Mental Health
Here's Why Having a Mental Health First Aid Kit Is Not a Luxury.
Introducing 12 simple yet effective tools in my first aid kit for unexpected mental discomfort and triggers
Why We Need a Mental Health First Aid Kit
While many of us might have a first aid kit for our physical health, the concept of mental health first aid kit is not as typical and expected in society. But some organizations are introducing and trying to make them familiar.
Our mental health is as important as our physical health. While we need the support of qualified healthcare professionals for our mental health issues, it is not always possible to find them immediately.
Severe cases require reaching out to the emergency departments. However, sometimes we have triggers that may not qualify for an emergency. Thus, having a mental health first aid kit can be valuable for us, our loved ones, and the people around us.
Recognizing mental health issues can sometimes take longer. Some mental health problems might happen out of nothing. Finding the required healthcare professionals can take a long in these unexpected situations.
Some organizations specialize in managing instant mental health issues. These establishments, including government, charity, and some private ones, provide valuable guidelines. Here is a set of guidelines that you can find helpful information.
These guidelines were produced using the Delphi method, which is a systematic way of assessing the consensus of a panel of experts. The guidelines consist of first aid actions that have been rated as critical or essential by expert panels of professionals, consumers, and carers.
Medication is essential for some of us with known mental conditions. In this article, I only focus on situations that are not diagnosed as major mental disorders.
My focus is on mental discomfort, which may trigger some mental disorders if not treated promptly. These are like mental boosters.
Our thoughts, emotions, behavior, metabolic process, hormones, and environmental stimulus, minor accidents may cause imbalances of neuro-chemicals. Sometimes pain and inflammation cause imbalances.
Each of us is unique and has different life conditions and lifestyles. Thus, we all can have various tools in our mental health first aid kit.
In this story, I introduce a dozen very simple yet effective tools to address my unexpected mental health situations in my first aid kit. I hope some of these simple tools resonate with you.
12 Tools in My Mental Health First Aid Kit
1 — Power Breathing
The power of breathing to create physiological changes is underestimated. Breathing is the easiest way to change our emotional state by directly tapping into our nervous system. Breathing can be as effective as medication for some conditions. Sometimes breathing can produce even faster results.
Since thoughts and emotions play a critical role in our mental health, breathing is a tool we need to add to our first aid kit for mental health recovery. I always use breathing as the first tool when I need to address a problem related to mental health. And I always received excellent outcomes.
There are numerous breathing methods. So, I cannot go into details about each in a single article, but there are many accessible resources at our disposal. Here are eight deep breathing exercises to reduce anxiety.
As pointed out in this study, “several anxiety disorders have been associated with altered breathing, perception of breathing, and response to manipulations of breathing.
Both clinical and experimental research studies are reviewed that relate breathing dysfunctions to anxiety. Thus, altered breathing may be helpful as a physiological marker of anxiety and a treatment target using interoceptive interventions.”
2 — Meditation and Mindful Actions
Meditation might sound simple and is usually a spiritual or religious practice. However, from my experience, scientific papers, and clinical trials, meditation and mindful actions can be powerful mental health tools.
Living in the moment prevents the emotions related to the past and future. However, both history and future memories can trigger disturbing emotions. For example, memories can trigger regret and guilt; and thoughts of the future can create anxiety and fear.
By staying in the current time, we can listen to our bodies and observe our thoughts, feelings, and sensations. We can manage them before they become unwanted emotions triggering mental discomfort.
I try a 15-minute meditation to clear my mind whenever I have mood-swinging issues. When I manage my thoughts through meditation, some matters naturally disappear. My mental energy sources are replenished.
Mindful actions such as eating, workouts, conversations, and even work can help us manage our thoughts and prevent the formation of painful emotions. Consistent meditative practice can mature us emotionally and prevent mental decline.
3 — Deliberate Laughter
Laughter can have a notable positive effect on the brain and the body. From a physical perspective, laughter can release muscle tension. From a psychological perspective, it can release useful neurotransmitters and boost our mood.
Laughter has the power to take us from one physiological and psychological state to another one very quickly. Laughter can be done individually, but it can be easier in a group.
I discussed the benefits of laughter for physical and mental health in a story with some examples from experts and those who practice it for therapeutic purposes.
4 — Deliberate Micro Movements
Exercise is a physical activity that can make a tremendous impact on the brain. For example, when we move our bodies moderately, the brain creates feel-good hormones.
So exercise is a powerful mental health management tool.
When we feel down, just doing some workouts or even doing some household chores, we can quickly change our state of mind. So even though exercise can have an immediate effect, more importantly, the effects can even be better in the long term.
