Why Define Mental Health?
Good health is relative. So can mental health be relative. It is relative to what you have experienced in your life. You may think that you are healthy because you feel good as you’ve every felt. Just like you thought that trees were a glob of green before you got glasses. What a shock when you first put on glasses and saw individual leaves.
I’m not suggesting that you are mentally sick….not at all. However, if there is something better, don’t you want to experience it? I, personnally want to be as healthy as possible, physically and mentally. With that said, let’s define mental health then you will know what it is NOT, as well as what it is.
The definition of Princeton University for “mental health” is “the psychological state of someone who is functioning at a satisfactory level of emotional and behavioral adjustment.” The Connecticut Department of Public Health says that mental health is “the capacity of an individual to form harmonious relations with his or her social and physical environment, and to achieve a balanced satisfaction of his or her own drives.”
“Mental health is how people look at themselves, their lives, and the other people in their lives; evaluate their challenges and problems; and explore choices. This includes handling stress, relating to other people, and making decisions.” This is how Dorene Philpot, Attorney at Law, defines mental health. Wikipedia says, “Mental health, mental hygiene and mental wellness are all terms used to describe the absence of mental illness. By this definition, mental status has two possibilities: either health or illness.”
Wow, that’s black and white enough! Are you beginning to doubt the extent of your mental health? Well, everyone has the right to be living in a state of exuberant health. If your mental health state is not the best, smile, because it can be the best.
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