Maisha

MENTAL HEALTH IS UNDERRATED

” There is a crack in everything that’s how the light gets in” – Leonard Cohen

Health does not only mean a person has to be physically fit. Mental fitness is also a form of good health. But it is so invincible that you might be wondering why. Well, this is due to the stigma attached to it. When someone is mentally ill, they think the person has to be mad or something, right? I used to think that too, as well. And I know a lot of us are guilty too.

According to the World Health Organization, about one billion people have mental health disorders and 75% don’t get treatment due to the horrendous label attached to them. And about 50 million Nigerians have mental health issues. I.e., 1 in 4 Nigerians has a mental health disorder.

“Mental health” is a state of well-being in which an individual realizes their abilities and can cope with the normal stress of life.

A mental health disorder is not just one type of illness; it is a general term that is used to classify any disorder affecting mental stability. For example, anxiety is a type of mental disorder just like how malaria is a type of disease spread by mosquitoes.

Did you know that only seven psychiatric hospitals are available in Nigeria? This means that there are very few psychiatric specialists available. Wow! This is low compared to the number of hospitals for physical health. We put all the blame on the government. They have their faults, I agree, but we, the citizens, also share part of the problem. Let me explain. Most households in Nigeria will have parents who don’t value your mental health. Parents will say things like, “How can you have a mental health issue?” What are you thinking about? You don’t have a family yet. But they all seem to forget that we are also humans with our own emotions.

Mental health is invincible, but with awareness, our parents can have the right mindset.

LIFE OF A PHARMACY STUDENT( PART ONE)

This writing today is not about only about my mental health but also my school life as well. I am sorry to my beloved readers for not writitng any blog for a long time.

University sometimes can take the fun part away from you. Especially pharmacy school. Yes, i said it. These past few month have really being hectic. There has being tons of test, exams to finish because the univeristy lecturers went on strike for eight months.

The point of writing this blog is to tell you readers how it has being. Don’t worry I won’t bore you with excessive stories.

Resuming back to school on October was a very exciting moment for me. But, getting to school I started asking myself what was I so excited about. The lecturers kept coming back to back without even holding back. I can’t blame them too, because the school wanted to shrink the calander so that they don’t have any backlog ( I think that is what it is called).

Tests went on for weeks, like we were having two tests per day. You might be wondering if we did not complain, well, we did but the college insisted on the short academic calender.

After those tests we got to rest for one day then we started preparing for exam. I saw my classmates cry, becuase they were overwhelmed by the workload. I thought to myself why were they crying? it is just book right? we are going to read it we do not have a choice.

Well, I got my mental breakdown too, I began to see why they were crying. I was so anxious that i startd to hear my own heart beat, my hands were trembling. All the things in my mind was i dont want to fail, i dont want to have any carryover. But one thing that made mine distinct was that i did not cry in front of my friends I cried in the bathroom or while praying. So basically nobody knew what was wrong with me.

Now, exams are done, the only anxiety that remain is the fear of veiwing results. Every student dread looking at their results. The results are yet to be out but the fear still remains.

Now that I am on a short break from school work, everything seems boring. It feels like i dont have a life a apart from school life. This is sad. Pharmacy school really comsumes you without knowing.

My question today is dear readers, Does it all matter on the at the end?

Till i come your way again.

Yours Truly,

Your favourite mental health advocate

MAISHA

TYPES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS(PART THREE)

❎ SOCIAL ANXIETY DISORDERS (SAD)

It is also called social phobia. It is a type of mental health condition that causes fear or anxiety when in a social situation.

When a person has a social anxiety disorder, they have a hard time mixing freely with people.

They find it hard to talk with people they don’t know, and they also avoid going to any public gatherings.

There is a difference between being shy and having social anxiety disorders.

When you are shy, it is a temporary feeling that will go away after the event you are scared of is done.

The feeling is like a butterfly in your belly. But SAD affects everyday activity.

It is normal to be anxious during social situations, like when you have a presentation at school or work.

But this feeling should go away after you start the presentation or when you finish. It shouldn’t hinder your activity afterwards.

Social anxiety disorder is known to start in the teenage years.

For some people, as they grow older, their social anxiety gets better, but for some, they need medications and other therapy to get better.

Before you can claim to have SAD, you must understand the distinction between it and shyness.

Symptoms of Social Anxiety Disorders

A. Physical Symptoms:These are the symptoms that are visible to the eyes, and they include:

• Blushing

• Trembling

• Sweating

• Pounding heartbeat

• Nausea

• Upset stomach

• Shortness of breath

• Muscle tension

B. Behavioral Symptoms: These include:

• You have a fear that you are going to embarrass yourself.

• Having an intense fear of interacting with strangers.