So exercise is not just creating an instant physical and psychological effect but also preventing the occurrence of mental issues. Whenever I feel down, I just do my joyful exercises for 10 minutes and see the difference immediately.
The most common workouts to address immediate mental issues are dancing, walking, jumping on a trampoline, pull-ups, pushups, and yoga.
I also do some weight training and calisthenics if I have enough energy and am in a rested state. However, I don’t do weight training without recovering from the side effects of previous sessions as it makes the situation worse.
5 — Uplifting Music
Music is one of the fastest ways to change a low mood. A piece of uplifting music can have a direct and immediate effect on the brain. It can create new positive perceptions very quickly.
I keep several melodies available at all times on my devices, such as on a mobile phone, in the car, or on my computer.
For example, if I have a stressful meeting at work, I just put on my headphones and listen to a few of my favorite songs after the session.
During heavy traffic, music is the easiest way to address unexpected stress in my car. But, of course, the same rule applies at home.
We are all different and enjoy various types of music.
The important thing is to choose the kind of music that can immediately affect our mood — and make them ready when we need them. So music can be a valuable tool in our mental health first aid kit.
6 — Salt — Sodium
This may sound trivial and not apply to everyone, but salt played a significant role in my health. Thus it became part of my mental health first aid kit.
When I started a ketogenic diet, I did not know the importance of salt. As in this type of diet, kidneys eliminate salt very quickly. Therefore, it is possible to have sodium deficiency in some people.
Sodium is a critical mineral for the heart. When we lack sodium, the brain senses it and creates discomfort. It manifests as physical symptoms such as low blood pressure, irritability, low mood, and lack of energy. It is commonly known as keto flu.
We don’t need too much salt. Just a mall pinch, such as less than a gram, sometimes helps a lot. Too much sodium is, of course, unhealthy, and too little is a problem too. Being aware of salt requirements is vital for both physical and mental health.
In addition to a pinch of salt, drinking a glass of water can address dehydration problems that sometimes trigger mental discomfort.
7 — Intentional Rest
When we are stressed, the last thing we want to do is to rest. Our stress hormones, such as cortisol, keep us moving even if we are physically tired. Sometimes a little rest can be the solution to our immediate issues.
However, if we can stop and start resting deliberately, we can control these hormones and neurotransmitters.
For example, if we are standing at work, we can sit down and rest using breathing mindfully. At home, we might lie down, close our eyes, and start relaxing our muscles.
When muscles are rested, we can observe hormonal changes.
Our mood gets more positive. We can gain energy and notice the disappearance of stress. Resting gives us a fresher mind and unclogs blogged energy hence directly affecting our mental health.
8 — Self-Talk and Journaling
Self-talk and writing about your thoughts and emotions can be very therapeutic.
In a stressful situation, just jotting down the thoughts without judging them or recording our voices can change our stressful situation.
When thoughts and emotions are recorded, we can view them more objectively. And tricking thoughts by changing the roles, such as switching from “I” to “He” or “She” prepositions, can make instant changes in perceiving our thoughts and sensations.
I always carry a pen and paper in my pocket. When a disturbing thought comes to mind, I simply write it as is. If I am driving, I just talk to myself. Or record my voice on my smartphone. It is just a button. I don’t have to listen to what I record immediately but I love analyzing them later.
Just simply recording as if talking to a friend can give instant relief from the pressure of the moment.
9 — Phone — Talking to Someone
The phone plays multiple roles as a tool.
While I use it for listening to music and recording my voice, I also use it to reach out to someone and gain a different perspective on my situation.
Having a few trusted people on the speed dial can be very handy. For example, I sometimes dial a friend or family member to chat for a few minutes in heavy traffic. Conversations and laughter can change our mood instantly.
When there is a sticky situation at work, I call other colleagues and obtain their feedback.
I ask them direct questions such as “can you help me solve this problem?” or sometimes hypothetical questions such as “if you were me, how would you approach this situation?”.
Most of us have mobile phones and can use them efficiently in emergencies threatening our mental health. In addition, the phone is the most valuable device to reach out for help and support when needed.
10 — Cold Showers
This might sound unusual, but a cold shower had a tremendous effect on my mental health. During summer, I have multiple cold showers in a day. I am fortunate enough to have recreational showers at work for fitness enthusiasts.
When a stressful situation happens, all I need is three minutes of a cold shower. In ten minutes, all my worries disappear. I also use cold showers to prepare myself for difficult situations.
