Obesity has come to such an extent that it has become an epidemic not only in the United States but all over the globe. It is very disturbing to see the rate at which the obese and overweight people increasing in America. Being overweight not only affects the physical health but also the mental health of the person.

 These people have increased their risk of getting severe chronic diseases and may succumb to the disability in the early age or even early death because of being overweight. Hence, the issue of being obese and overweight has always been in almost everyone’s mind. This has made people to maintain slim with toned body, but the real fact is it’s far easier to gain weight than losing it.

 Health Threats to Obese

 It is seen that people who lose weight successfully always try to keep themselves motivated and keep working on it to maintain it. This helps them in enjoying the benefits of being healthy. However, obese people are at high danger as they are more prone towards chronic diseases at a very early age. Some of the life-threatening diseases include

• Arthritis
• Abnormal heartbeat
• Cancers such as breast, colorectal, endometrial, gallbladder, kidney, and prostate
• Cholesterol problems
• Diabetes of type 2
• Heart Diseases
• High Blood Pressure
• Liver problems like enlarged liver, fatty liver
• Mental health such as memory and learning problems especially in men
• Reproductive problems such as irregular periods, increased birth defects and death risk of both child and mother
• Sleep Apnea like Snoring

 Psychological Problems of Being Obese

 Psychological problems of being obese or overweight include anxiety, depression, inferiority complex and additional disorders including eating disorder like anorexia binge eating, and bulimia. The mental health of an obese person starts getting worse with the passing time. The reason for aggravation of mental wellness of the person is his social stigma.

 Apart from few rare cases, only slim, healthy and fit bodies are well thought-out to be sexy. Most of the time obese people are looked down upon. This leads to anxiety and depression or even irregular eating disorder. This eating disorder is common not only with obese but also among normal people as they end up eating too much to overcome emotions while they are depressed leading to weight gain.

 Loss of Liveliness and Pleasures of Life

 Apart from shame aspects, negative physical and mental health of being obese, they tend to have less energy compared with normal people. As they have to put more efforts to be active as normal person, they get inclined or drift towards low-activity standard of living and become inactive.

 A regrettable cycle builds up wherein the inactive person starts gaining more weight than the normal active person and become more and more inactive. Here the mental health of the obese person starts deteriorating further. As the time passes, even average everyday jobs like climbing a flight of stairs can lead to overtiredness and start sensing premature aging.

 Nutritional Weight Loss

 Many weight loss diet programs designed to reduce weight revolve around limiting the amount of calories intake. Basically, they recommend a clear decrease in the amount of food you consume including reduction in some specific category of foods.

 You will find mind-boggling number of miracle weight losing products and schemes. Regardless of various ways of approaching it, for permanent weight loss you need to put lot of efforts both in your eating as well as exercising habits. You will never lose weight in a matter of few weeks.

 The physical as well as mental health of an obese takes a lot of hammering in process of losing weight. You need to reduce your caloric intake along with regular exercise as recommended by a qualified dietician. Hence, with the aim to reduce weight and gain fit and slim body you need to follow a sensible weight loss program with healthy eating and exercise habits both during and after dieting is complete.

Healthy Weight Loss is a post from: Mental Health

 What is stress?

 Emotional and physical strain caused by our response to pressure from the outside situation is known as stress. Certain stress reactions that affect mental health include irritability, tension, inability to concentrate, and a number of physical symptoms that include Fast heart beat and headache.

 What are the sources of stress?

 The main sources of stress are: 

1. Internal factors: creation of stress by negative thinking, feelings or worries that come from your side is said to be caused by internal factors. Constant worrying and thinking, low self esteem and fear for modification can all be sources of major stress that interferes with your mental health.
2.  Environmental Factors: The situation or things that are around you can be a cause of your stress. It might be a fight at home or office, your living condition all contribute to the common causes of stress.
3.  Fatigue and overwork: Overtiring works can cause stress at times. Constant tiredness altered eating habits and unhealthy ways of living can lead to fatigue.

 What are the feedback methods available for stress relief?

