Mental wellbeing

A clear distinction is sometimes made between physical health and mental health. However, we know there is a link between physical health, physiological wellbeing and social wellbeing. Health conditions are experienced with a combination of physical symptoms, physiological factors and social factors.

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• This model acknowledges that a health condition involves different areas of your life.
• The physical part of the model refers to your physical symptoms.
• The psychological part refers to a person’s thoughts, emotions, coping skills and how their health condition affects their mental wellbeing and self esteem.
• The social part refers to circumstances maybe with family, friends, peers and other factors including employment or finances.
•  Your experience of your health condition always involves all these three parts.
• This model explains why working with all these three connected areas is important for your overall wellbeing.

• Low mood or depression
• Overwhelmed
• Shock or disbelief
• Avoiding people, places and things
• Distressing thoughts or worries
• Self-perception change
• Panic or anxiety attacks
• Anxious or fearful uncertain
• Frustration or irritability
• Lonely or isolated misunderstood

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The physical symptoms of different health conditions can vary. The psychological challenges that people face can be more similar.

Experiencing low mood and anxiety can be caused by many factors including:

• Experiencing challenging physical symptoms.
• Feeling lonely isolated or misunderstood.
• Feeling embarrassed.
• Experiencing distressing thoughts.
• Excessive worrying, leading to anxiety attacks.
• Avoidance of safe and beneficial activities.
• Feeling irritable and frustrated and snappy with others.
• Experiencing changes to self-perception or feeling shocked at the changes that living with your health condition brings.

Experiencing any of these can make managing your health condition more difficult.

• Shock or disbelief
• Low mood
• Lonely or isolated
• Distressing thoughts or worries
• Overwhelmed
• Self-perception change
• Anxiety
• Avoiding others or safe activities
• Frustration
• Irritability

• Changes to parenting or relationships
• Loss of daily routine or structure
• Financial stress or benefit worries
• Changes to hobbies and activities
• Housing or environment
• Employment changes
• Managing appointments
• Communicating needs

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These are some examples of additional stressors that people can experience from living with health conditions.

Experiencing changes when interacting with family and friends.

Not being able to undertake previous hobbies or activities such as playing football, running, or doing other activities with their children.

Loss of routine and structure in your day can contribute to feeling aimless or a lack of positive reinforcement.

Financial worries or stress applying for benefits.

Moving homes and experiencing changes to employment are also factors that contribute to people’s distress and difficulties.

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• This vicious cycle demonstrates that health conditions bring changes to the way people think, feel and what they do.
• Everyone can have distressing thoughts and feelings from time to time.
• Unfortunately, when a health condition happens, people’s distressing thoughts, feelings and behaviours can change and then become habitual.
• A vicious cycle of feeling low, distressed or anxious can then form.
• Our thoughts, emotions and behaviours are all linked, they also contribute to physiological symptoms with changes to our sleep, appetite, lethargic, palpitations, digestive symptoms etc. These physiological symptoms then impact your health condition symptoms.
• This vicious cycle highlights the integrated nature of your mental wellbeing and physical health.
• It highlights the benefits of managing your mental wellbeing to help support you in living with your health condition.

• Food and drink will help improve your mood as well as your physical health
• Eating regularly with slow-release carbohydrates
• Low GI foods (as discussed in week 1)
• A balanced diet including protein and 5 portions of fruit and veg a day
• Eatwell guide (as discussed in week 1
• The right fats
• Mediterranean style of eating (as discussed in week 2)
• Staying well hydrated
• Looking after your gut health

Looking after your gut health

• Reduce caffeine and alcohol intake.
• Increase fluid, avoid fizzy drinks.
• Chew food well and sit up straight when eating. Avoid lying down or being “slumped” in a comfy chair after you’ve eaten.
• Practice mindful eating

Recognize the difference between emotional hunger and physical hunger

For more information on the relationship between food and mood

• Needing to use a walking aid or needing to pace.
• Appearing breathless or fatigued with others
• Struggling to meet the demands of your previous or current roles
• Changes in your self-perception

All these can trigger distressing feelings such as shame, embarrassment and guilt

Misunderstandings and misconceptions from others contribute to social anxieties

Usual levels of confidence and resilience are often affected.

