Surprising Factors that Influence Mental Health

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Marriage Counselling Mental health is a topic that is very lightly touched upon these days, probably because many individuals still harbor the wrong assumption that it is dependent on genes inherited from parents.

Look beyond this assumption, and we can easily find that there are tons of other external factors that have the potential to influence our mental health. Some of these factors are quite surprising in nature and often go unnoticed in our day to day life.

 

The following is a list of uncommon factors that can take a toll on our mental health and the ways in which we can suppress their negative impact.

 

Birth control pills

Pills meant for birth control are great at completing the job they are meant for. But they do come with an added caveat, which honestly most people are not aware of, especially the ladies. Studies conducted by renowned universities across the world have proved that birth control pills are responsible for affecting the mental health of those who consume it as it triggers unpredictable mood swings. Other symptoms of using the pill include being overcome by depression and also displaying alarming levels of anger. Hence, it is advisable to restrict the use of birth control pills and look at other side-effect-free mode of contraception.

 

Unemployment

Our careers determine the extent of success we achieve in our lives and the modern day society is not helping to change this mindset, as people generally use professional success as a yardstick to define the personality of an individual. So, being unemployed for months or even years together is definitely going to have a deep impact in your psyche and even psychologists acknowledge this fact. It is not uncommon for unemployed people to suffer from depression and stay reclusive. Their self-esteem suffers a huge blow and they don’t want to mingle with others. One way to avoid unemployment is to continue to perform well in the job and to constantly add to the skill set so that the person stays in demand in the industry he or she belongs to. A person who has been made redundant can also look at alternative career choices and do something that he or she has a passion for.

 

Home decor

The decor in your home not only affects the aesthetics of the home, it also affects the mental health of the residents. People might find this statement absurd, but it is substantiated by concrete proof that has been accumulated through extensive research. For instance, the colour red has been known to induce anger in people and the residents of houses dominated by this colour have often been found to be aggressive. Interior decorators and designers recommend the use of soothing mix of colours for homes, as it will help in creating a calm ambience. Colours such as yellow, blue, pink and beige come under the category of soothing colours and help generate positive vibes. These positive vibes will naturally put you in a positive frame of mind and improve mental health.

 

Bed lamp

How could a bed lamp possibly have an influence on mental health? It might sound ridiculous; nevertheless, it is a stark fact. Some people have the tendency to leave a bed lamp on for the entire night. Exposing the human body to light sources during the night can cause a significant dip in the production of a chemical called melatonin, which regulates your sleep-wake cycle, and which has also been linked to mood disorders. Hence, those who are exposed to light from a bed lamp during the night could wake up in the morning with headaches, which can result in a bad mood the entire day. Switch off all lights in your bedroom and sleep in complete darkness for at least eight hours a day and you will notice that you are staying happy and positive throughout the entire day.

 

Frequent relocation or a sudden relocation from one place to another

Individuals whose family circumstances or job requires them to relocate frequently from one place to another are often subjected to substantial amount of mental and physical stress and this obviously has a negative impact over the mental health. Adjusting to new people, new culture, and new surroundings can take a great deal of time and some people are not so receptive to these challenges. Many of us feel a sense of loss when we leave a beloved place, but some go into a shell and avoid facing the outer world, which is not healthy. Some people are emotionally attached to a particular place and in most cases, it is where they were born and raised. A sudden relocation could lead to emotional turmoil in these people and some could even succumb to depression. Learning to build resilience is one way to cope with frequent or sudden relocation.

 

Has any of the above affected you some time in your life? Or can you think of any more items to add to the aforementioned list? Please leave us a comment and let us know what you think.

If you are looking for help, whether for yourself or for a loved one, our psychologists can assist in exploring underlying issues through therapy. Please visit our practitioners’ page to find out more, or call (03) 9820-5577 for an appointment or to make enquiries.

 

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Showing 2 comments
  • Dean Phillips

    Last Monday in the afternoon, my sister came over for lunch to which she told me she has been feeling sad lately due to her losing her job. She has been feeling this way for months and sometimes when she’s at her lowest she has dark thoughts of taking her own life. I grew worried and suspected that she may be undergoing depression. Due to this, I decided to do some research online to look into psychiatrists here in Newcastle. This led me to your wonderful post here which I must say is very informative. I really liked where you mentioned it is not uncommon for unemployed people to suffer from depression and stay reclusive. This is a great point you raised, which I’m sure those like my sister will be happy to have heard of. Thank you for this! I’ll be sure to share this with her in a bit!

  • Eric Berg

    Mental health counselors come to understand the information of clients through observations, interviews and tests so they can decide the best course of action to help their client. They often help their clients think and make positive choices. Mental health counselors are an extremely valuable part of the healthcare system. Common work activities in mental health counseling includes scheduling client appointments, completing risk assessments on clients as required, talking and counseling with clients , providing consistent care and treatment programs for clients, keeping accurate client records, files and documentation and planning the most effective treatments.

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