For example, if a challenging meeting is scheduled, I have a cold shower half an hour before. It works so well that most of the time, I feel more confident than usual.
In addition, I used cold showers for recovery after very stressful situations. Since cold showers have hormonal effects, they can quickly change our state of mind from negative to positive.
It may sound daunting for some. However, we can quickly adapt our bodies to cold showers by starting them slowly and using them consistently. Years ago, I couldn’t even handle ten seconds of cold water.
Now, I can stay for three to five minutes with no resistance. I still feel the effect of the cold as it will always take effect due to the survival system.
However, as our mitochondria get denser with cold exposure and our white-fat stores turn into the brown-fat format, we can get more tolerant to cold exposure and reap many mental health benefits.
For example, babies don’t shiver in cold water as they have more brown fat than adults.
11- Safe Supplements
Some people use caffeine, alcohol, and cigarettes to relieve stress, but those supplements can adversely affect the brain and body.
For example, too much caffeine raised my cortisol and made me more stressed. And cigarettes make people feel even worse.
When nicotine starts reducing, the brain and the body sense a threat and make us feel worse. Therefore, after each smoking session, people feel better. And we already know the effects of alcohol, which looks good initially but turns ugly very quickly.
However, there are some healthy and sustainable supplements to help with mental health conditions. For example, some vitamins, such as B-complex, can reduce stress. In addition, some minerals, such as magnesium, particularly through the skin, can be great for the relaxation of the body.
I use a few supplements, unique mind-boosting molecules, such as Acetyl-L-Carnitine, N-Acetyl-Tyrosine, N-Acetyl-Cysteine, and Choline, to create neurotransmitters effectively. They may take a little longer to take effect, but they can be excellent when they start kicking in.
12- Power Nap
I usually don’t nap as it steals from my central sleep. However, occasionally power naps can be beneficial in addressing some mental issues.
The best time I use a power nap is when I can’t take full quality sleep. Sleep deprivation is so noticeable that my mood gets severely affected on those days, my stress skyrockets and my anxiety starts kicking. Just 15 minutes power nap can easily change a stressful situation.
Power naps can be ideal tools for sleep-deprived people. Rather than trying caffeine, cigarettes, and alcohol, just having a 15-minute power nap can provide a more sustainable solution to the problem.
Conclusions and Takeaways
A mental health first aid kit is as essential as a physical health first aid for our survival. The reason is our mental health is interrelated with our physical health, and both are equally important.
Of course, we use emergency healthcare systems during the emergency, but sometimes we might have triggers that may not qualify for emergency care. Thus, having a mental health first aid kit is essential in those situations for us individually, our loved ones, and the people around us at the time.
In addition, we also know that diagnosing mental health issues can sometimes take longer than usual. We might experience mental health problems that happen out of the blue. Finding the necessary healthcare professionals can take a long time.
Many factors trigger mental health issues. For example, our thoughts, toxic emotions, addictive behavior, problems in the metabolic process, hormonal fluctuations, environmental stimuli, and minor accidents may cause imbalances of neuro-chemicals. Thus they manifest as mental issues.
Medication is essential for some of us with severe and chronic mental conditions. However, sometimes side effects of medications, muscle pain, and inflammation might cause chemical imbalances that require some lifestyle changes.
In this article, I focused on a first aid kid based on lifestyle choices. Most of these techniques can be used with prior approval from our medical supervisor.
However, to be on the safe side, even healthy and natural lifestyle choices may cause complications in certain circumstances. Therefore, it is always good to obtain advice from healthcare professionals to validate our lifestyle choices, particularly related to our mental health.
Each of us is unique and has different physical and mental conditions coupled with genetic predispositions and lifestyle choices. Thus, we all can have various tools in our mental health first aid kit based on our needs.
It can be beneficial to create a mental health first aid kit with assistance from our trusted healthcare professionals and use them safely when needed. I only provided some examples to give you an idea. It is up to you to determine what works for you and customize them for your mental health requirements.
A preventive approach to our health is crucial as addressing diseases once they happen can be onerous, inflict suffering, and cause substantial costs. Therefore, regular health check-ups are necessary to identify risk factors and detect early signs of mental health conditions causing millions of deaths and sicknesses globally.
Assessing our health status can be achieved using biomarkers as valuable indicators. It may seem perplexing to relate biomarkers to mental health and cognitive function. However, considering them merely psychological and detached from biology disregards the crucial principle of holistic health.
Please note that this story is not health advice. I shared my reviews, observations, and perspectives for information purposes only, If you have related diseases, please consult your healthcare professionals.
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I also compile mental health stories from other writers.
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