 This stress levels will be minimal if you have a good mental health. It is very important to understand the mechanism of mind and body in order to reduce the stress levels. It would be the first step to revive the mental health. The general approach would be to educate the people and make them aware about the conscious control over the mind. If that is not done, the brains will automatically process the thoughts to magnify the stress and anxiety which could prove to be hazardous of a long run.

 Biofeedback and Neuro feedback Training

 In psychological strategies stress reactions involve the aligned action of numerous somatic processes which usually operate automatically at an unconscious level. Neuro feedback and Biofeedback training refer to a collection of techniques formed to teach people how gain conscious control over different body functions like blood flow, brain wave patterns which are unconsciously controlled by the ANS (autonomic nervous system).

 In general term biofeedback is nothing but is for the use of any kind of monitored material to teach such conscious regulation of a body action. Neuro feedback is a more specific term that refers to the use of sensors to specifically monitor brain activity so as to teach people how to gain control of that component of their bodies.

 Techniques of biofeedback can be useful in helping people learn how to recognize and control the physiological aspects of stress. Stress-induced problems related to blood flow such as high blood pressure, headaches, sleep disorders affecting your mental heath can be relieved by biofeedback method.

 What are the other methods of stress reduction? 

1. Mindfulness Meditation: Meditation of this form encourages us to be aware of the surroundings. Mindfulness teaches us to see the situation as a whole picture and enjoy simple things in life to the fullest instead of getting caught with one particular thing that is causing stress. This is an wonderful meditation technique that provides us to get away from stressful circumstances, encouraging relaxation and good mental health.
2. Exercise: This helps in all ways to keep your body healthy and reduces stress. Cardiovascular exercise helps to reduce your emotional stress. The body gives away a special chemical known as endorphins when we exercise that help to dull the pain and raise the mood. Exercise helps in good sleep pattern. Regular exercise controls your stress and gives good mental health.
3. Progressive muscle relaxation: Muscles become tight and stiff due to stress. Progressive muscle relaxation technique helps to relax the whole body and mind. It reduces the blood pressure, lower your pulse rate and decreases perspiration. Performing isometric exercises to your whole body relaxes your muscles to much extend and thereby reduces stress.
4. Deep breathing: This is also known as diaphragmatic breathing is a very useful technique in stress reduction. The oxygen levels in the body are increased by deep breathing exercises which prove an effective form of stress reduction technique. It has a natural calming and slowing down effect
5. Psychotherapy: Counseling and cognitive therapy proves effective in stress reduction. These speaking therapies help a lot in people with stress. Psychotherapists are trained in teaching relaxation techniques as well as social skills, and stress management to maintain good mental health.

All about Psychological strategies for Stress Reductions is a post from: Mental Health

 Exercise is a physical activity that includes anything that gets you going, such as walk, dance, or work in the lawn. If you are physically healthy and fit, you have the power, flexibility, and endurance needed for your day to day activities.  Regular exercise helps you feel better physically and improves your mental health drastically.

 What are mental health benefits of physical activity?

 Reduced anxiety 

• Aerobic exercise proves most beneficial
• Regular exercise after some weeks gives best results
• Good exercise benefits are given to those who are low fit to start with
• Good benefits for those high in anxiety to begin with

 Reduced depression 

• Most beneficial results after weeks of regular exercise
• Most beneficial when done several times a week
• Most beneficial with more vigorous exercise
• Most beneficial for those who are more depressed
• Physical activity appears to relieve symptoms of depression and anxiety. Regular physical activity improves the mood and reduces the risk of developing depression. Mental health improves drastically with exercise.

 Why does exercise work in good mental health?

 Regular exercise seems to have an effect on certain chemicals like serotonin and dopamine in the brain. These chemicals are used by the brain cells to transmit information so that they affect your thinking and mood. Brain derived neurotropic factors are other chemicals in the brain which are stimulated by exercise. These chemicals help new brain cells to develop and grow. Stress produced harmful changes in the brain are reduced with regular exercise and improves mental health.

What are the other health benefits of regular exercise?  

