What are some common mental health challenges, what is mental health stigma, and what can support look like?
Support in navigating mental health challenges can look like a lot of different things. Many people take care of their mental health with things like a meditation or mindfulness practice, professional therapy, and medication. These can be really helpful strategies to manage mental health. However, sometimes we can't manage our mental health on our own. People’s support systems, including friends and family, also play a crucial role in the maintenance of mental health.
Learning to communicate about your mental health is an important part of creating and maintaining healthy relationships with the people in your life and making sure that you receive the kinds of support that make you feel comforted and safe.
What care and support may look like
Take some time to consider each of these and how they make you feel. Imagine yourself talking about one or some of these needs to a trusted person in your life and reflect on which options might work for you.
- Sharing with someone about what you’re feeling and having them actively listen (without offering advice)
- Getting advice, including support in developing a concrete solution to what you’re struggling with
- Spending quality time (like taking walks or listening to music)
- Receiving support with everyday tasks, like cooking or getting a meal
- Getting encouraging text messages
- Distraction: shifting the focus away from the difficult feelings
