Supporting your own mental health and wellbeing
Mental health is not merely the absence of mental illness.
- we require to have positive mental wellbeing to give us the skills to manage life’s ups and downs
- mental health is affected by virtually everything we experience in our life
Experiences which may impact on our wellbeing
- an individual experience such as bereavement or relationship breakdown
- an organisational experience such as closure of a workplace
- a national political experience such as the current economic climate
All of these levels can have either a positive or negative on our ability to cope. Some things, we as individuals have little control over.
Steps we can take to improve our wellbeing
There are a number of ways you can support your own health and wellbeing.
- ideas for steps to improve your mental health can be found at the Centre for Mental Health website
- if you are experiencing stress, Steps for Stress contains helpful tips to help you cope. It also has relaxation exercises to help reduce stress
- information about mental wellbeing is also available from NHS Scotland and NHS Choices
- we have invested in an online service called Togetherall for residents of the Scottish Borders aged 16 and over. This service provides an anonymous peer to peer forum, offers self-assessment for anxiety and depression, as well as short online courses around grief and stress management. There is a 24 hour service for online chat with wellbeing advisors to support you to maintain your mental health and wellbeing
- ALISS is an online directory of the services, groups and activities available in your local community that could help support your health and wellbeing.
Mental health in the workplace
- evidence shows that work is good for mental health and lack of employment has a negative effect on our wellbeing
- it is important that work does not have a negative impact on how we feel
- the Scottish Centre for Healthy Working Lives has information and training available to help support mental health in the workplace
- Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) provides ideas about reasonable adjustments in the workplace