• Healthy sleep pattern
• Improved endurance
• Increased sexual desire
• Relief of stress
• Gain more stamina and energy
• Mood improvement
• Decreased fatigue increases mental health.
• Loss of weight helping people who are obese
• Improved cardiovascular wellbeing and decreased cholesterol levels.

 What are the three mechanisms by which exercise has a positive effect on mental health and well being? 

• Biochemical Mechanisms: Prolonged exercise stimulates production of nor-epinephrine and serotonin as mechanisms for mood improvement and stress relief. Exercise also elevates the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain which improves mental wellbeing. Physical activity helps in releasing endorphins in the brain which improves the mood, reduces the levels of the stress hormone cortisol and relieves muscle tension. Body temperature becomes more with exercise which gives a calm behavior. 
• Physiological Mechanisms: Regular exercise lowers blood pressure, slows down pulse rate, and makes breathing easy which all contribute to reduction in anxiety and depression. Physical activity also increases cerebral blood supply and improves muscle relaxation that follows physical well being. Reduction in anxiety and depression leads to mental well being and improved function. 
• Psychosocial Mechanisms: Exercise also improves your body image and self esteem in a person. Positive self esteem is indirectly or directly connected with good mental well being and fitness. Group exercise improves your social situation and helps in social interaction. Change in body image through exercise gives you a sense of control and improves self esteem in a person drastically.

 How to get yourself to Exercise? 

• After understanding that exercise is good and keeps you healthy start doing regular exercise. Here are some tips for getting yourself moving to do exercise.
• Do exercise as a fun physical activity instead of making exercise a task.
• Do group exercise with your friends and family members, which would be enthusiastic and enjoyable.
• Do not do exercise as a session instead do normal activities that becomes an physical activity like walk rather than driving, climb stairs instead of using lift.
• Perform simple exercises like walking fifteen minutes daily instead of walking more hours.
• Plan your exercise program and if there are any barriers to stop doing them avoid them.

Benefits of Exercise and physical activity is a post from: Mental Health

 The bio-physiological elements involved in smoking relate to how the brain reacts to nicotine. While smoking a proportion of nicotine reaches the brain within about 15 seconds. In the beginning nicotine improves the mood and concentration, reduces anger and stresses, provides relaxation to muscles and decreases the appetite.

 On regular use of nicotine lead to changes in the brain affecting mental health which then lead to nicotine secession symptoms when the supply of nicotine reduces. Temporarily smoking reduces these secession symptoms and can therefore reinforce the habit. Most smokers habit this cycle and becomes nicotine dependent. Psychological and social factors also play a great part in keeping smokers smoking.

What are the effects of smoking withdrawal on mental health?

 Smoking and stress:

 People adapt the idea of smoking to help ease the signs and a symptom of stress is known as self-medication. Stress is very common affecting us when we feel unable to cope with unusual pressure.

 The stress is physically noticed during headaches, breathlessness and also makes the people feel anxious, irritable, and very tired. Feeling of fatigue can change our behavior and mental health and feeling tired and tensed often makes people smoke more than usual.  Stress over long period is also related to anxiety and depression.

Smoking and anxiety:

When survey done with smoking and stress has shown that instead of instead of giving relaxation smoking actually results in boosting the anxiety and tension. Smoking nicotine creates a spontaneous feel of relaxation and therefore the people take up smoking by believing that it will reduce their anxiety and stress. 

 Temporary relaxation is achieved and soon gives way to secession symptoms and increased desires. The habit of smoking reduces nicotine secession symptoms which are alike to the symptoms of anxiety but it does not reduce anxiety or deal with the underlying causes.

Smoking and depression:

Depressed people have a particular difficulty when they try to stop smoking and have more severe secession symptoms during attempts to give up. The release of the chemical dopamine in the brain is stimulated by nicotine. This chemical is involved in triggering positive feelings. In people with depression it is often found to be low, so then people use smoking as temporary way to increase their dopamine supply.

