Mental Health Awareness: The Importance Of Preventative Mental Health And Wellness (NAPSA)—More Americans need mental health care than many people realize. According to the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 43.4 million adults dealt with a mentalillness over the past year, while a University of Phoenix College of Social Sciences survey found that as many as two-thirds of US. adults have personally dealt with mental health issues. The Good News Fortunately, counselors can help people struggling to deal with stress manage life changes or grapple with more serious mental health concerns. Seeking treatment for mental health should be viewed positively, like going to the doctor for physical illnesses. In fact, there’s a link between mental and physical health as long-term stress may contribute to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and other conditions. Doctor’s Advice “It is important for people to recog- nize and understandtheeffects ofstress, anxiety or depression that could develop into greater problems or other mental health issues,’ said Dr. David Engstrom, counseling faculty member at University of Phoenix College of Social Sciences. “Overall wellness and preventing major mental health crisis or illness is key to overall health.” Not Enough Seeking Help and Not Enough Providers Manypeople struggling with mental health hesitate to seek help, however. ‘The University of Phoenix survey also found that for three out of 10 respondents, social stigma wasa barrierto getting proper care and counseling. Other common challenges were uncertainty regardingthe effectiveness of counseling and reluctanceto face problems. What’s more, even those whodo seek help may have trouble finding it. The latest Health Professional Shortage Area statistics show that the U.S. currently has enough practitioners to meet only 44 percentof its mental health needs. To help address that gap, University of Phoenix College of Social Sciences is committed to training professional counselors, through programs such as its Master of Science in Counseling with a specialization in Clinical Men- tal Health Counseling. The school also operates eight counseling centers in six states (California, Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Colorado) that offer free services to the public. Holistic Approach to Prevention Behavioral health care includes preventative care, which means de- veloping healthy habits that can keep problemsfrom arising in thefirst place. While manyindividuals focus on their Many Americans might enjoy a better life with help from well-trained mentalhealth counselors. physical preventative health, by exercising or eating right, this approach is equally beneficial for developing mental wellness. Dr. Engstrom offers the following tips on preventative mental health practices: 1. Build Optimism. Many studies have found a correlation between optimism and better physical and mental well-being. To think positively, it helps to be aware of how you handle or expe- rience a particular event: e Permanence: Optimistic people are willing and able to bounce back quickly from failure; they can move on from a negative event. Try to point to spe- cific temporary causes for negative events instead of permanent. Pervasiveness: Acknowledge failure whenit happens andtry to correctit and learn from mistakes. Pessimistic people assumeif they fail once, they're doomed to fail in life. Try to allow goodevents to brighten negative ones. Personalization: Optimists tend to share the blame on bad events with themselves and with outside causes, whereas pessimists may blame only themselves. Work to be more confident, and quickly internalize positive events. 2. Cultivate Gratitude. Research showsthat “being grateful” or building gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness and mental health. Writing a thank-you note, keeping a gratitude journal or even just mentally thanking and appreciating someonecan help improve men- tal health. 3. Don’t Forget To Mind Your Body. Mental and physical health are connected. Exercising regularly, getting enough sleep and taking timeto relax aren't just goodfor physical health, these activities are also good for mental health. Learn More For further information about these counselor training programs, including on-time completion rates, the median debt incurred by students who complet- ed the program and more, visit www. phoenix.edu/programs/gainful-em ployment.
