Life is not always beautiful, but the outcomes can be. (1) Similarly, I’ve found that postpartum depression and anxiety are not always beautiful. But the outcome can be. I think the key word there is CAN.
October 10, 2020 was World Mental Health Day. It’s been a few months since World Mental Health Day, but still important nonetheless. According to the World Health Organization, “This year’s World Mental Health Day…comes at a time when our daily lives have changed considerably as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The past months have brought many challenges….The goal of this year’s World Mental Health Day campaign is increased investment in mental health.”
So, I’ve been thinking about what I and WE can do to invest in mental health so the outcomes CAN be beautiful.
My mental health journey definitely does not always qualify as beautiful. But, it has had some beautiful outcomes that I did not expect because I invested in it.
Here are four concrete ways I’ve invested in my mental health that you might find helpful too…
INCREASE KNOWLEDGE
This will look different for everyone. For me, it was learning about the signs, symptoms, and treatment of PPD and perinatal depression. It was talking openly with my doctor about what I was feeling to figure out what the next steps would be to get feeling more like myself. It was learning about tactics and thought processes to take on PTSD and address my birth trauma.
If we don’t know what to look for, what questions to ask, or what could be done, our own mental health could suffer. Plus, the people we love who need help could easily slip by.
What could this look like for you? Increasing knowledge in what a family member may be dealing with? Talking with others who may be in similar situations as you? Listening to podcasts or reading books? Learning about the statistics and common problems among a certain demographic close to your heart?
For instance, did you know…
“About one in three medical students report symptoms of depression, and one in nine experiences suicidal ideation.”
–AMA
To add to this, the Flip Side Life shared that resident physicians have a 95 percent higher chance of screening for depression than other physicians. Plus, burnout, depression, and thoughts of suicide are some of the top factors affecting their overall health too.
On Instagram, @_theflipsidelife and @the.resident.wife shares some awesome ideas on what needs to change to help our physicians. The significant others of physicians and medical students need to be part of this conversation in the medical community.
So, how are you going to increase knowledge to invest in mental health?
ADVOCATE AND SEEK HELP
With increased knowledge, we are better prepared to advocate for ourselves and others.
But first, I wouldn’t have increased my knowledge if I had not been willing to seek help. It first started with confiding in my husband and sister. They both encouraged me to talk to my doctor. In speaking with my physician, she referred me to an amazing therapist who worked specifically with pregnant women and new moms. With their help, I felt better able to come up with a plan to improve my mental health, which has helped me be a better mom. For me, this looked like medication, therapy, and working on intentional daily improvements.
I actually took the above pictures at my first appointment with my therapist because I wanted to document that I was taking this step toward change and seeking help for myself.
By increasing knowledge and seeking help, I have felt empowered to be able to advocate for my needs in the future. In the same breath, asking for help (even when you don’t know what kind of help you need) can be one of the hardest steps when it comes to investing in our mental health. I know it is for me. Seeking and asking for help requires that you recognize, accept, and admit that you need help.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said: “If you had appendicitis, God would expect you to seek a priesthood blessing and get the best medical care available. So too with emotional disorders. Our Father in Heaven expects us to use all of the marvelous gifts He has provided in this glorious dispensation.”
“Like a Broken Vessel,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 41
What and who you get help from will look different for everyone. But as you seek help and increase in knowledge, you will be better able to advocate for your mental health needs.
This can also be a way to invest in our loved ones. Be an advocate. Be the help. Lend a listening ear to understand, not to fix them. Check in often with them. Offer to call therapists or doctors for them. Help them seek help.
Invest in mental health by advocating and seeking help.
SHARE
In March of 2020, I shared a piece of my journey with postpartum depression and anxiety, perinatal depression, and my decision to start taking Zoloft and seeing a therapist. You can read about it on my blog post, “Today Won’t Last Forever.” I’ve also been pretty open about the birth trauma I experienced with my second child on Instagram and wrote a blog post about it titled, “1 out of 1000: Cord Prolapse Birth Trauma”. Because I chose to talk about these things, I’ve found two beautiful outcomes.
Connection and compassion.
I was able to connect with many women who struggle with similar things. It was eye-opening to see women I love and admire, and women I haven’t even met before, share their experiences. We have more in common than we realize!
My experiences, while dark and somewhat traumatizing, have made me a more compassionate person. As I have shared, I find that my choice to be vulnerable has inadvertently given others permission to share. As I listen to stories and find strength in others, I also have found a greater compassion for other mamas and significant others of medical professionals.
Overall, I have found the more I share, the less power it has over me. Why? Well, the more we talk about it, the more we normalize it. The more we normalize it, the less power the stigma has in our lives. Share your story. Share others’ stories. Share the stats.
Invest in mental health by sharing.
