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See Again
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Physical health
- When it comes to taking care of our physical health, everyone has an understanding of the basics. We learn lessons about personal hygiene and first aid from a very young age.
© Shutterstock
1 / 27 Fotos
Physical health
- We all know, for example, that in order to prevent tooth decay we should brush our teeth once a day, and in order to heal a broken limb we should put it in a plaster cast.
© Shutterstock
2 / 27 Fotos
Physical health
- Most of us don’t think twice about going to see a doctor or a dentist if we have a persistent or serious problem that requires medical attention.
© Shutterstock
3 / 27 Fotos
Emotional health
- And yet when it comes to emotional health, the picture is very different. All too often people don’t treat their emotional health with the same respect as their physical health.
© Shutterstock
4 / 27 Fotos
Emotional health
- People are reluctant to seek professional help because of the lingering stigma, and the vast majority of us simply aren’t equipped to deal with emotional pain ourselves.
© Shutterstock
5 / 27 Fotos
Emotional health
- If left untreated, the psychological pain caused by experiences such as guilt, loneliness, and failure can have devastating effects on quality and even length of life.
© Shutterstock
6 / 27 Fotos
Acknowledge emotional pain
- The first step to take is to pay attention to and acknowledge emotional pain. It's important to fight the instinct to run from psychological health issues such as failure and loneliness.
© Shutterstock
7 / 27 Fotos
Acknowledge emotional pain
- Although it may seem easier not to acknowledge those difficult feelings, in fact that will only allow them to build until they become completely all-consuming.
© Shutterstock
8 / 27 Fotos
Acknowledge emotional pain
- As soon as you notice persistent feelings of distress, loneliness, or even just a bad mood, be sure to acknowledge that pain and take action to address it.
© Shutterstock
9 / 27 Fotos
Redirect your thought process
- This one is particularly important in the context of failure. Unfortunately it is our "gut" instinct when we fail at something to focus on and even obsess about our shortcomings.
© Shutterstock
10 / 27 Fotos
Redirect your thought process
- Naturally this causes us to fail more and then dwell more on our shortcomings–it's a whole vicious circle that needs to be broken if we are to achieve good emotional health.
© Shutterstock
11 / 27 Fotos
Redirect your thought process
- Next time you fail at something, try to fight the instinct to dwell on it and instead make a list of everything you can do to make sure you do better next time.
© Shutterstock
12 / 27 Fotos
Protect your self-esteem
- If you want to be emotionally resilient, having a good level of self-esteem is important. And yet most of us spend a lot of time tearing ourselves down and eroding our own self-esteem.
© Shutterstock
13 / 27 Fotos
Protect your self-esteem
- A good way to build that self-esteem back up is to practice self-compassion. Next time you're feeling bad about yourself, imagine a friend of yours is in the same position.
© Shutterstock
14 / 27 Fotos
Protect your self-esteem
- Write a letter to that friend showing compassion and support, and then read that letter to yourself. Treat yourself with the same kindness you would treat others.
© Shutterstock
15 / 27 Fotos
Disrupt negative thought patterns
- It is all too easy to replay distressing events and to let negative thoughts spiral, but doing so will only cause deeper and longer-lasting psychological pain.
© Shutterstock
16 / 27 Fotos
Disrupt negative thought patterns
- If you feel yourself ruminating, i.e. dwelling on negative thoughts, try to distract yourself with something, ideally an activity that requires concentration, like a puzzle.
© Shutterstock
17 / 27 Fotos
Disrupt negative thought patterns
- Studies show that distracting yourself for just two minutes will reduce your inclination to obsess unhealthily on negative and distressing thoughts.
© Shutterstock
18 / 27 Fotos
Find meaning in loss
- Loss is a part of life that is unfortunately very traumatic. If it is not handled properly, it can keep us from moving forward and finding enjoyment in life.
© Shutterstock
19 / 27 Fotos
Find meaning in loss
- Mourning is, of course, important, but if after sufficient time has passed you still cannot see a way forward, you should try to change the way you think about your loss.
© Shutterstock
20 / 27 Fotos
Find meaning in loss
- Winch suggests trying to find meaning in the loss and even derive a purpose from it, such as "I've lost my spouse, but I've become closer to my kids."
© Shutterstock
21 / 27 Fotos
Don't let guilt linger
- Although a little bit of guilt can be good when it comes to repairing and maintaining relationships, excessive guilt can be very damaging and energy-consuming.
© Shutterstock
22 / 27 Fotos
Don't let guilt linger
- The best way to rid yourself of excessive feelings of guilt is to apologize. And it shouldn't be just any old apology, but rather one with an "empathy statement."
© Shutterstock
23 / 27 Fotos
Don't let guilt linger
- An apology is most effective when the person delivering it really puts the feelings of the other person first, rather than focusing on the motivations for their actions or making excuses.
© Shutterstock
24 / 27 Fotos
Find what works for you
- Learn to understand how you react personally to different emotional wounds and use this to help you choose an emotional first aid treatment (a little bit like choosing pain relief according to the type of physical pain).
© Shutterstock
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Find what works for you
- Most importantly, be sure to check in with your psychological health on a regular basis. Learn to elevate its importance to the same level as your physical health. Sources: (TED) See also: Celebs open up about mental health
© Shutterstock
26 / 27 Fotos
© Shutterstock
0 / 27 Fotos
Physical health
- When it comes to taking care of our physical health, everyone has an understanding of the basics. We learn lessons about personal hygiene and first aid from a very young age.