Consider using:

1. Peer support
2. Write your feelings down, use bullet points
3. Draw your feelings: Use angry faces, sad faces or happy faces

Offloading your feelings helps manage emotional and cognitive fatigue.

Resilience is not a static line: It’s rather like a rubber band that contracts and stretches as needed

Managing health conditions takes resilience

Unfortunately, over time, the day-to-day challenges can also affect resilience

Using support and techniques can help to strengthen resilience

You will have your own examples of resilience

Consider the resilience, strengths and skills you already have or have used previously

Other examples might be:

• using practical strategies or problem solving approaches
• improving any social isolation
• applying self-compassion on more challenging days

• Micro goals are important to use with health conditions
• Goals can be described as having a plan, focus and aim
• Make a list of small goals
• Plan to do something that gives positive reinforcement
• Goals can be set for the next hour, afternoon, day, week or month
• Break each goal down into tiny micro steps
• Small goals help with feelings of achievement and motivation
• They help you feel more in charge of your daily lives
• Goals create structure, routine and purpose

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• For people living with health condition’s goal setting is an important technique.
• Setting the smallest of goals can provide a sense of achievement, momentum and boost your confidence.
• Small goals can help you feel more in control of your day.
• Goals can be described in many ways.
• Having an aim: A plan, a target and a focus
• Setting realistic goals is needed.  Setting unrealistic goals contributes to feeling overwhelmed and feeling demoralised.
• Start with the smallest micro goals and record how you feel before and after doing your goal.

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• Remember small micro goals are better than large goals.
• State your goal or your aim clearly and precisely.
• What are you going to do and when will you do this.
• Consider the benefits to doing your goal, think about the advantages and the positive reinforcement you will receive from completing your goal.
• Make a list of exactly what you will do, when you will do it, how you will do it.
• This will help turn your goal into becoming a reality.
• Give your goal a fair try: If you have been avoiding people or safe, beneficial activities it can be hard reaching out or doing things at first.
• This is why small steps are crucial.

Increased feelings of anxiety and low mood can be debilitating and make managing your health condition more difficult.

Distressing feelings can fluctuate much like the symptoms of health conditions.

Try to keep your ‘self-talk’ supportive and compassionate especially when you have difficult days.

Many people benefit from either using self-help strategies or accessing further support.

We have options available in our service to help you manage and improve your mental wellbeing.

Please speak to your clinician for advice.

Visit Mindwell Leeds for useful self-help information and strategies for common problems such as:

• Anxiety and worry
• Feeling low and depressed
• Stress and feeling pressure
• Panic and panic attacks
• Sleeping problems
• Anger: (Anger can be a reaction to, and distraction from, other feelings such as guilt, sadness, powerlessness, anxiety and isolation. Mindwell Leeds has further information on anger and ways to cope)

Samaritans is always open to talk about whatever you’re going through. Open 24/7. Call 116 123 (free phone)

West Yorkshire 24-hour mental health helpline offers support, advice and information for anyone in Leeds. Open 24/7. Call 0800 183 0558 (free phone)

Connect helpline is a survivor-led service offering emotional support to people in Leeds. Open every night 6pm to 2am. Call 0808 800 1212 (free phone)

Connect BSL helpline is on Mondays at 7pm to 11pm, facetime, skype or glide with BSL trained staff. Call 07500 870 987

Shout text service struggling to cope? Text SHOUT to 85258 (free) any time 24/7 for support Messages are anonymous and won’t appear on your phone bill.

Contact 111 (option 2) to speak with the mental health team for urgent help in a crisis.