The relationship between positive mental health and overall health has been explored in detail by Aaron Antonovsky who studied survivors of Nazi concentration camps. He noticed that some of them were in remarkably good health and had coped relatively well with their horrific experiences. To explain this, he theorized that people with a healthy outlook on life are more able to cope successfully with trauma and stress. He defined a healthy outlook (or a sense of coherence) as the extent to which people feel that life is meaningful, manageable and comprehensible.
In fact, feelings of well-being can be protective in various ways. For example, people who are sick but have happier dispositions tend to have decreased hospital visits, calls to the doctor, medication use, and work absences. Emotional well-being also affects physical health through social relationships, behaviour, stress, accidents, suicide, coping strategies, and immune system functioning.
One study based out of Vancouver found that women above 60 who had high levels of psychological well-being—engaging in positive daily activity and healthy social relationships, for example—had reduced levels of two chemicals associated with age-related diseases like Alzheimer’s and arthritis. Conversely, poor mental health can be life-threatening. Older women who are emotionally distressed due to finances, family stress and feelings of hopelessness are far more likely to die sooner than those without such problems.
Since many people with mental illness find meaning in life and excel in many circumstances, they, too, can strive for and achieve positive mental health. One individual who has is Maurizio Baldini, a mental health advocate and former lawyer with schizophrenia. Baldini says he finds it rewarding to offer support to others. "I have a positive outlook on life and have been lucky enough to build a comfortable life for myself."
The idea that health extends beyond the physical person is not new in other parts of the world. Many cultures do not differentiate between mental illness and physical illness. For example, many cultures including Asian, African and Aboriginal groups tend to view health issues more holistically and express mental health symptoms as a sign of imbalance. These and other cultures view much greater roles for the family, the spiritual healers and Elders, and symbolic healing that involves a wider community. For example, many Aboriginal groups would look to the Medicine Wheel to help describe mental health. The wheel seeks a balance between four, interrelated quadrants: mental, physical, social and spiritual.
These ideas are gradually emerging in Western medicine as well. The mental health community considers both the individual and his or her experiences within a larger context that includes the immediate family, the workplace and the broader ecological, social and economic environments.
But even if the big picture doesn’t appeal to you, research shows that well-being is possible if you develop and maintain supportive relationships with family and friends. According to Dr. Ian Pike, a wellness consultant in BC:
Whether we smoke or exercise are important determinants of health, but whether we live longer, healthier and happier lives because we jog and eat right is questionable. We do know, however, that strong social supports, such as family and friends that we can count on, regardless of the situation, are the best predictors of longevity.
In the daily crush of stressors and worries, it seems we may be starting to get the point about balance and peace of mind even if we don’t talk about it as positive mental health. In a 2006 Canadian Mental Health Association poll, nearly 90% agree that it is as important to strive toward positive mental health as it is to strive toward physical fitness.
(published with permission in writing from:http://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/)
