What is psychological health and how to maintain it

Definition of terms

In order to answer the question of how mental health differs from psychological health, it is necessary to first understand both of these terms.

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Mental health is certain characteristics that allow a person to behave adequately and successfully adapt to the environment. This category usually includes the extent to which the subjective images formed in a person correspond to objective reality, and also evaluates the adequate perception of oneself, the ability to concentrate on something, the ability to remember certain information data and the ability to think critically.

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The opposite of good mental well-being are deviations, as well as a variety of disorders and diseases of the human psyche. At the same time, if the psyche is in order, this is not at all a guarantee of mental health.

With a full-fledged psyche and complete adequacy, a person can have severe mental illness. Simply put, a person does not want to live. It may be completely the opposite: a wonderful state of mind, combined with mental disorders and inadequacy.

The definition of psychological health includes not just mental well-being, but also the state of the individual. That is, this is a certain type of well-being in which the mental and personal are combined, a person is doing well in life, while his personality is in a state of growth and readiness to move forward.

Psychological well-being describes the personality as a whole; it relates to several areas at once: cognitive, motivational, emotional, as well as volitional areas. In addition, this includes various manifestations of fortitude.

What is mental health

In psychology, the definition of psychological health is a person’s state that allows him to successfully adapt to changing conditions without consequences for the integrity of the individual. Such an individual is able to quickly adapt to new environmental and social factors, and can also develop independently and contribute to the development of society.

Mental state criteria

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Health is the basis of all human life, a certain guarantee of success and that everything will be fine. It is one of the prerequisites for achieving goals in life. In many cultures, it is not only the value of one individual, but also a huge public asset.

The psychological foundations of physical, mental and social health are usually considered in its two aspects. The criteria for assessing mental well-being are most fully disclosed by A. A. Krylov. They also apply to psychological states.

The scientist identifies criteria in accordance with the way they manifest themselves (various processes, properties). Krylov believes that a person who is mentally well can be characterized by the following properties:

• morality (that is, a sense of conscience and honor);
• concentration;
• equilibrium;
• optimistic attitude towards life;
• adequate claims;
• call of Duty;
• lack of touchiness;
• self confidence;
• lack of laziness;
• general naturalness;
• having a sense of humor;
• independence;
• responsibility;
• patience;
• self-control;
• self-respect;
• kindness towards others.

Based on these criteria for psychological health and mental health, which were developed by Krylov, it is possible to conclude that the normal psyche, as a certain component of well-being as a whole, includes a set of characteristics that help establish balance and enable a person to perform his functions in society .

A person with a normal psyche is adapted to life in society, and also takes direct part in it.

Health psychology is a science whose subject of study is the psychological processes of health and illness. According to it, the physical state of health or illness is determined not only by biological processes, but also by the following factors:

1. Psychological – psycho-emotional state, pronounced personality traits, way of thinking, degree of sensitivity, etc.

2. Behavioral - the presence of healthy or bad habits, types of reactions and behavioral stereotypes, etc.

3. Cultural - social environment, religion, ethnicity, etc.

This branch of psychological science is relatively young, but quite promising. Considering the reasons for the formation of a certain state of health, she also does not lose attention to the development of methods for preserving and maintaining a healthy state. The main problems considered by health psychology are the following:

• prevention of “unhealthy” behavior;
• assessment of the role of behavior in the formation of diseases;
• studying the relationships between physiological and mental processes;
• study of the motives that encourage a person to maintain healthy behavior;
• assessment of the role of psychology in the treatment of diseases.

What problems does health psychology solve?

Psychological factors are of great importance not only in the occurrence of many diseases, but also in their treatment. That is why the main issue of science today is the possibility of motivation to maintain health.

However, this task is not an easy one. How to be healthy? There are many answers that come to mind to this question. Psychological factors represent a wide list of phenomena, processes, and patterns of behavior that can influence a person’s physical condition.

Another, no less important task of the industry is the possibility of interaction between personality and disease. It allows us to reveal such issues as the influence of the patient’s mood during therapy on the speed of recovery, the capabilities of the human body in voluntary pain management, coping with oneself in certain conditions, etc.

The third task is the possibility of self-regulation. This is also important, because even if there are expressed motives to preserve health, not everyone is able to properly implement their own intentions. Moving from desire to a specific lifestyle is the goal of preventing disease. This is facilitated by self-regulation, self-discipline, self-control - it is necessary not only to have an intention, but also to find enough strength to resist temptation, follow recommendations, follow a diet, etc.