© Shutterstock
1 / 27 Fotos
Physical health
- We all know, for example, that in order to prevent tooth decay we should brush our teeth once a day, and in order to heal a broken limb we should put it in a plaster cast.
© Shutterstock
2 / 27 Fotos
Physical health
- Most of us don’t think twice about going to see a doctor or a dentist if we have a persistent or serious problem that requires medical attention.
© Shutterstock
3 / 27 Fotos
Emotional health
- And yet when it comes to emotional health, the picture is very different. All too often people don’t treat their emotional health with the same respect as their physical health.
© Shutterstock
4 / 27 Fotos
Emotional health
- People are reluctant to seek professional help because of the lingering stigma, and the vast majority of us simply aren’t equipped to deal with emotional pain ourselves.
© Shutterstock
5 / 27 Fotos
Emotional health
- If left untreated, the psychological pain caused by experiences such as guilt, loneliness, and failure can have devastating effects on quality and even length of life.
© Shutterstock
6 / 27 Fotos
Acknowledge emotional pain
- The first step to take is to pay attention to and acknowledge emotional pain. It's important to fight the instinct to run from psychological health issues such as failure and loneliness.
© Shutterstock
7 / 27 Fotos
Acknowledge emotional pain
- Although it may seem easier not to acknowledge those difficult feelings, in fact that will only allow them to build until they become completely all-consuming.
© Shutterstock
8 / 27 Fotos
Acknowledge emotional pain
- As soon as you notice persistent feelings of distress, loneliness, or even just a bad mood, be sure to acknowledge that pain and take action to address it.
© Shutterstock
9 / 27 Fotos
Redirect your thought process
- This one is particularly important in the context of failure. Unfortunately it is our "gut" instinct when we fail at something to focus on and even obsess about our shortcomings.
© Shutterstock
10 / 27 Fotos
Redirect your thought process
- Naturally this causes us to fail more and then dwell more on our shortcomings–it's a whole vicious circle that needs to be broken if we are to achieve good emotional health.
© Shutterstock
11 / 27 Fotos
Redirect your thought process
- Next time you fail at something, try to fight the instinct to dwell on it and instead make a list of everything you can do to make sure you do better next time.
© Shutterstock
12 / 27 Fotos
Protect your self-esteem
- If you want to be emotionally resilient, having a good level of self-esteem is important. And yet most of us spend a lot of time tearing ourselves down and eroding our own self-esteem.
© Shutterstock
13 / 27 Fotos
Protect your self-esteem
- A good way to build that self-esteem back up is to practice self-compassion. Next time you're feeling bad about yourself, imagine a friend of yours is in the same position.
© Shutterstock
14 / 27 Fotos
Protect your self-esteem
- Write a letter to that friend showing compassion and support, and then read that letter to yourself. Treat yourself with the same kindness you would treat others.
© Shutterstock
15 / 27 Fotos
Disrupt negative thought patterns
- It is all too easy to replay distressing events and to let negative thoughts spiral, but doing so will only cause deeper and longer-lasting psychological pain.
© Shutterstock
16 / 27 Fotos
Disrupt negative thought patterns
- If you feel yourself ruminating, i.e. dwelling on negative thoughts, try to distract yourself with something, ideally an activity that requires concentration, like a puzzle.
© Shutterstock
17 / 27 Fotos
Disrupt negative thought patterns
- Studies show that distracting yourself for just two minutes will reduce your inclination to obsess unhealthily on negative and distressing thoughts.
© Shutterstock
18 / 27 Fotos
Find meaning in loss
- Loss is a part of life that is unfortunately very traumatic. If it is not handled properly, it can keep us from moving forward and finding enjoyment in life.
© Shutterstock
19 / 27 Fotos
Find meaning in loss
- Mourning is, of course, important, but if after sufficient time has passed you still cannot see a way forward, you should try to change the way you think about your loss.
© Shutterstock
20 / 27 Fotos
Find meaning in loss
- Winch suggests trying to find meaning in the loss and even derive a purpose from it, such as "I've lost my spouse, but I've become closer to my kids."
© Shutterstock
21 / 27 Fotos
Don't let guilt linger
- Although a little bit of guilt can be good when it comes to repairing and maintaining relationships, excessive guilt can be very damaging and energy-consuming.
© Shutterstock
22 / 27 Fotos
Don't let guilt linger
- The best way to rid yourself of excessive feelings of guilt is to apologize. And it shouldn't be just any old apology, but rather one with an "empathy statement."
© Shutterstock
23 / 27 Fotos
Don't let guilt linger
- An apology is most effective when the person delivering it really puts the feelings of the other person first, rather than focusing on the motivations for their actions or making excuses.
© Shutterstock
24 / 27 Fotos
Find what works for you
- Learn to understand how you react personally to different emotional wounds and use this to help you choose an emotional first aid treatment (a little bit like choosing pain relief according to the type of physical pain).
© Shutterstock
25 / 27 Fotos
Find what works for you
- Most importantly, be sure to check in with your psychological health on a regular basis. Learn to elevate its importance to the same level as your physical health. Sources: (TED) See also: Celebs open up about mental health
© Shutterstock
26 / 27 Fotos
What is emotional first aid, and how can we practice it?
Top tips for improving your emotional hygiene
© Shutterstock
In 2014, psychologist Guy Winch gave a TED Talk about emotional health and how the majority of us fail to give it the attention it needs and deserves. He spoke about "emotional first aid"–the practice of taking the same level of care of our emotional health as our physical health.
The conversation around mental health has opened and people are increasingly aware of the importance of taking care of their emotional needs. But there is still a long way to go.
Check out this gallery to learn about emotional first aid and how we can practice it.
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