Mental health and wellness is the state at which one feels, thinks, and behaves. Mental health can be viewed on a continuum, starting with an individual who is mentally well and free of any impairment in his or her daily life, while someone else might have mild concerns and distress, and another might have a severe mental illness.

Everyone has “stuff” that they keep contained in a tightly sealed plastic bag. There are some who occasionally can’t help but let the “stuff” leak, and there are those with the bag wide open.

However, in our society, we still tend to stigmatize those who let their “stuff” leak out instead of helping them, understanding them, or simply not judging them. Just as we all know someone with cancer, we all know someone with a mental health disorder.

Mental health is just as vital as physical health. In reality, the two coexist and should not be treated separately. There are many mental health disorders that exacerbate physical concerns or disorders, and vice versa.

For instance, someone who suffers from chronic migraines might also suffer from an anxiety disorder. Obesity contributes to the severity of symptoms of depression. Poor anger management is associated with high blood pressure. Behind every medical illness, it is possible to find a mental health concern as well.

It is also possible that a boost to mental health can alleviate symptoms of a medical condition. As an example, those who receive art therapy or pet therapy in hospitals are shown to have a speedier recovery than those without, as well as a decrease in severity of symptoms experienced.

A holistic approach for individuals needs to be the standard. Physicians, nurses, dentists, psychiatrists, psychologists, mental health counselors, and other mental health professionals need to collaborate to provide a complete treatment plan. A medical doctor who doles out prescriptions for irritable bowel syndrome also can refer the patient to a therapist for stress management. A dentist whose patient is suffering from extreme anxiety can have a mental health professional onsite or have one to whom to refer the patient. A psychologist can suggest that his patient see a specialist for any symptoms that can be contributing to his or her eating disorder.

As reported by the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 26 percent of the adult U.S. population has a mental health disorder, with over 22 percent of cases being considered “severe.” Mental health disorders include anxiety disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism, eating disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, and schizophrenia.

Still, only 1 in 3 individuals will seek treatment for his or her disorder. It’s as if only 1 in 3 individuals who suffered from a high fever or a broken bone sought out a doctor.

We tend to view mental health as something that is an illusion, “all in one’s head,” or that certain disorders are overdiagnosed. Has anyone ever exclaimed that “cancer is overdiagnosed”? Yet, I have heard countless times that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is being diagnosed too loosely in children and adolescents.

This month is to advocate for the awareness of mental health; however, it should be a consistent concern. Recent events have brought mental health awareness to the surface. We need to know what that means. This does not mean all catastrophic events are caused by those who are mentally ill and therefore we need better treatments. In fact, statistics show that those who are severely mentally ill are more likely to be victimized than to do harm.

It is easy to blame or stigmatize a certain group when events that cannot be understood occur and we grasp for any bit of reasoning we can. But it is neither accurate nor fair. This is the time that we educate ourselves and become properly informed, and develop compassion and understanding.

References

Brodie, S. J., Biley, F. C., & Shewring, M. (2002). An exploration of the potential risks associated with using pet therapy in healthcare settings. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 11(4), 444-456.

Demyttenaere, K., Bruffaerts, R., Posada-Villa, J., Gasquet, I., Kovess, V., Lepine, J. P., … & Chatterji, S. (2004). Prevalence, severity, and unmet need for treatment of mental disorders in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Surveys. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association ,291(21), 2581.

Monti, D. A., Peterson, C., Kunkel, E. J. S., Hauck, W. W., Pequignot, E., Rhodes, L., & Brainard, G. C. (2006). A randomized, controlled trial of mindfulness‐based art therapy (MBAT) for women with cancer. Psycho‐Oncology, 15(5), 363-373.

Over time, pent-up anger and resentment causes tiny problems to become big ones. Anger can become displaced or is expressed in a way that becomes problematic. Many people feel more upset when they realize that they overreact or explode with anger, especially if it causes hurt for themselves or someone else. Thus, it creates the terrible cycle of struggling with anger.

But there is help for anger that doesn’t require you to dig up your past, explore your thoughts, or send letters to a dead loved one. It’s called biofeedback, and it offers individuals readily-learned techniques that are safe and effective (based upon decades’ worth of research).

Unhealthy, inappropriate anger looks like this: You get home from a bad day at work, where everything seems to be going wrong. The house is a mess, and the kids are running around screaming. Your spouse is yelling to you from the kitchen to help.

You explode with a nasty remark about how you were busy working all day, and you do not have time to help. You say something hurtful in regard to your spouse not being a good parent. The kids hear you yell, and your spouse yells back or begins to cry. You then kick one of the toys on the floor and leave the house to go to a bar for a drink to unwind, leaving your family in disarray.

On the other hand, people also can internalize anger and it will manifest in different ways. Internalized anger can cause migraines, stomach problems, high blood pressure, depression, anxiety, and so on. The body expresses anger in maladaptive ways when people do not express it constructively.

Biofeedback and neurofeedback techniques offer individuals skills in how to effectively manage anger.

People can monitor their physiological responses and thus learn how to gain control over them. Neurofeedback also helps create a stronger connection between the emotional and executive areas of the brain, allowing people to gain a proper “checking” system. Anger is then expressed in a rational, appropriate, and conducive manner. Communication becomes clearer, and others are more likely to respond to your needs.

Children also can internalize anger and carry it with them, or express it with aggressive and problematic behaviors. Biofeedback, with the use of a video game program, helps build a stronger connection between the midbrain (emotional center) and forebrain (executive control center).

Here’s how it works. The child has sensors placed on certain areas of the head to read brain waves such as delta, beta, and hibeta waves. The video game will not advance if he or she is not keeping active and focused (increasing beta waves). If he or she becomes anxious or distracted (hibeta waves), or begins to feel tired or daydream (delta waves), the game will stop.

The child then learns to find the medium where he or she feels a calm focus and is in control of his or her brain functioning. A study conducted at Boston Children’s Hospital showed that the children who received biofeedback therapy had better control over their reactions to daily frustrations than they had prior to receiving the treatment.

“The connections between the brain’s executive control centers and emotional centers are weak in people with severe anger problems,” explains Joseph Gonzalez-Heydrich, chief of psychopharmacology at Boston Children’s and senior investigator of a recent biofeedback study conducted there.

Building a strong connection and balance between the midbrain and forebrain allows a child or adult to gain better control over their emotional responses and behaviors. Aggression and anger are then diffused in a healthy and appropriate manner.

Biofeedback also teaches breathing correctly as a relaxation technique. Breathing deeply through the diaphragm and focusing on each inhale and exhale will clear the mind and allow the frontal brain to keep the midbrain and emotional centers in check. It gives the mind a chance to step back from the situation and view it objectively instead of impulsively reacting off of intense emotions.

Biofeedback is a time- and research-tested technique to help people learn to better control responses that many believe are automatic or uncontrollable. If you or someone you love is having trouble with anger, consider biofeedback as one potential treatment to help with this concern.

Reference

Boston Children’s Hospital. (2012, October 24). Video game with biofeedback teaches children to curb their anger. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121024164731.htm