RamCare
TRAIN YOUR BRAIN - Mental Health Stigma Workshop
Please complete this survey at the end of the session:
You have the power to change your thoughts. This can not only change how your brain works, but reduce the stigma around mental health as well. It is your life... take control of it.
The World Health Organization has defined mental health as “a state of well-being in which every individual realizes [their] own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to [their] community”1. It is important to understand that “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”1, which means that mental health is a spectrum and not black and white. There are no clear lines between healthy, reacting, injured, and ill in the mental health continuum model because it is possible to identify with the descriptors in more than one group and it is very possible for someone identifying mostly with the ill side of the spectrum to take actions that bring them to the healthy side of the spectrum through self-care.
There is a strong favoritism we show our bodies over our minds, even though we sustain psychological injuries more often than we do physical ones from failure, rejection, and loneliness3. We know we have to brush our teeth, and when we are wounded, we must care for that wound so it does not become infected, but yet when we are hurt emotionally, instead of caring for our damaged self-esteem, we pick at the wound by calling ourselves names and dwelling on all our self-perceived flaws3. Even if you are towards the healthy end of the spectrum, you may move towards the ill end of the spectrum and get stuck there if you do not have the tools and knowledge to self-care. The workshops to come will teach you how to take care of your mind with the same diligence in which we care for our bodies.
How to Practice Emotional First Aid
Mental illness is defined as collectively all diagnosable mental disorders or health conditions that are characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behavior that cause distress or impact how you function4. Three factors that could could contribute to mental illness are biological factors like your genes and brain chemistry, life experiences like trauma or abuse, and a family history of mental health problems5. Even though some mental disorders are very debilitating, it is imperative to know that “People with mental health problems can get better and many recover completely”5.
Merriam Webster defines stigma is a set of negative and often unfair beliefs that a society or group of people have about something. Stigma is one of the foremost obstacles to improved mental health care today, and can also prevent those with a mental disorder from seeking help6. The stigma has been narrowed down to six different groups; public stigma, structural stigma, self stigma, felt or perceived stigma, experienced stigma, and label avoidance7:
"The stigmatized individual is assigned an attribute that makes him/her different and usually less desirable than others. The person is thus downgraded from being a full individual to a discredited person. As a result, the stigmatized person is isolated and marginalized. Stigma against persons with mental illness remains the strongest negative connotation of all social relations".7
There are ways in which we can end the stigma though6. Talking about your own experience with mental health can be very powerful and reach people who are going through similar experiences as well as the general public8. Some ways to advocate this concept of becoming more comfortable speaking about mental health and illness would be firstly reaching out to your loved ones and initiating an honest, vulnerable conversation about how they are feeling and communicating that you genuinely care about the emotions they are dealing with and are not simply expecting the answer: “I’m fine”. This involves not only supporting them when they are down but also celebrating their successes. Secondly, taking a leadership role in initiatives like RamCare by participating wholeheartedly in the workshops to come will make others feel comfortable to also participate and more people will benefit.
Neuroplasticity, or brain plasticity, is your brain’s neural synapses and pathways being altered as an effect of environmental, behavioural and neural changes; “rapid change of the brain’s neural networks can take place in an abundance of different forms and under many different circumstances. Developmental plasticity occurs when neurons in the young brain rapidly sprout branches and form synapses”9. As the brain begins to process sensory information, some synapses become stronger while other weaken. Some are completely eliminated (also known as synaptic pruning), which results in efficient networks of neural connections9. Neuroplasticity occurs with constant training.
Think of it as a line in sand at the beach. If you lightly draw a line in the sand and the water washes over it, it will disappear. However, if you keep drawing that line in the same spot, it will get deep and it will be more difficult for it to wash away. If you keep working at something, eventually the action will become a habit that occurs naturally and with ease.
We can apply this concept to de-stigmatizing talking about mental health by seeing it in a positive new light to create a new pathway in our brain and can harness the power of neuroplasticity for therapeutic purposes9.
References:
1. WHO. (2016). Mental health: a state of well-being. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/mental_health/en/
2. Mount Royal University. (2016). Mental Health Continuum Model [Digital image]. Retrieved from https://www.mtroyal.ca/CampusServices/WellnessServices/MentalHealth/ Education Training/TheWorkingMindTWM/index.htm
3. Winch, G. (2015, February 16). How to Practice Emotional First Aid | Guy Winch | TED Talks [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2hc2FLOdhI
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2013, October 4). Mental Health Basics. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/basics.htm
5. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (n.d.). What Is Mental Health?. Retrieved from http://www.mentalhealth.gov/basics/what-is-mental-health/
6. Baun, K. (2009). The role of the media in forming attitudes towards mental illness.
Retrieved from http://ontario.cmha.ca/files/2012/07/moods_media_200812.pdf
7. Pingani, L., Catellani, S., Del Vecchio, V., Sampogna, G., Ellefson, S. E., Rigatelli, M., ...Corrigan, P. W. (2016). Stigma in the context of schools: analysis of the phenomenon of stigma in a population of university students. BMC Psychiatry, 16(29). Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA443251841&v=2.1&u=ko_k12hs_d3&it=r&p=GPS&sw=w&asid=3fe93f19818d4dfb9a7383aedbc601d3
8. Ha, T. (2013, December 18). How should we talk about mental health?. Retrieved from http://ideas.ted.com/how-should-we-talk-about-mental-health/
9. Rugnetta, M. (2016). Neuroplasticity. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/science/neuroplasticity
10. Sentis. (2012, November 6) Neuroplasticity [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELpfYCZa87g