The habit of smoking encourages the brain to stop its own mechanism of secreting dopamine and therefore on a long run the supply reduces and most people get habituated smoking even when they are not depressed. There are doubts about if smoking leads to depression or is it the depression which urges the people to take up smoking. If explained there is a complex relationship between the two in affecting mental health.

 What are the ways to quit smoking?

 Preparing for change

Smoking cessation suddenly through willpower alone is the least effective way to quit. Cessation proves to be successful if you plan long before, have support and choose the right period to try. Attempting to quit smoking does not work if you are feeling mentally ill, and undergoing significant changes in your life. Analyze about what you will gain by not smoking for instance better mental health, fresh breath, improved thinking and more savings.

 Finding other ways to cope with stress

Since smoking is usually used as a way of coping, smokers need other ways of dealing with stress, anxiety. Smoking only affects your mental health rather than providing relaxation. Keep this in mind if you want to stop smoking. Regular exercise, meditation and breathing exercises, healthy eating habits, counseling, clinical hypnotic therapy helps to cope with stress and quit smoking.

 Talking therapies

Psychological counseling can help people to quit smoking. Speaking therapies can help people change their behavior by thinking and acting more positively. Many counseling programs use the techniques of cognitive behavioral therapy and social skills development which proves to be effective in smokers with mental health problems.

Nicotine replacement therapy and medication

Nicotine replacement therapy and anti-depressants medication have all been shown to help smokers with or with out mental health problems to quit smoking and lead a normal life.

What is the Influence of Smoking on mental health is a post from: Mental Health

 Emotional resilience refers to an individual’s ability or power to adapt to stressful circumstances in life. The resilient individuals are able to adapt to adversity in difficult times while the less resilient have a harder time with stress and other mental health problems.

 Emotionally resilient individuals have specific goals, positive attitude, and sense of motivation that helps in overcoming stress more efficiently with ease them their less resilient peers.

 Beliefs that make you more resilient

Certain beliefs and characteristics help an individual in coping with emotions before they demoralize you and make you more resilient.

Some of the beliefs which resilient people share are

• Have good judgmental powers and problem solving skills
• Have their goals identified to attain realistic expectations
• Be determined and persistent
• Be thoughtful rather than being impulsive
• Have good communication skills
• Show empathy towards others
• Be in control of anger
• Be optimistic rather than pessimistic
• Think about the welfare of other people
• They are action oriented and trust in the process
• Learn from their mistakes and see life as a challenge
• Are committed towards their goals in life

 How does emotional resilience work?

Emotional resilience tools are powerful because they help the individual in coping emotional mental health problems more efficiently and effectively.

 Stress, anger, depression, anxiety are all related to mental health are all negative emotion s which exert powerful impact on perception. While experiencing these emotions, you feel completely let down and helpless. Resilient individuals challenge these emotions rationally and change their attitude towards positivism. Commitment to relax and exercise can easily uplift ones mood.

Importance of Emotional Resilience

 Emotional resilient promotes mental health and overall well being of an individual.

Adversity is a fact and those people who can overcome adversity prove to be successful. Setbacks in studies, education, health, and business have adverse affects on mental health as well as physical. Being mentally tough and emotionally resilient can help you bounce back, recover swiftly, and move forward. By developing an emotional resilient attitude, you will be able to 

• Embrace changes
• Overcome setbacks
• Improvise creativity
• Be healthier
• Be productive
• Turn your vision into reality
• Embrace changes in life
• Achieve your goals
• Stay calm under pressure
• Learn the importance of mental health
• Develop effective managing strategies

How to develop Emotional resilience?

 Emotional resilience is partially inborn but can be learned to improve your mental health. 

• Develop the right positive attitude to overcome the difficulties in life. Stronger and positive attitude helps to face difficult situations and combat mental health problems.
• Emotional awareness is a part of being emotionally resilient. It is important for you to know what and why are you feeling as this helps you to act rationally to your problems.
• Develop an internal locus control. We cannot control situations but the response to these circumstances can be controlled.
• Being optimistic helps you to look towards a brighter side by maximizing strengths and accomplishments.
• Developing a social network with your friends helps you relieve of stress and provides support.
• Exercises and a proper diet plan help you maintain good physical and mental health thus increasing resilience level.

