The Dimensions Of Mental Health

Mental health is a complex phenomenon that consists of a range of diagnoses, treatments and outcomes. Recovery from such experiences has historically meant to completely remove all symptoms of illness, but is now currently thought of as regaining a sense of control over and development of a new meaning and purpose in one’s life, rather than feeling defined by the illness. Each individual understands it in their own personal way, likened to a journey towards self-determination, choice, and empowerment.

Mental health is defined as the state of satisfactory use of mental function, which results in productive activities, interactions, adjustment to change and coping with challenges (Healthy People 2020, 2012). It is fundamental to one's personal well-being, his interpersonal relationships, and fruitful participation in, and contribution to, society in general. Mental illness or mental disorder refers as a whole to all diagnosable disturbances of the mind. These disturbances are characterized by changes in thinking, mood, and/or behavior, which produce pain, discomfort, abnormal functioning or death. Mental illnesses are serious medical conditions, which cannot be overcome by simple will power. They are not caused by personality weakness or intelligence (Healthy People 2020; NAMI, 2012).

In the United States the Mental Health Care field is one of the most underserved areas of healthcare. The mental healthcare field faces many challenges to the proper treatment of patients from both a societal and professional standpoint. From a societal perspective a negative stereotype is associated with patients seeking psychiatric care. Patients seeking care are often labeled as defective or damaged. Add in the complication that most patients with mental illness appear to be normal, accepting that someone is ill without outward symptoms can also be difficult for a society to understand. From a professional perspective the challenges within the mental health care industry include personal prejudice, staffing issues, and problems with coordinating care. The combination of these factors has a direct negative impact on the willingness of individuals suffering from mental illness in seeking the care needed to treat the symptoms of mental illness.

Walking through life admiring everything it brings upon you, can bring upon many question about life and what you are meant to be. You can begin questioning yourself and who you are. What your future would look like and how would you get there. All these question are things that cross our minds at one point in our lives. A reason this happens is because of everything we go through and experience in life that makes us want to know and understand who we are as a person. Like Gandhi once said, “Your beliefs become your thoughts, Your thoughts become your words, Your words become your actions, Your actions become your habits, Your habits become your values, Your values become your destiny.”(Gandhi, Mahatma). This wise words said by Gandhi

Our life is constantly changing. From being a child to becoming an adult, life is full of events that will determine how we decide to see the world and those around us. Some events can lead us to growth, virtue, happiness, and success, while others can lead us to failure, sadness, and disappointment. However, each event will always have an important impact in our lives. Although, we might not always see it, almost everything we go through in life will impact the way we see ourselves, how we interact with others, and even the way we see society as a whole.

“Life includes unforeseen incidents that prove critical to promote personal growth. Life rarely gives us what we want. We are lucky if life gives us what we need in order to fulfill the path that was in place at our birthing.” ― Kilroy J. Oldster, Dead Toad Scrolls. People will go through the journey of life. The life is not a destination but a journey. As people go through, they learn, experience, and gain. The journey of the life matters because the people can earn experiences and those experience makes people better.

In the United States, there are 25% of adults who are diagnosed with a mental illness and it is predicted that 50% of the adult population will develop a mental illness within their lifetime; 8-9% of the adult population in Florida is diagnosed with depression (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011). Promotion, awareness, and the availability of mental health services are public health areas in my community that needs attention. The needs of my community are not entirely met, and there are inconsistencies when addressing mental health illness through mental health screenings and routine/follow up appointments. There are some people who are not getting the necessary medical attention, and are therefore are unproductive and unaware of where they can help and what help is actually available to them. The number of adults that report that they have good mental health has decreased since the last Orange County community health assessment of 2007-2010; over 30% of the population ranks their overall mental health as good, fair, or poor, with the severely mentally ill accounting for almost 2400 members of our homeless population (FloridaHealth.gov, 2012). 30 % of the population may seem like a small number when it compares to the other 70 percent of individuals who reported having great to excellent mental health, but I think more can be done to meet the needs of the 30%.