• Avoid situations where you might be judged negatively.

• Avoid speaking with people.

• Avoid situations that might make you the centre of attention.

The causes of social anxiety disorders have been known to be a combination of both environmental and biological factors. These include;

• Brain Structure: A structure in the brain is linked to the causes of SAD and it is called the Amygdala. This helps us control our fear.

When this part of the brain is highly active, it causes an increase in the sense of fear, which can lead to an increase in anxiety.

• Family history of SAD

• Environmental factors, e.g., an embarrassing situation.

Take a step today to improve your mental health.

Paulo Coelho once said ”Although anxiety is a normal part of life, you should never allow it to control you”

Be positive.

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TYPES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS(PART TWO)

❎ PANIC DISORDERS

Panic disorders occur when you experience frequent, unexpected panic attacks.

Panic attacks are defined as sudden feelings of intense fear that trigger a severe physical reaction when there is no sign of danger.

Some people have panic attacks when they undergo a stressful event. This is normal as long as it does not happen often and there is also a known cause for the panic.

But it becomes a disorder when it happens recurrently.

Some major symptoms of panic attacks are:

• Rapid heart pounding

• Nausea

• Abdominal cramping

• Chest pain

• Sweating

• Trembling

• Shortness of breath

• Dry mouth

The exact cause of panic disorder, like other mental health conditions, is unknown.

But some reasons have been linked to the causes of panic disorders. They include;

• Chemical imbalance in the brain.

• Having a family member with panic disorder.

• Traumatic life experiences.

Panic disorder is common in children, especially teenagers.

And according to research, it is known to be severe in children because it can slow down their learning process and also their development.

❎ POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDERS
(PTSD)

It is also known as “shell shock.” It is a mental health condition that occurs when someone has experienced a traumatic event.

Such events could be sexual violence, domestic violence, or the loss of loved ones, etc.

A person with PTSD remembers such traumatic experiences as flashbacks or nightmares.

Some major symptoms can help diagnose PTSD. These symptoms include

• Avoidance: PTSD patients try to avoid any situation that can trigger the memory of the traumatic event.

Such people are plagued by negative thoughts and find it difficult to recall the entire traumatic event.

• Intrusive thoughts: they keep having flashbacks that look like the event is happening all over again.

• Change in arousal: such a person gets easily startled and scared. The person finds it hard to concentrate and sleep.

Seek help when you need it.

You are not alone.

Some people are ready to listen.

I am ready to listen.

I hope you find this content helpful.

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Yours truly,

Your favourite mental health advocate.

#mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealth #panicattacks #trauma #Triplec6

TYPES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS(PART ONE)

There are mainly six types of anxiety disorders. They include;

A. Generalised Anxiety Disorders(GAD)

B. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders
(OCD)

C. Panic Disorders

D. Post-traumatic Stress Disorders
(PTSD)

E. Phobias

F. Medicated-induced anxiety disorders

❎ GENERALISED ANXIETY DISORDERS

It is abbreviated to GAD. A person is said to have GAD when they frequently worry excessively over different things.

Such a person excessively worries about wealth, health, work, and family.

To diagnose someone with GAD means the person has difficulty controlling worry almost every day, which means it has to last for over six months.

Such a person should be known to have three or more symptoms of anxiety.

Note that GAD has no known causes. But some factors play a huge role. Factors like biological factors, family background, and life experience.

❎ OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDERS

It is abbreviated to OCD. It is a mental condition that causes an urge to do things repeatedly in an unhealthy manner. This term is “compulsion.”

OCD can also be defined as a mental illness that causes repeated unwanted thoughts or sensations. This term is called “obsession.”

There is a difference between obsession and compulsion, but there are some people with OCD that have both.

Obsessions are major thoughts and examples of such thoughts are:

• Frequently observing your breathing,

• Frequently noticing how your heart beats

Compulsion is about doing something repeatedly in an unhealthy manner.

Some examples of these compulsive habits are:

• Needing to count and check things over and over again,

• Needing to arrange things in a certain manner repeatedly

• Fear of touching things that are dirty

• Cleaning aggressively over and over again.

People with OCD do not do these things because they enjoy them; they do these things because they can’t stop.

If they choose to stop, they feel sad or can be anxious.

As a human, it is okay to do things repeatedly. It becomes an obsession or compulsion when it is done in an unhealthy manner.

Take your mental health seriously.

Join me tomorrow to learn more about the types of anxiety disorders.

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Yours truly,

Your favourite mental health advocate.

#mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #anxietyawareness #TripleC6

CAUSES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS

CAUSES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS

There are lots of causes of anxiety disorders. The main point is that People with anxiety disorders have something that has occurred in their lives that has caused them to have such conditions.