Medical psychologists conduct a sufficient amount of research to determine the factors leading to illness and establish the relationship between health and mental health. This also makes it possible to establish the mechanisms of mutual influence of personality traits on certain physiological processes, thereby identifying risk groups among people.

We also found out that health psychology is directly related to situational factors. This means that the biopsychosocial model is a viable tool for helping to understand the factors that influence health. Economic, cultural, ethnic, social characteristics are a source of information about possible behavioral disorders, diseases, borderline conditions, etc.

What else do medical psychologists do?

Despite the relatively short existence of science, the knowledge gained is already helping to implement a number of programs in practice to improve the health of citizens.

Psychologists use methods to change behavior, help improve lifestyle, give up bad habits (for example, participation in an anti-tobacco campaign - analysis of the impact of tobacco advertising on the minds of smokers). An important task is to educate the population regarding stress management. The latter is a real obstacle to the beginning of a healthy life, since not only can it provoke a number of pathological conditions, but it also contributes to the development of bad habits and prevents calm analysis and the search for ways out of unfavorable circumstances.

The task of a medical psychologist is also to strive to understand the reasons for refusing preventive visits to the doctor, vaccinations, and other methods of preventing the disease. The specialist is also developing programs to encourage routine medical examinations, since the latter are the basis for early diagnosis of serious diseases of the heart, blood vessels, and other organs and systems.

Medical examinations are not the only way of prevention. Disease prevention is also carried out by avoiding risky behavior - special driving styles, promiscuous sex life and much more. And this also lies within the competence of a medical psychologist, while it is important for him not only to prevent destructive actions, but also to stimulate the acquisition of favorable behavior - regular hygiene procedures, physical exercise, etc.

A medical psychologist indirectly influences the patient’s condition by working with other specialists - doctors, nurses. It trains nursing staff to interact effectively with patients and provides information on ways to overcome communication barriers. This solves the following problems:

• lack of understanding of specific terminology and, as a result, distrust of the specialist;
• lack of patient involvement when choosing treatment tactics;
• “directive” consultations – authoritarian style of communication, ignoring the needs of the patient, etc.

This is important when instructing the patient to follow doctor's orders and recommendations.

Medical psychology for people with incurable diseases

The objectives of this science are not only to help in the effective treatment and prevention of diseases, because there are a large number of diseases and pathologies that cannot be treated. Chronic serious illness has an impact on psychological well-being, especially in cases where it is characterized by limitations in a person's capabilities or pain. A seriously ill person is dealing with a large number of stressors:

• perceiving oneself anew with the disease;
• care issues (during postoperative, rehabilitation periods, etc.);
• financial expenses for medicines and honey. equipment, etc.

When faced with new circumstances, the patient risks “getting” a decrease in self-esteem, depression, a state of despondency and depression. However, even though it is impossible to improve your physical condition, there is always the possibility of normalizing your psychological mood. Improving the quality of life through psychological well-being is the function of medical psychologists.

Pain management techniques are also important in the process of normalizing the psychological state.

Prospects for the development of health psychology

As mentioned above, this direction is relatively young - in Russia this science is at the initial stage of its formation. However, issues of mental well-being and the relationship between the psyche and physical health are already among the highest priorities, which is why recent years have been marked by the publication of several manuals on health psychology.

Interest in this field indicates that in a short period of time, health psychology will become one of the leading areas of psychological science, which is also important for the field of health care. The development and implementation of programs will make it possible to more effectively prevent and treat many diseases, as well as provide care to patients and improve the work of doctors.

The article was prepared by psychologist Margarita Vladimirovna Poltoranina

Criteria for psychological state

In science, the topic of normal psychological well-being was developed in detail by I. V. Dubrovina. The difference between mental health and psychological health is that the first relates to individual processes and mechanisms of the human psyche, and the second is directly related to the individual in general, and is also closely related to the highest manifestations of the human soul, so to speak.

The term makes it possible to highlight problems of psychological and mental health. Dubrovina gives a note that a psychologically normal person is capable of possessing such qualities as self-sufficiency, understanding and acceptance of oneself. All this gives a person the opportunity to develop himself in the context of interaction with the outside world and people in various conditions of culture, economy, ecology and society of our reality.

