Alice’s Book Club – SPRING session of 2024

With much joy, on Friday (May 31, 2024) I organized the second Book Club session of our Circle for the current year, and the chosen theme was Mental Wellbeing.

To everybody’s delight, this time I've invited 2 interesting guest speakers, who had a lot to say on the subject and who are very dear to me: a medical field representative, Mihai S. and a Counselling Psychotherapist, Luciana Susan.

As I often do in such circumstances, prior to our meeting, I gave my confirmed guests few reading materials about the topic (mental wellbeing), in order to spice up even more the group conversation, while adding more depth to personal perspectives.

Needless to say that my special guests of the evening were absolutely amazing, both delivering extremely interesting presentations, while offering many important details that we each could benefit from in our daily lives.

With much grace and professionalism, both of them answered questions, such as: - What is "Mental Health"? / - How can we self-evaluate and help ourselves when needed? / - When is it appropriate to seek specialized help?  / - What natural remedies are available to help us maintain our mental health, in a society where daily stress is increasing?, etc.

By now, most of you know that in my public briefings the confidentially of the personal matters discussed is paramount, but because I truly believe in sharing the knowledge far and wide, here are few key concepts of general interest that might be of some sort of assistance to you…

– Mental wellbeing constitutes a foundational pillar of human resilience and personal flourishing; it shapes how individuals perceive, engage with, and respond to the complex challenges of life

– Scientific inquiry consistently underscores the link between mental wellbeing and holistic health: stress moderation, restorative sleep, social connection, purposeful work and balanced lifestyle choices interact synergistically to sustain psychological equilibrium

– Mental resilience is strengthened through intentional engagement with meaningful narratives and pursuits that contribute to a coherent sense of self and purpose

– Communities thrive when their members are psychologically supported, empathetically engaged, and equipped to navigate adversity

– Cultivating mental health is both a personal & collective responsibility, requiring deliberate attention, informed choices & the courage to seek support when needed.

In essence, mental wellbeing is not a destination but an ongoing scholarly and existential pursuit…one that demands reflection, deliberate practice, and the unwavering acknowledgment that nurturing the mind enriches every dimension of human life.

The group conversations were truly warm, open, inspiring, deeply pleasing, as well as heart and mind nourishing, facts which again made us all completely forget the time, of course, in a flattering manner.

Concluding my briefing here, my sincere appreciation to the guests of the evening who honored my invitation, while I’m wishing them only the best!

Warm regards,

Alice

“What mental health needs is more sunlight, more candor and more honest conversations.”

MENTAL well-being

Mental health is extremely important for everyone and it needs to be carefully taken care of in order to have a good quality life. But what is this “mental health” since so many people are talking about in our society nowadays?

Well, before I progress with my thoughts on it, here I begin (as I often do) with the scholastic definition, most accredited academics of the world agreed upon: "Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behaviour".

According to several organizations from the health field, mental health is "the state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and can contribute to his or her community". In other words, "it determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making, including subjective well-being, perceived self-efficacy, autonomy, competence, intergenerational dependence, and self-actualization of one's intellectual and emotional potential, among others".

Pretty complex, isn’t it?! Of course it is, and that’s why governments allocate tremendous resources (accessible and comprehensive) in order to empower individuals with knowledge, but it is up to each person to be willing to stay informed and up to date on this matter. 

For your reference, here I’m sharing a fragment from the Government of Canada's website (the Division of Public Health Services), which lists few valuable points, concerning mental health:

Fragment: "How can you take care of your mental health?"

Take care of your mental health in the same way you would take care of your physical health. It takes practise, patience and support.

You can maintain or improve your mental health by following the advice below:

- Know and accept that life can be challenging.

- Know and accept your strengths and weaknesses.

- Set realistic goals for yourself.

- Accept yourself and others. This is the basis of self-esteem.

- Learn to recognize and understand that you and others have both positive and negative feelings.

- Create a sense of meaning in your life by learning and trying new activities, like starting a hobby.

- Create healthy, trusting relationships with people who accept and support you.

- Building a supportive community is an important way to improve mental health.

- Making meaningful connections with your family, friends, peers, colleagues and other members of your community can help you feel: like you belong, safe and secure, free to express your thoughts and feelings on issues that are important to you.

- You can help create a healthy and safe environment where you live, learn, work and play by:

* knowing and accepting that everyone has difficulties in their lives

* taking part in local events and getting to know your neighbours

* finding ways to get involved and giving back to your community

* supporting and including people of different ages and backgrounds in your community

Also, for my Romanian readers, below I’m publishing a text written by professor, doctor Leon Dănăilă, for whom I have a tremendous respect.

(As a courtesy, here I’m publishing the text in original, asking the non-Romanian speaking readers to use the automated translator installed at the bottom of the page. Thank you!)

NOTE: Neuroplasticity is the brain’s capacity to continue growing and evolving in response to life experiences.

"Dragii mei, dragile mele,

Astăzi vreau să împărtășesc cu voi câteva modalități simple de a stimula neuroplasticitatea:

- Utilizați mâna nedominantă: Faceți activități zilnice, cum ar fi spălatul pe dinți sau folosirea furculiței cu mâna mai puțin folosită. Acest exercițiu, cunoscut sub numele de neurobice, consolidează conexiunile dintre celulele creierului.

- Călătoriți: Explorați locuri noi și expuneți-vă creierul la stimuli inediți și medii înconjurătoare noi pentru a deschide noi căi neuronale.

- Antrenați-vă memoria: Utilizați mnemotehnici pentru a vă exersa memoria, stimulând conectivitatea rețelelor neuronale.

- Citiți ficțiune: Cititul unui roman și implicarea în acțiunea acestuia îmbunătățesc conectivitatea creierului și activitatea în regiunile responsabile pentru senzații și mișcare.

- Dansați: Practicarea dansului reduce riscul de dezvoltare a bolii Alzheimer și îmbunătățește conectivitatea neuronală, datorită implicării multiplelor funcții ale creierului.

- Asigurați-vă un somn adecvat: Somnul ajută la consolidarea învățării prin creșterea spinilor dendritici și transferul informațiilor între neuroni. Recomandat este un somn de minim 7 ore pe noapte.

- Faceți exerciții fizice și meditați: 30 de minute de exerciții fizice zilnic sau meditația contribuie la formarea de noi sinapse, iar consumul de flavonoide (cacao, afine) și antioxidanți (ceai verde) susține plasticitatea creierului.

Încercați aceste metode pentru a vă menține creierul în formă și a spori agilitatea mintală, indiferent de vârstă!"

So, dear friends, reading only the brief thoughts shared above, I guess we could safely imply that more often than we think, our mental health is in our hands and taking it seriously is an essential part of our overall well-being.

Your mental health is crucial; make time for it like your life depends on it, because it does!