❎ Environmental factors:

These problems are mostly things that occur around people. The way people are brought up impacts their mental health.

Examples of such factors are family problems, work problems, relationship issues, and difficulty at school.

❎ Genetics:

There are researches that has shown that when a person who has an anxiety disorder is in a family, there is a chance that someone in their family might experience one.

❎ Medical Factors:

There are times when diseases or other health conditions can cause anxiety.

Anxiety comes as a symptom of a disease or as a side effect of drugs being taken for medication.

Some health conditions that can trigger anxiety are: brain tumours, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, myasthenia gravis, Lyme disease, etc.

Asthma medications, thyroid medications, seizure medications, Parkinson’s medications, and other medications can all cause anxiety.

When you are taking medications, you should make sure that you are taking note of changes in your body.

❎ Brain Chemistry:

Psychologists define many anxiety disorders as the presence of defective hormones and electrical signals in the brain.

There are neurotransmitters in our brains that affect our bodies and mental functions.

Research has shown that when these neurotransmitters undergo misalignment, it affects mood and is also linked to anxiety disorders.

Examples of these neurotransmitters are serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)

❎ Withdrawal from an illegal substance

Examples of such substances are alcohol, cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana, etc.

Taking the drugs at the beginning seems good, and people who take them believe that they can stop.

They can’t live without it after taking it for so long.

And if these substances are stopped, the person begins to experience withdrawal symptoms in which various types of anxiety disorders are part of the symptoms they will experience.

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Happy World Mental Health Day.

Take a step to improve your mental health.

Yours truly,

Your favourite mental health advocate

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COMMON SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY AND ANXIETY DISORDERS

It is normal to feel anxious. But it becomes a disorder when it happens often or for a long period.

There are types of anxiety disorders which have different diagnoses.

Examples of these disorders are generalised anxiety disorders, social phobias, specific phobias, etc.

All types of anxiety disorders will be explained.

But there are common signs that indicate that a person is anxious. These includes:

❎ Worrying excessively:

It is a feeling that something bad or dangerous is about to happen.

It is normal to have a feeling of fear when you are facing a problem.

But, it becomes a problem when you get anxious too often about the future you know nothing about.

❎ Breathing Rapidly:

It is also called hyperventilation. It can be so severe that the person can have trouble breathing and might need assistance.

❎ Having trouble sleeping:

It is normal to have trouble sleeping when someone is worried about something.

But persistent worry, which affects sleep often, is not normal.

❎ Experiencing gastrointestinal
disturbance:

The body releases hormones and chemicals.

These chemicals can enter the digestive tract and disrupt the gut flora( bacteria in our stomach), which can result in a chemical imbalance that leads to diarrhoea.

❎ Having trouble concentrating:

This occurs because the person only concentrates on the problem they are facing. The person does not take note of other important situations around them.

❎ Having an increased heart rate:

This can also be called palpitations. When a person is anxious, their flight or fight response kicks in, and it leads to an increased heart rate.

It is normal to have an increased heart rate when you are anxious about a situation.

But if it happens often or for a long period, it needs serious attention.

❎ Trembling:

The person’s muscles become tense resulting in the person shaking. This occurs when a person perceives a threat.

❎ Sweating.

❎ Fatigue.

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ANXIETY AND ANXIETY DISORDERS

A feeling of anxiety is a fear of the future. Anxiety is a normal human response.

When we are under stress, we either feel anxious or experience anxiety. Everyone becomes tense.

Everyone has experienced stress-inducing circumstances. Such as; Exams, public speaking, or anticipating a parent’s reprimand could have all been the cause.

Anxiety disorders are types of mental health disorders.

The World Health Organization (WHO) describes anxiety disorders as characterized by excessive fear and worry and related behavioural disorders.

When anxiety disorders are severe, they can interfere with routine daily activities.

As of 2019, 301 million people worldwide reported having anxiety.

And 58 million of the 301 million people who suffer from anxiety disorders are children and teenagers.

Although feeling anxious is common, it turns into a disorder when you worry excessively or when your anxiety prevents you from participating in activities that are going on around you.

I have experienced anxiety disorders since I was a young child.

But I suppose mine wasn’t as bad. From junior high school through my second year of college, I dealt with it. It was prior to COVID-19. weird, huh?

Every time I have an exam, my anxiety gets worse. When you have exams, it’s before you feel anxious, but mine got worse.

I get more anxious as soon as I walk into the exam room. I’ll start to get trembling in my hands. Not bad, you’d say?

Disorders of anxiety give you the impression that nothing you do is good enough.

It gives you the impression that you have brain fog and are unable to think clearly.

Take care of your mental health.

Have faith in your own abilities.

You are a fighter.

Till I come your way again.