Firstly, the analysis will address the standard of mental health care across each category of prison individually, discussing good examples of mental health support, but also, where there are failures. With this, there is a visual map of how the data was categorised. The analysis will then thematically explore the range of recommendations from every prison category to create an overarching conclusion of standards in reference to general failures across the prison system, the impact this has on current prisoners, and could have for the future of the prison institutional structure of mental health care. The standards that are assessed throughout this analysis are from the Standards for Prison Mental Health Services document (RCPSYCH, 2016),

Spirituality is about seeking a meaningful connection with something bigger than you, which can result in positive emotions. Such emotions can be peace, awe, contentment, gratitude, and acceptance. Emotional health is about cultivating a positive state of mind. This can broaden your outlook to recognize and incorporate a connection to something larger than you. Basically, do not get stuck on negative emotions. It can be difficult to cultivate positive emotions, such as gratitude and compassion. Spirituality is a broad concept with room for many perspectives. It includes a sense of connection to something

The chapter 1 reading this week mentioned how insurance coverage impacts the treatment process of different mental illnesses. Currently, the health insurance industry holds a lot of power over the type and duration of treatment provided/covered for patients. The chapter also mentioned that there is currently a 2011 federal parity law that requires equal coverage for mental and medical health issues. While these systems do have challenges and difficulties that need to be addressed in terms of how mental health issues are treated, there is current legislation (the American Health Care Act) being sent to the US Senate that could affect these issues even more negatively. According to the American Psychological Association (2017), “Medicaid currently provides roughly a quarter of all financing for mental health services.

Mental health in Utah has and continues to be the forefront of concern for many throughout the state. The reasons it is such a hot bed issue is due the staggering statistics that come out every year showing Utah as one of the leading states for mental health issues per capita. One article in particular had a report that showed survey results done by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the NDSUH. They found that 22.4 percent of the Adult population here in Utah had a mental disorder in 2014 (CROFTS,2014 ). With the unfortunate trend of mental health issues being a problem in Utah, it comes without a doubt that other issues start to arise such as care for these individuals suffering from these problems. There are many agencies and programs as well professionals who fight everyday in hopes of curbing this epidemic but it is without saying that they too face dilemmas in their line of work. With the sheer number of problems as outlined above, Utah faces an uphill battle for the well being of its literal mental health. This calls for a larger number of professionals combating this epidemic. The questions of moral and ethical responsibilities now become a talking point. To begin I want to state that due to the complexities of the subject it would not be productive, in my opinion, to discuss why we have such a high level mental health issues in our state. The motive for exploring these concerns of patient confidentiality is because of what I believe to be the many

Researchers have also examined the role of the density of mental health providers and services within a county in influencing access to mental health services (Cook et al. 2013; Cummings 2014). Density of mental health providers is an important social structural variable in impacting the availability of opportunities to utilize mental health services. A nationally representative study found that disparities between African-Americans and Caucasians in the use of mental health services are reduced with a greater density of health maintenance organizations within a county. Health maintenance organizations are a type of managed care program that provides individuals with access to a network of healthcare professionals and hospitals (Cook et al.

So much in life depends on our attitude. The way we choose to see things, and respond to others makes all the difference. Sometimes we fail; sometimes we succeed. But whatever happens, we know we must keep learning from our decisions. Do not feel fear to fail or choose your own decisions in life. Inasmuch as, if one day I fall, I will get up, and keep trying until I reach my goal. I refused to give up until I succeed. For example, I decided to make a change for once in my life. I wanted to continue my education, so I decided to attend college. Going to college has affected my life in appositive ways, such as building my concentration, participating in classes, and working in a group.

“Spirituality is derived from the Latin word spiritus, spirit, the essential part of the person which controls the mind and the mind controls the body. Thus the spirit is the vital life force which motivate people and influence ones life, health behavior and relationships” (Baldacchino & Draper, 2001). She also stated that spirituality is the mainstream of life which unifies all aspects of the human being. Spirituality applies to both believers and non believers, including the presence of diverse cultural beliefs (Baldacchino & Draper, 2001). Culliford stated that : “In times of emotional stress, physical illness, loss, bereavement and death human beings tend to find comfort, peace, inspiration, reverence and meaning by focusing on their spirituality whether they believe in God or not” (Culliford, 2002). In a study conducted by Tuck and Thingajana the meaning of spirituality was voiced by person living with HIV disease and healthy adults. The definitions voiced by the HIV patients were that “Spirituality is relating and believing in God, who is always present. It is perceived as being guided or helped or being inspired or giving unto. Spirituality includes the process of journeying, discovering and centering and is outwardly expressed” (Tuck & Thinganjana, 2007). The definitions of Spirituality expressed by the healthy individuals were that:

What is spirituality? Everyone has it however not all understand what it is exactly. Individuals can experience and express spiritually differently. It can be confused with religion or ghosts (Lepherd, 2015). For many years, there have been many definitions and descriptions of spirituality; it is described as the search of the meaning of life, alleviation of suffering, or creating inner peace in an individual. Which explains how spirituality is made useful for meditation and practicing yoga. Each person’s spirituality is different from others because according to his article, ‘Spirituality: Everyone has it, but what is it,’ Laurence Lepherd (2015) explains, “People have [different levels] of depth or intensity of spirituality, from [person to person].”