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Mental health and maintaining it

What is mental ill health, and how can we maintain good mental health? 

As human beings, we all experience certain level of psychological distress, we can learn and grow through our experiences. At times it can motivate us, like useful stress can help us focus and get things done. It is normal for our mood to drop or rise depending on our circumstances and environment. 

Mental illness is a catch all term that refers to various psychiatric disorders. Just like physical illnesses, it can vary significantly in its symptoms and severity. Psychological distress becomes a mental illness when it impacts upon the way a person thinks, behaves and interacts with other people in society. 

Many people suffering from mental distress may not look as though they are ill, while others may appear to be confused, agitated, or withdrawn. 

Anyone can have times when they experience mental distress – in fact, it is thought that one in four of the general population will have a mental health problem at some point in their life (Mind, 2004). 
This doesn’t always mean something severe like schizophrenia; it can mean something relatively mild like an adjustment reaction or generalised anxiety. 

Mental illnesses are real illnesses - as real as heart disease and cancer. Like other long-term conditions they need and respond well to treatment. Some illnesses take a chronic course and service users need to maintain contact with services over the long term. However, most people who suffer from a mental illness (including those that can be extremely debilitating such as Schizophrenia) can be treated effectively and lead full lives. Our understanding of mental health is likely to be influenced by a number of factors; for example, this may vary from country to country and culture to culture. 

So what is good mental health:

WHEN OUR MENTAL HEALTH IS GOOD WE EXPERIENCE: 
Feeling in control

Being able to make rational decisions

Being in touch with our feelings

Being able to form positive relationships

Feeling good about ourselves
Knowing how to look after ourselves 

SOME FACTORS WHICH HELP US MAINTAIN GOOD MENTAL HEALTH
:
  • Talk about their feelings 
  • Write them down 
  • Keep active 
  • Eat well 
  • Sleep well 
  • Keep in touch with friends and loved ones 
  • Gain knowledge and the feeling of achievement
  • Set realistic goals 
  • Keep an eye on personal stress 
  • Find a hobby or volunteer 
  • Asking for help if you need - its ok to not be ok!

by David Coyle 12 Nov, 2024
Online appointed person for first aid micro learn.
11 Nov, 2024
Our MD, Dave Coyle, has won Instructor of the Year 2024 for First Aid Training in Suffolk and nationwide. We are so pleased to talk about this, at the annual ProTrainings (our Awarding authority) conference in Colchester last month, Dave won this award and this is what they had to say: “We are pleased to recognise Dave Coyle of DAC Education with the Instructor of the Year Award for his outstanding contributions to training, especially in high-risk and outdoor environments. Dave has shown unwavering commitment to quality, delivering extensive training over the years and consistently maintaining compliance and excellence in every course he’s conducted.” Of course, if you have been on one of our first aid courses and your instructor was Dave you will know that he challenges the stigma of a first aid course being boring, his enthusiasm, knowledge and personal experience brings elements to his first aid training that you just can’t find elsewhere. His unique training style includes imparting his personal knowledge built up over years of leading worldwide expeditions, Search and Rescue Manager, supervising Duke of Edinburgh and being a Community First Responder (CFR). No stranger to awards, Dave has already been awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal and the King’s Coronation Medal through his work with Suffolk Lowland Search and Rescue (SULSAR). This award, though, shines a light specifically on his skill at instructing first aid to those working outdoors and in high risk environments. I managed to catch Dave in between training courses this week and he says: “This award was completely unexpected but it’s very humbling to be recognised for the first aid training that we do and know that it is to an excellent standard. What's important to me is that people leave our courses with the knowledge and the confidence to be that person who steps up and gets involved. If someone needs immediate attention there's not an ambulance parked around the corner, so you have to be able to do something quickly.” While offering first aid training nationwide, in Suffolk alone, Dave has trained many people in a variety of high risk environments including Equestrians, Ecologists, Schools including Duke of Edinburgh and school global expeditions, Construction and Farmers. These occupations are often working in remote locations, far from help and can be faced with dangerous situations and this is where DAC specialises. Somany congratulations and well deserved and I’ll leave you with some final words from Dave: “I say it on all my courses, what I'm going to teach you is how to keep the wind going in and out, stop them from leaking and get help. It’s as simple as that. I don’t sit people through a boring powerpoint, that's not how these practical skills are learnt, I get people involved. I teach my outdoor course outside in the woods and I use actors in the more advanced courses to recreate patients and situations, that's how people learn and build their confidence. ”
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