Yours truly,

Your favourite mental health advocate.

ROLES OF PHARMACISTS IN MENTAL HEALTH CARE

A pharmacist is not only an expert in dispensing drugs but also an expert in knowing the symptoms of both physical and mental conditions.

Pharmacists are known to be the middlemen. They are the link between the patient and the hospital.

Most people prefer going to the nearest pharmacy to complain about a mild condition rather than going to the hospital.

When it comes to mental health, there is a lot of stigma. This is due to a lack of awareness by healthcare providers.

It is high time that pharmacists embrace their front-line role in breaking the mental health stigma.

For a pharmacist who runs a pharmacy in his or her community. You are responsible for the overall well-being of your community.

A lot of people need help. but are scared to talk because of the stigma.

I will share my opinion on what can be done to start erasing the stigma.

🔱Tips that Pharmacists can give to Patients daily

✅Advise patients to become physically active.

✅Patients should eat a balanced diet.

✅Drink alcohol in moderation or stop drinking alcohol.

✅Advise patients to always learn to not bottle up feelings and emotions.

✅Tell the patient to learn some new skills.

What about the whole community? How can you, as a pharmacist, give them the awareness that they need?

🔱Pharmacists’ Key Roles in Raising Mental Health Awareness

These roles are solely based on my research. They are solutions I can give to the eradication of stigma. The roles are:

✅Developing an outreach:

The stigma surrounding mental health is due to a lack of awareness. People do not know that mental health conditions have various types.

As a pharmacist, you can pick a month. You can use mental health awareness month to create awareness in your community.

In your outreach, educate people on what mental health and mental health conditions are.

Give them your official phone number to call you when they need help.

✅Creating an anonymous hotline:

Most people find it hard to talk to people about their mental health. They feel like people will see them as insane.

establishing a hotline where you can freely communicate with people in need of assistance

You do not need to know the person’s name. You just need to give the patient the support that they need.

You can link your patient to the nearest mental health care service around you.

It is your responsibility as a pharmacist to make sure an illness is cured when you deliver the right drugs and care.

STOP THE STIGMA!

CHANGE BEGINS WITH YOU!

Do you need personalised tips on how to improve your mental health?

Are you finding it hard to create that day-to-day journal?

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You can also contact me through my Email( maishat08@gmail.com)

TO MY WONDERFUL READERS SPEAK KINDLY TO SOMEONE TODAY.

HELP SOMEONE SMILE TODAY.

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TIPS ON HOW TO IMPROVE MENTAL HEALTH ( Part Three of Three)

✅ Good Sleeping Habits

There are times we deprive ourselves of sleep due to day activities and the completion of certain tasks like; exams, office work, games, and movies.

It is normal to want to have fun at night.

It is okay to want to finish that office work before you go to bed.

It is good to read well before exams.

But these activities should not be done regularly for a long period.

They not only deprive us of our sleep but also affect our health, both physically and mentally.

According to a Harvard University study, there is a link between sleep and mental health. How?

Well, when we deprive ourselves of sleep at night, our bodies produce a stress hormone called cortisol.

This cortisol helps to manage stress and helps the brain form memories.

And it is known that an increase in the cortisol level increases the risk of having depression, anxiety, or other mental disorders.

🔰The benefits of good sleep

🔱Weight control

🔱Lower blood pressure

🔱Increase energy

🔱 Reduces the risk of depression, anxiety, or other mental disorders.

🔰Tips on Creating a Good Sleep Pattern

🔱Sleep schedule:

Try to calculate the time of your work at school or in the office.

This will determine how much time you have left for other activities and sleep.

Make sure you calculate your time in such a way that you can get 7 hours of sleep.

🔱Do not go to bed hungry.

When you don’t eat before going to bed, there is a high chance of you waking up at night to eat.

This automatically disturbs your sleep. because you have woken up to eat.

Make sure you also eat something light at night before going to bed.

Eating too much can cause discomfort when you are about to sleep.

🔱 Have a warm bath

Always make sure to bathe at night.

According to a study, taking a warm bath one and a half hours before bed increases your chances of falling asleep rapidly.

It helps cool the body and helps make sleep easier.

🔱Drink warm milk.

Warm milk help improves sleep because it has a lot of nutrients like tryptophan, magnesium and melatonin.

Melatonin is the chemical substance that helps to induce sleep.

If you find it difficult to sleep at night, make sure to drink warm milk.

Do not become a sleeping pill addict.

Make Sure You Sleep at least 7 hours and not more than 9 hours a day.

🔱 Physical Activity

The more you are active during the day the more your body pushes you to sleep at night.

A good piece of advice I give is to exercise regularly. Even if it is 10 minutes each day.

BE RESPONSIBLE!

BE POSITIVE!

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