Friends Get Friends Moving

In looking for ways to promote the mental health of our amazing staff, we wanted to find something fun that everyone could do and enjoy all together.  We talked about a lot of things, but decided on . . . BOWLING!  We had a great excuse for a field trip — celebrating our amazing assistant Lance’s birthday.

Now, this isn’t rocket science.  Six people go bowling, have a great time getting some exercise and hanging out.  Is that really related to our resiliency and psychological health?

Well . . . yes.  For example, one of our folks hadn’t had the best day that day.  So when we started, they were kind of sluggish and withdrawn.  By frame 6 of the first game, there was more pep in their step and by the end of the first game, they were smiling. 

Sure, there was some ribbing when the ball hit the gutter (isn’t there always?).  But there was also a lot of cheerleading and not a little coaching.  And then there are all those warm fuzzy feelings that come from celebrating together.

The point is that, unlike having to weigh your brussels sprouts and count your carbs, protecting your mental and emotional health is usually FUN!  You don’t need any fancy equipment or to see a special kind of trainer — all you need is someone else’s shoes and a crew who will cheer your strikes and not mock you too much for your gutter balls.

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Connect ~ the Power of Friendship

Friendship is a sheltering tree.  ~Samuel Taylor Coleridge

One of the five Sound Minds in Sound Bodies steps is to CONNECT — with friends, family and others.

It’s easy to think of friends as the people we watch the game with, go to the movies with, share a pizza with.  Not always, though, do we think of our friendships as the bonds that weave a strong net for when we swing out on that trapeze (and catch us if we fall), a warm blanket when we are cold and need comfort, a banner to proclaim our success. 

Hopefully, we all have someone we can call for comfort when our heart is broken or to help celebrate when we get a promotion.  It’s those friends that help us maintain – and even improve – our mental and emotional health.  They are our “sheltering tree.”

The health benefits of strong friendships include increased sense of belonging, reduced stress, increased self-esteem, and decreased risk of serious mental illness.  By helping us to weather life’s storms (divorce, loss of a loved one, etc.), friends help us capitalize on our own resilience and make it through.  By celebrating our triumphs (new jobs, new babies, new haircuts), friends support our feelings of happiness and self-worth.  Friends can also encourage us to adopt healthier lifestyles (like my friend who is always dragging me on speed hikes up and down the trails in Juneau).

Just like it’s easy to overlook the powerful effect of friends on our health, it’s also easy to forget how important it is to make new friends.  Connecting with new people helps us keep our minds open to new perspectives and new adventures (wear a helmet if that new friend wants to go skydiving). 

Earlier in the series, we explored the Move part of this mental health promotion campaign.  Move and Connect fit together really well.  Walking with a friend, playing a game of bocce ball, going to the Governor’s Inaugural Ball and dancing the night way – these are all ways to strengthen the connections with your friends AND get your body moving.  You can also make new friends while getting out and about – take a kayaking lesson or join a hockey team.  You might meet someone groovy and make a new connection.

 

 

Move!

During the Sound Minds in Sound Bodies campaign, we are taking five steps to improve and maintain our mental and emotional health.  One of those steps is to MOVE!  We’re not talking marathons or situps (unless that’s your thing).  We’re just talking about getting up and getting going. Yoga, rumba, juggle, jiggle — whatever feels good as long as you’re moving.

Most of us have heard that regular physical activity can lower your blood pressure and cholesterol levels and can reduce the risk of illnesses such as type 2 diabetes or heart disease.  What you may not know is how physical activity affects your mental and emotional health.

According to Dr. Daniel Landers, research shows that exercise can reduce anxiety and depression — sometimes significantly. Since diabetes and heart disease are often co-morbidities (conditions that occur with, but are not a cause or result of, the primary diagnosis) of mental illness, the fact that movin’ and groovin’  reduces the likelihood or the severity of all three is pretty cool.

As part of the Sound Minds in Sound Bodies campaign, folks are getting at least 30 minutes a day of physical activity.  To help keep track — and stay motivated – folks are taking part in the President’s Active Lifestyle Challenge.  In addition to providing a tracking system and a points system to keep up all motivated, it provides lots of great information.

What are we doing to stay active?  Walking, running, shoveling snow, bowling, stretching, shoveling snow, vacuuming, skiing, shoveling snow. See how easy it is?  Just 30 minutes a day is all it takes.

What are the results? First, a greater awareness of how easy it is to move more.  One board member shared that, when she wore her cool AMHB and ABADA pedometer while cleaning house, she got nearly half her daily recommended steps.  Second, a greater to attention to how we feel (not just a little sore) after we get our activity.  Proud, happy, empowered, cool — just some of the feelings participants have shared so far.

Sound Minds in Sound Bodies isn’t about weight loss or body building, or trying to reach some socially accepted norm of beauty or health.  It’s about feeling better from the neck up AND from the neck down. 

Sound Minds in Sound Bodies

Mental and emotional health is an integral part of our overall wellness, but not everyone thinks about it that way.  There are a lot of people — and doctors — who think of health in a “neck down” sort of way, leaving the “neck up” to psychiatrists and counselors.  But what more and more research and individual experiences are teaching us is that your health from the neck up is all part of your health from the neck down  — and vice versa.

The Alaska Mental Health Board and Advisory Board on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse are partnering in a mental health promotion campaign, Sound Minds in Sound Bodies.  The goal is to show people that they can take control of their mental and emotional fitness the way they can their physical health.  And it doesn’t take any extraordinary measures.

Research shows that, in just five simple steps, people can improve their overall mood, health, and feeling of happiness.  Board members invite everyone to try it out, and see whether or not (over eight weeks) they can improve their sense of well-being by:

1. Connecting with friends and family.

2. Moving your body 30 minutes a day.

3. Being mindful of your experiences, in the world and inside yourself.

4. Learning something new, take a class, or dust off an old skill set.

5. Giving to your community or someone in need by volunteering or sharing with others.

Research has found these actions effectively build the resiliency that helps people reduce or avoid serious mental health and substance abuse problems.

Want to get involved?  Here’s how:

• Follow examples on the Sound Minds in Sounds Bodies webpage and share your ideas here or on the AMHB and ABADA Facebook pages.

• Sign up for the AMHB and ABADA President’s Active Lifestyle Challenge group at http://www.presidentschallenge.org (group number 96386) and get moving 30 minutes a day.

Why are we really doing this?  Well, for some us, it’s to beat the wintertime blahs.  For others, it’s part of an overall focus on improving health – complete whole-person health. 

And for some of us, it’s to draw attention to the health needs of an estimated 55,000 Alaskans (adults and youth) who experience serious mental health issues and/or alcohol dependence each year.  There are ways to prevent those serious health problems, and promoting overall wellness is one of them.  If we can improve our health, one person at a time, we can start to make a dent in the more than $90 million the State of Alaska spent on mental health and substance abuse treatment services from mid 2009 to mid 2010.

Happier people and a healthier budget – what better reasons do we need?