Impact of life long learning on emotional resilience

 Lifelong learning has a range of effects on health outcomes. It includes recovery from mental health difficulties, ability to cope up with stress related problems, onset of chronic illness and disability. Learning develops self-esteem self-efficacy sense of purpose competence thus making an individual emotionally resilient and helping him to move forward in life faster than competitions.

 Emotional resilience plays a fundamental role in overcoming mental health problems. It helps in handling life’s difficulties, turning potentially negative events into positive ones, and overcoming adversity.

Why Is Emotional Resilience Important? is a post from: Mental Health

 Anger is a vital emotion that is experienced by each person at some point of his life. It is perceived as an uncivilized behavior in response to threat, violence, neglect, frustration, or loss. Inappropriate expressions of anger can cause violent outbursts and suppressing anger can lead to persistent violent thoughts, nightmares, and fears and aggravate mental health leading to depression.

 How does anger affect mental health?

 Many people believe that depression is anger turned inwards as stress and depression induce anger in response to neglect from family and friends, unhappy interpersonal relationships, and mental as well as physical abuse.

 Anger can fuel obsessions, phobias, and other mental disorders like bipolar disorders. These are the result of anger, which leads to furious activities. People express anger aggressively through verbal and physical power to hurt and abuse others. Repression is denial of anger for safety but can lead to other mental health problems.

 Anger is a simple destructive force and is specifically important for what might be called self-preservation and self-defense instincts. People who are unable to get angry are unable to stand for themselves and therefore it is important that people learn to express anger in a healthy and social way, anger should not get out of control to the extent where it hampers relationships, enjoy ability in life and produces negative affects on mental health and wellness.

 What is anger Management?

 Anger management is Psychological techniques and methods to control and prevent uncontrollable anger; the exercises help in reducing the triggers, degrees, and effects of anger emotional states. Many interventions like breathing, relaxation, empathy, stress management skills, and forgiving can help in reducing effects of anger. Since the degree of anger varies from person to person, the treatment also defers according to the individuals and a more personalized attention could be vital.

 Anger management techniques ca be learnt even if the cause of anger is not known, Admitting the fact that anger is uncontrollable is the fundamental step in tackling the problem. Anger being a strong emotion and life long pattern requires great commitment, honesty, courage, and tremendous inner strength to overcome it.

 Techniques of anger management

• Always be calm and do not react. Learn to be calm. Do not react spontaneously without giving yourself time to think and analyze the situation Changing the way you think and learning to respond in a positive way is major technique of anger management. Reacting to anger is an impulsive behavior, which affects your mental health and becomes instinctive. Responding to anger allows you to look for solutions in a positive manner

• Learn to forgive look for positive in other people and do not dwell on negatives. It is difficult but learning to forgive others as well as us helps in relieving you of mental stress and anxiety leading to anger.

• Select an appropriate time. Do not discuss issues when you are irritable and tired or when the situation has made you frustrated. Timing is very important as it keeps anger at bay. Talk and express when you can think rationally or your temper is in control. Rational communication in appropriate time helps in resolving issues rather than igniting them.

• Take time for yourself. Indulge in different activities like reading, games, and movies. Do something that you enjoy. It may be going for an outing or indulging in your hobbies which you admire and enjoy.

• Evaluate your anger triggers. Find out what makes you angry and think of the ways you can overcome them. Recognizing your triggers helps you in staying away from situations that ignite anger and helps you to look and change your behavior.

• Exercise by relaxing and taking deep breaths. Relaxation and deep breaths help you feel stronger maintaining physical and mental health.

 Anger is a natural emotion, which is triggered by an occurrence due to some object, situation, or remarks made by an individual. It affects our mental health leading to real threats in life. Suppressing anger may make you believe that your anger is in control but it is dangerous as it leads to mental health problems, which curtail your ability to act in the face of real threat. Therefore, anger needs to be expressed in a healthy way.

Techniques of Anger Management is a post from: Mental Health