Mental Health and Your Physical Health

Millions of Americans face the reality of living with mental illness. We need to fight the stigmas mental health comes with, along with educating and providing support for people struggling with the effects of mental illness. 

It’s important to note that mental health can influence your physical health. Sometimes the relationship between psychological and physical health can be misunderstood. Physical and psychological health are intertwined with one another. Health isn’t just about being sick or having a disease. It’s about your overall physical, mental, and social wellbeing. Without realizing it, your mental wellbeing may directly impact your physical health. 

Mental illness covers much more than just the feeling of being sad or anxious, but a wide range of psychological factors that could be directly related to mood or behavioral disorders. Put simply, it is anything that stands between you and the magic of the moment; enjoying your life. Maintaining good psychological health can keep your body (and life) healthy in different ways. 

Neglecting your mental wellbeing can lead to numerous health conditions over time, such as: 

  • Gastrointestinal issues
  • Weakened immune system
  • Obesity
  • High blood pressure
  • Heart disease

Mental illness often causes depression, fatigue, sleeping problems, and other pains due to over (or under) stimulated neural pathways through the brain and spinal cord. Maintaining healthy mental health is often overlooked, especially when facing different health problems, diseases, or conditions. Often other illnesses can lead to intense psychological effects too, impacting the quality of your life. 

Be sure to seek professional help when facing mental health problems. You don’t have to go it alone! Managing your psychological health has many components, and if you want to feel better, there are other things you can do to help you towards your mental health goals. 

Here are five ways to help maintain a healthier body AND mind.  

  1. Get your nervous system checked

A compromised nervous system makes it nearly impossible to recover from mental illness. There is a litany of research around the benefits of chiropractic in mental health complaints- there was even a mental health hospital which focused entirely on chiropractic care and, you might have guessed, their non-drug success rate was incredible!

Be sure to get your spine checked regularly to give your nerve system the best support for living free of any mental illness.

  1. Eat a cleaner and more balanced diet 

Eating excessive amounts of highly processed and high-calorie foods is directly linked to psychological issues like depression and anxiety. A diet full of sugar worsens your brain and mental health status. 

If you want to keep a healthier body and mind, incorporate foods your mind needs for nutrients like fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, and pastured proteins. To feel balanced and have energy, you must make smart nutritional choices and determine what you want in your body to fuel your brain. Eating quality foods with a high amount of vitamins can nourish the brain in so many ways. Eat your medicine in the form of healthy foods!

  1. Get Better Sleep 

Coping with challenging situations can be difficult when your body can’t feel good because you’re not getting enough energy or hours of sleep. Most adults need 8-10 hours of sleep, and some studies show older adults need at least seven hours every night. If you want to improve your health, improve your sleep.

  1. Get Regular Exercise 

Prioritizing regular physical activity and exercise in your daily routine has a wide range of health benefits. Increasing endorphin levels can improve the health of your joints and give you a better state of mind by pumping your body full of endorphins. Shoot for at least 30 minutes of heart pumping exercise each day, and don’t forget to stretch.

You can easily incorporate physical activity into your schedule by going for regular walks or adding cardio to your routine. Maintaining your strength is a great way to create a positive mental well being, so don’t leave out the weights. 

  1. Practice Mindfulness 

Mindfulness practices can help spiritually guide you to overcoming physical or psychological problems. By practicing mindfulness meditation, you will focus on having intense awareness of your surroundings and feeling more “in the moment” without feeling insecure or judged. 

Mindfulness involves learning specific breathing techniques and many other imagery methods to relax the body and reduce stress levels. In fact, all pharmaceutical drugs depend on holistically minded therapy to create new pathways in the brain for how the patient perceives their world. Without a new scaffolding built in the brain for how someone experiences (and reacts to) their world, most psychological drugs are merely Band-Aids that hold someone back from complete healing.

Network Spinal (NS) Care allows your body to function optimally by improving your central nervous system, which results in brain, spine, and mental health benefits- while thinking clearer. It helps your body better adapt to any “symptoming” that may come from those secondary conditions.

Problems with mental health stem from a combination of psychological, biological, and environmental factors. The nerve pathways give your spine and brain proper communication to make your body function at its best. Improving mental clarity through chiropractic care, like Network Spinal and SRI programs, can lead to a better mental state of mind, a better quality of life, and feeling hopeful and happier by improving the body/mind connection. 

There are natural, drug-free treatments to help with mental health. At Cheshire Wellness Center in Keene, NH, Drs. Matt and Tecia Abatelli will do everything they can to help you improve the way your body functions and your overall health and wellbeing. If you face things like panic attacks, depression, anxiety, whatever it may be, you can benefit significantly from our care process.

For more information on how we can help with mental health and wellness, call our office at (603) 357-5700. 

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