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In addition to all of the above, psychologically normal individuals have such qualities as:

• stability of emotions;
• maturity of feelings in accordance with one’s age;
• coping with one’s own negativity and the emotions it generates;
• the most natural manifestation of your emotions and feelings;
• the ability to enjoy your life;
• the ability to maintain your usual state of health;
• adequate perception of one’s own personality;
• the closest approximation of subjective images to reflected real objects;
• the ability to concentrate one's attention on a specific subject;
• ability to memorize information data;
• ability to process data using logic;
• critical thinking;
• creativity;
• self-knowledge;
• managing your own thoughts.

So, what is the difference between mental and psychological health of a person? The first is a certain dynamic set of properties of the individual’s psyche that are capable of maintaining harmony between the needs of him and society. They are also a prerequisite for human orientation towards fulfilling one's life purpose.

The psychological norm is usually interpreted as the individual’s ability to live, as the strength of this very life, which was ensured by the most complete development, as well as the ability to adapt and personal growth in a changing, sometimes unfavorable, but completely ordinary environment for the majority. All this is a prerequisite for normal psychological well-being.

Psychological health of children and adolescents

The psyche of children and adolescents is very unstable: at this age there are frequent sudden mood swings that they cannot control. An important task for adults to preserve the psychological health of children and adolescents is to carefully restrain impulses, not allowing complete euphoria or depression to set in. To do this, it is usually enough to sometimes have a heart-to-heart talk with the teenager. Adults should also help strengthen the psyche by instilling in them useful skills, for example: the ability to communicate, reflect, set and achieve goals, and have a positive attitude towards life.

World Health Organization

What else is the difference between mental and psychological health of a person? WHO gives the following definition of mental: it is a prosperous state in which an individual is able to realize his own potential, is able to cope with the usual stresses and irritants in life, make his own contribution to public life, and carry out his work most productively so that it brings the greatest benefits.

WHO identifies the following criteria:

• Awareness (coupled with a sense of constancy) of continuity, as well as the identity of one’s own “I”, both mental and physical.
• A sense of identity and constancy of one’s own experiences in situations of the same type.
• A critical attitude towards oneself, as well as towards one’s own mental activity and its results.
• Correspondence of adequate mental reactions to the frequency and with it the strength of environmental influences, circumstances and various situations in society.
• The ability to manage one’s own behavior, taking into account compliance with various social norms, laws and rules.
• The ability to plan one’s own activities in life along with the ability to implement these plans.
• The ability to change the way one behaves depending on how circumstances and situations in life change.

By the way, there is even World Mental Health Day, which is usually celebrated on the tenth of October. This started in 1992.

Changing health attitudes

Studying health attitudes is extremely useful not only because it helps us predict who will engage in a particular form of health behavior, but also because it identifies the conditions under which people may change their health behavior. Researchers believe this may be facilitated by persuasive messages that increase feelings of vulnerability while increasing feelings of self-efficacy and response effectiveness. How can you get the necessary information to people? One of the goals of promoting a healthy lifestyle is to reach as many people as possible through the media. We've all heard television and radio messages urging us to eat more fiber, lower cholesterol, or quit smoking. How effective are such messages? Unfortunately, the assessment of the results of the efforts made indicates very modest achievements in this area. Media messages can lead to changes in health attitudes, but their impact on actual behavior is small.

Stages of attitude change

One reason why campaigns to change health attitudes do not always lead to behavior change is that people do not change overnight, but rather over several stages. Different methods of intervention give different results, depending on the stage at which the person with the negative habit is currently located. These stages and their corresponding processes are described by the transtheoretical model of behavioral change. Originally developed to work with addictive disorders such as smoking, this model is now applied to many healthy behaviors, including exercise and regular mammogram screenings.

The stage of an individual’s problem-free (pre-contemplation) existence is characterized by his lack of intention to change his behavior in any way. Many at this stage are not even aware of the existence of a problem, although it may seem quite obvious to their relatives, friends, neighbors and workmates. An example would be a drinking person who usually does not notice the problems that he creates for his family. It is therefore not surprising that such individuals are bad targets for influence.

The contemplation stage occurs when the individual begins to recognize the existence of a problem and thinks about it, but is not yet ready to take any specific decisive steps to eliminate it. Many people may remain in the contemplation stage for years, such as a woman who smokes and recognizes the need to quit but is hesitant to do so. For people in this stage, intervention procedures that involve changing attitudes may be successful.

