Mental Health Awareness Month 2021

As a society, we've made several significant strides towards the improvement of mental health awareness. While we aren't quite there yet, the stigma behind mental health issues isn't as strong as it used to be. Mental Health Awareness Month is an initiative that exists to ensure we all remain comfortable and informed about our mental health struggles. This year, the selected theme is "Tools 2 Thrive", and VOS Health is here to participate right along with you.

At this point, we're almost halfway through the year. Now might be a good time to pause and reflect on your mental health journey. If you haven't yet had the chance to attend to your needs in that regard, then that's okay. It's never too late to begin.

In this VOS Health blog post, we will be exploring various ways by which we can realign ourselves on our mental health journey. These will include simple habits and attitudes which we can all easily adopt. Though this article features a plethora of advice, there's no need to be overwhelmed or intimidated. Picking up at least one of these habits will ensure we're well on our way to taking better care of ourselves.

At VOS Health, your wellbeing is our priority. Making sure you're well equipped to help yourself is what we're here for.

Journaling

Journaling is one of the easiest mental health-friendly habits to adopt. Whether we take it up electronically or traditionally, there's no denying that writing down our thoughts and feelings can feel incredibly cathartic. Journaling is basically like talking to a friend. A friend who's always ready to listen. A friend who eases us of our burdens.

You can begin by writing about anything at all. Maybe, tell your journal about your day. Maybe, tell your journal about one specific interaction. It doesn't matter if you think you aren't any good at writing. There's no one to judge, so let the words flow.

Write about anything and everything. Catharsis will follow.

One of the significant advantages of journaling is that it can help us understand ourselves better. By keeping track of our day-to-day experiences, we can segue into another important mental health habit. Self-awareness is one of the best attitudes we can adopt to improve our mental health. While it's not exactly a necessity for wellbeing, being more aware of our triggers and reactions can significantly enhance our quality of life.

For instance, by tracking how certain specific environments and experiences can make us feel, we can better decide whether to avoid them or increase our exposure to them. Sometimes, without our knowledge, the littlest stimuli could have huge effects on our moods.

It could be a little difficult for some of us to attempt to track our mood while contending with the stress of everyday life. Thankfully, Vos Health recently launched a free self-reflection app, VOS, which could help us in this regard. This easy-to-use program can help us track our moods and provide daily affirmations, breathing exercises, and health analytics. If these features seem like they may be of use to you, make sure to check it out at https://www.vos.health.

Mental Health Awareness

Mental Health Awareness isn't a solitary exercise. Sometimes, if we can manage it, it's worth checking up on our friends and relatives. The power of a listening ear or a shoulder to lean on cannot be overstated. This nature of activity helps us open up a dialogue about mental health and decrease stigma.

Does starting such a conversation with a friend seem like too much of a challenge? If so, then maybe you can share the VOS app with them. Using the app will ease them into feeling better about their mental health struggles. After that, opening up might not be that much of a hurdle. 
From there, you can get together and do something about mental health in your neighborhood. Everything is easier once we are out and about and communal about it. Perhaps join a mental health fundraiser. Or help others book their first therapy appointments. The impact of these activities would amaze you.

If friends and relatives still feel uneasy, feel free to direct them towards resources they can learn from. The VOS Health blog is a good way to start, but there’s a plethora of information on social media such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Make good use of the #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth hashtag. So many well-meaning people share advice and information every day.

Since VOS Health is always looking for ways to improve our service, we recently interviewed Gene Lee, a mental health counselor from Prague. Using what we learned from her, we look to improve our services.