RELY ON A HIGHER POWER
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) shared…
“Spirituality is a sense of connection to something bigger than ourselves—it helps a person look within and understand themselves while also figuring out the greater answer of how they fit in to the rest of the world. In other words: It helps people understand their interpretation of the meaning of life.
Spirituality also incorporates healthy practices for the mind and body, which positively influences mental health and emotional wellbeing.”
Luna Greenstein, NAMI
Again, this one may look different for everyone. For me, it’s relying on my Savior Jesus Christ and my Heavenly Father.
This can be easier said than done.
Perhaps because of anger and questioning why God would let you deal with mental health struggles. Maybe you just can’t see any hope or relief from the loneliness of the medical journey. Or, the challenges you are facing make you question if there is a God in the first place. For me, it was just the inability to connect.
When I was in some of my darkest times dealing with PPD, I felt numb to how I was use to feeling and hearing the Spirit. I felt distant. Void of emotion. My thoughts just felt murky, fuzzy, and slow. It felt really difficult to connect with God. Like I could no longer hear His voice or recognize His hand in my life.
However, I found by doing small and simple spiritual things, it kept me a float.
Michael Gardner, PhD shared this…
“Don’t allow feelings of inadequacy or uncertainty prevent you from doing these small spiritual things with real intent (see Moroni 10:4). If you believe, or even if you simply have the desire to believe (see Alma 32:27) that these spiritual habits can give you strength, healing, peace, and hope, they will.”
A 3-Step Guide to Maintaining Your Mental Health, By Michael Gardner, PhD
So, I continually strive to pray daily, listen to or read the scriptures/talks, and attend church. My husband and I study scriptures daily together and pray every night before bed. I also try to write out my thoughts and feelings often (this blog post is case and point). This helped me comb through the cloudiness of postpartum depression.
While many times it just felt like I was going through the motions, looking back, God was there. He was in the details. I believe it was He who helped me recognize the beautiful outcomes. He always has been and always will be. It just took a bit more effort to connect with Him.
And I’ll be completely honest. Time often passes and I’d find that it had been months since I personally cracked the scriptures open. It’s pretty hard to have a desire to connect and rely on a higher power when you don’t even feel like you can keep your eyes open.
It takes faith. Faith takes action. Recently, President Russell M. Nelson stated…
“My call to you this Easter morning is to start today to increase your faith. THROUGH YOUR FAITH, JESUS CHRIST WILL INCREASE YOUR ABILITY TO MOVE THE MOUNTAINS IN YOUR LIFE, even though your personal challenges may loom as large as Mount Everest.”
President Russell M. Nelson, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
I am often asked how I stay so positive on this medical journey. Especially when there’s so many unknown and demands…
Where we will be living in the next year? What programs should we apply to for residency? How will we get out of the mounds of debt we are accumulating? How do we balance family life with the demands of medicine? Can I do another day of what often feels like single parenting? How can I overcome these feelings of loneliness and resentment? Why is this all just so emotionally exhausting??
And to be completely honest, I definitely am NOT always positive about this medical journey. And that’s ok!
But what helps me? It comes back to Him. It always comes back to Him. Jesus Christ. My faith in Him. It is because of my past experiences and challenges that I know He does increase my capabilities to move the mountains that are before me.
I know that everything will work out in the end. Because of Him.
I know I need to continually increase my faith in Him. My faith is far from perfect, and lately I have often have felt a spiritual disconnect. But that’s ok because I can change habits and follow the invitation from President Nelson to increase my faith…
- Study the gospel.
- Choose to believe.
- Act in faith.
- Partake of sacred ordinances.
- Ask God to help me.
“You’re growing faith in Him will move mountains — not the mountains of rock that beautify the Earth — but the mountains of misery in your lives…. Your flourishing faith will help you turn challenges into unparalleled growth and opportunity.”
PRESIDENT RUSSELL M. NELSON, CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
Spirituality and religion to me are very much connected. Some are turned off by religion. However, there can be many mental health benefits to being both spiritual and part of a religion.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) shared, “Religion gives people something to believe in, provides a sense of structure and typically offers a group of people to connect with over similar beliefs. These facets can have a large positive impact on mental health—research suggests that religiosity reduces suicide rates, alcoholism and drug use.”
You can find a few more of the mental health benefits of religion on their website.
So whether you believe in Christ or another higher power, I think it’s pretty hard to argue the benefits of it for your personal mental health.
Invest in mental health by relying on a higher power.
HOW WILL YOU INVEST IN YOUR MENTAL HEALTH?
Again, life isn’t always beautiful. But the outcomes can be. How are you going to invest in mental health so the outcomes CAN be beautiful?
I’d love to hear your thoughts below in the comments!
More Topics on Mental Health