During the preparation stage, people form the intention to change their behavior, but may not yet begin to do so. In some cases, this is partly because similar attempts have not been successful in the past. Other individuals begin to change their target behavior already at the preparatory stage, for example, by reducing the number of cigarettes smoked per day, but, as a rule, do not yet make a commitment to completely stop a specific behavior. In the action stage, individuals change their behavior to cope with a problem. In order for behavior to truly change, individuals are required to make an investment of time and energy. At the maintenance stage, people try to prevent the possibility of relapses and strengthen the results achieved. Typically, if a person is able to abstain from addictive behavior for more than six months, they can be considered to be in the maintenance stage.

The transtheoretical model is extremely useful because it takes into account the fact that specific interventions may work more effectively at one stage compared to another. In particular, informing individuals in the problem-free stage about their problem may help move them into the contemplation stage. An influence procedure can be used to move people from the contemplation stage to the preparation stage by getting them to evaluate the thoughts and feelings they have about themselves about the problem at hand and how solving it will change them. Interventions designed to encourage people to make commitments about when and how they are going to change their behavior can serve as a bridge between the preparation stage and the action stage. Interventions that rely on social support and practical skills will be most effective when working with individuals who have moved from the action stage to the maintenance stage.

Difference between terms in WHO

The WHO distinguishes psychological health from human mental health mainly by the fact that mental well-being is usually attributed to completely separate processes of the psyche, as well as its mechanisms. The psychological, in turn, is usually attributed to the personality itself in general. This makes it possible to separate the psychological aspect of any problem.

The aforementioned Dubrovina introduced the term “mental health” into the lexicon of science not so long ago. She believes that psychological well-being is an absolutely necessary condition for a person to function and develop fully in the process of their own life.

The connection between the psychological state and the physical state is currently undeniable.

5 Ways to Maintain Mental Health

You need to devote more than half an hour a week, or even three, to improving your health. This is a process, and it should become a part, a lifestyle. And not only ours, but also our family and loved ones. After all, their fate and the meaning of life often depend on how we spend our time and how we raise our children.

To maintain this health at the proper level, you need to know and apply the following methods:

1. Food

Nutrition is an important part of psychological health.

The quality of the foods we eat directly affects our psychological state. For example, if we consume more foods that stimulate the production of hormones, then our emotions will overflow: tearfulness, aggressiveness, laughter. These include hot peppers, garlic, carbonated drinks. Until now, the best liquid that does not cause harm is ordinary water.

Eating a lot of sweet, fatty, smoked foods, we become fatter and more puffy. And then dissatisfaction with one’s appearance appears. I want to close myself in a far corner, not see anyone, not communicate with anyone. This is a kind of mental problem.

2. Motor activity

Sports and movement not only improve muscle mass. This movement helps produce certain substances - endorphins, which are responsible for our good mood. And I think the best combination is a balance of sleep and activity. No one has canceled full-fledged walks either. Therefore, if such a balance is maintained, physical health will be at the same level.

Expert opinion

Zhanna Lipatova

Practicing psychologist. Work in the clinic for more than 7 years. The main area of ​​activity is methods of maintaining psychological health in different age groups.

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Psychotherapists claim that psychological and physical health are on the same level. Lack of movement leads to regular headaches and heart problems. Often doctors cannot find the true reasons, because according to tests everything is fine. But a person does not even suspect that he needs not a therapist or a cardiologist, but a psychotherapist.

3. Managing feelings and emotions

Feelings and emotions must be kept under control.

Never suppress your feelings, this is fraught with serious consequences, including for your physical condition. Hiding feelings within yourself affects relationships with others and loved ones.

There is no need to avoid negative emotions, they should be in our lives. If you can’t show your emotional state, then it’s better to do this: go for a walk, play with the children, exercise with sports equipment. There are many ways.

The ability to control your negativity is also an art; not everyone can do this. But it’s still worth striving. There are many ways: breathing using yoga techniques, counting to a certain number (I always count to twenty - it helps), relaxation, meditation. Everyone chooses their own: what is more convenient, easier, more pleasant. Meditation techniques will help stabilize your general condition.

4. Self-development

The state of internal psychological balance largely depends on how willing we are to work on ourselves. Self-development is one of the ways to maintain and preserve psychological health. Where to start, look in this article. By analyzing our actions, we can do a lot - raise our capabilities, raise our own self-esteem.

