohol, etc, come the many side effects that create even more problems than you started with. Relying on substances as a solution for mental ailments can quickly turn into a serious problem, further evolving into one of the dangers of poor mental health. Be educated and mindful of your substance use, for it can easily turn into abuse.

Danger 3: Increased Suicide Risk

An estimated 700,000+ people commit suicide worldwide each year, according to the International Association of Suicide Prevention (IASP). While one can recover from identity crisis and drug abuse, one cannot recover from suicide, making it one of, if not, the most alarming dangers of poor mental health.

The poorer the state of your mental health, the more increased the risk of suicide becomes. This is a very low point to get to in life, where nothing seems to be worth living for anymore, and many people fall prey to this self-afflicted tragedy that causes a lot of hurt to their loved ones.

The mind is very powerful! It can be your greatest ally or your worst enemy, which is ultimately a result of your decision. Create and nurture a healthy state of mind because your life depends on it.

How to Avoid

To be able to avoid the dangers of poor mental health, you have to address the root cause. Using drugs acts only as a mask to the symptoms, while the real problem continues to persistently exacerbate. The cause is rooted in the mind and must, therefore, be remedied in the mind.

While stress, depression, and anxiety may come up in our lives from time to time, to maintain good mental health it is imperative to have productive daily routines and self-care rituals such as getting adequate sleep, hydration, healthy eating, meditation, journaling, and words of affirmation, etc. It is also important to foster and nurture healthy relationships with family, friends, and your partner so that you can have a support system and someone that you can talk to confidentially about what you’re experiencing.

A great practice to do, to keep in touch with your mental health is a weekly mental evaluation. Check-in with your thoughts, which lead to your words and actions. Ask yourself “What are the most dominant thoughts that I think daily?” “Are these positive or negative thoughts?” “What kind of effect do these thoughts have on me and my life?”

Doing regular check-ins with the state of your mind and actively practicing daily self-care routines and rituals will help you avoid the dangers of poor mental health.

Conclusion

You have a lot more control over the state of your mental health than you might think. However, it is going to require your attention and active daily work. We don’t just arrive at a state of poor mental health; it is the result of several factors, gradually manifesting over time.

The longer mental ailments are left unacknowledged and unattended, the poorer your state of mind will become. There are many resources available to utilize in taking care of your mental health.

Are you, or someone you know, dealing/struggling with poor mental health and would like to start working towards overcoming it, and live a better quality of life? Never fear! I created a FREE guide – How To Meditate In 6 EASY Steps To Improve Your Mental Health – just for you!

Take great care of your mental health because your life depends on it.

Blessings to you.

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