Otherwise, we will be mired in failures, dissatisfaction, and negative emotions. Therefore, it is worth thinking about the following facts:

a) Accept responsibility. Understand that no one can solve your own problems for you. There is no point in blaming someone for failures. It's better to try to figure out how to solve them.

b) Boundaries of involvement. We are used to experiencing misfortunes and failures of loved ones as if they were our own. In fact, there is nothing good here. We forget about ourselves. In addition, with each such emotional experience, the strength runs out. Therefore, everything should have moderation; it is worth remembering that we are not a piggy bank for negative feelings. We leave time for ourselves and our interests.

c) Develop confidence . Knowing that our steps are correct, therefore any business is successful. In order not to leave the race, you need to work hard and hard on yourself.

d) Approval, support . If these two aspects are present, then any activity moves much easier, there is a focus on success. Therefore, each of us feels needed.

e) We strive for mutual understanding . You should not distance yourself from your loved ones and relatives. Otherwise, in difficult circumstances, they will also turn away.

5. Learning to live positively

I’ll tell you a secret, I’ve experienced it myself: don’t feed yourself daily negativity. This is manifested in the following: information on TV, radio, mobile communications. Distance yourself as much as possible from those people who whine all the time and are dissatisfied with life and the situation. If you understand and accept this, it will be much easier. I have already understood it. In every situation it is necessary to look for the positive, the positive side. Draw conclusions.

In order for life not to seem like a routine, change your environment and work. If you can’t go somewhere during the work week, then go to the park on the weekend, take up your hobby, devote yourself to your family and parents. Go shopping - this is also a good distraction and entertainment. There are many tricks. The main thing is not to turn your life into a stagnant swamp. Spend your time actively, usefully, and positively.

Psychological characteristics of centenarians

Jewett studied psychological types as forms of mental health of people who successfully managed to live to a very advanced age (80-90 years). The research results demonstrated that all these people had the following qualities:

Portrait of the desired result

Thus, if you draw up a highly generalized portrait of the inner world of a healthy person based on the characteristics highlighted above, then you can see a person who is creative, spontaneous, enjoying his life, cheerful, open to something new, who never stops learning about himself and his surrounding world, not only using reason, but also using your intuition and sensuality.

Such a person fully accepts his own personality, while realizing the value and absolute uniqueness of the people that surround him. He is also in constant self-improvement and helps other people with this.

Such a person first of all takes responsibility for his own life and learns useful lessons from unsuccessful situations. His life, of course, is filled with meaning, which he himself found.

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They usually say about such people that “he is in harmony” both with himself and with the world that surrounds him. From this we can identify a key word to describe the term “mental health”. That word would be “harmony.”

Factors affecting psychological health

Risk factors for psychological health problems can be divided into two groups:

The first is external reasons. These include negative influences from other people on the individual and strained relationships with society. First of all, these are problems in interaction with parents: a child growing up in a constantly negatively stressful environment may lag behind his peers in development and gradually acquire personality disorders. Negative relationships at school, at work, and in the company of friends have a slightly weaker effect on the individual.

The second group of factors are internal reasons. This is the influence of certain mental disorders on normally developing processes. For example, an unstable emotional background can have a negative impact on the cognitive sphere, and problems with personal development affect communication.

Agreement with yourself

A psychologically normal person has various aspects in harmony, which include mental, intellectual, physical and emotional. The criteria by which one can determine how healthy a certain person is are actually quite vague.

The very concepts of mental and psychological health of the individual and their norms are mostly determined by customs, traditions, moral principles, cultural and social characteristics of the community.

The ancient Vikings had such warriors, they were called “berserkers”. During the battle, they were able to fall into a state of some kind of combat trance. Such a person was simply irreplaceable on the battlefield, but outside this field the behavior of such a warrior can hardly be called adequate.

A not too sensitive and even cynical pathologist in his profession is able to realize his potential more than fully, while outside of his working atmosphere he may look somewhat strange in the eyes of other people.

The norm itself is a balance between adaptation to reality and reality itself, this is the task of developing one’s personality and self-affirmation, along with a sense of responsibility and some mental energy potential and activity. The norm is also the ability to overcome difficulties on the path of life and accept the challenge of the world around us.

Signs

The main criterion for an individual’s psychological health is successful adaptation to society. Such a person feels positive, has a high level of development of reflection, successfully survives crises of different ages, and does not experience groundless fears. He is not afraid to take responsibility for his actions and life in general, is not dependent on other people’s opinions, communicates freely with others and strives for self-development.

Signs of psychological health also include: activity, focus, success in relationships with loved ones, the ability to calmly resolve conflicts and adequately perceive what is happening around.

Mental health standards

The human psyche deteriorates with age (after about 80 years, sometimes even earlier) and during illness. Mental well-being is not something constant at all, it is dynamic. The norms for this condition include: