Manifesting mental health to help improve self-care.
Maintaining overall health is an important part of creating a fulfilling lifestyle, and this includes taking care of one’s mental health. Unfortunately, many people don’t begin taking their mental health seriously until it has a direct impact on their physical health. Thoughts, whether they are positive or negative, will begin to affect the body over time.
“Our mental health is important for our physical health because our brains and body are deeply connected,” says Dr. Laurel Kramer, a psychologist with SSM Health Behavioral Health, which is an outpatient clinic with SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital.
Just as physical exercise strengthens the body and promotes the release of endorphins that can help uplift negative feelings, activities that focus on mental health, such as manifesting, can combat anxiety and depression while also giving the body a chance to rest as a result of reduced stress. When people choose not to focus on both their mental and physical health for long periods of time, it eventually triggers negative responses that compromise immune function.
When a person becomes anxious, depressed, stressed, or angry, the body produces an increased amount of stress hormones that can, in turn, cause inflammation throughout many areas of the body. One of the main hormones is cortisol, a steroid hormone that is released into the bloodstream. Consistently high levels of cortisol due to elevated stress can lead to symptoms like weight gain, high blood pressure, and muscle weakness, among other conditions.
“Emotionally based inflammation is also why we get upset stomachs, bowel problems, clogged heart arteries, increased blood pressure, higher physical pain levels, and flare-ups of autoimmune diseases like fibromyalgia,” Dr. Kramer says.
“Our mental health is important for our physical health
Dr. Laurel Kramer
because our brains and body are deeply connected.”
With the mind and body so interconnected, taking time to focus on mental health benefits everyone. One approach to fostering better mental health is manifesting, an act that emphasizes the power of a positive mindset and can offer some fresh perspective.
“Manifesting is about setting intentions to make a tangible goal happen,” Dr. Laurel Kramer says. “The idea keeps your energy focused each day on making small decisions to bring about your intention in the future, and this idea supports mental wellness because the intention includes our thoughts and attitudes in a positive manner as we do the behaviors each day to reach our goal or our intention.”
There are many tips and tricks people can use to manifest good mental health. Taking time to sit in a quiet room with closed eyes and deep breathing can help calm the mind. During this downtime, identify behaviors and subconscious thoughts contributing to negative emotions. Then, visualize ideal feelings and what the future will look like when those feelings are achieved. Set specific goals related to personal thoughts and feelings to reframe the mind from negative cognitive patterns. Creating positive affirmations and repeating them frequently can also foster a positive mindset. With tools like these, Dr. Kramer sees a high success rate in her patients when it comes to therapy and manifesting wellness.
“For my patients, I think they leave better than when they started, which results in 90% success,” Dr. Kramer says. “There are 10% who remain stuck in their negative views and learn to cope with them. It takes time in therapy and effort on the part of the patient to be persistent and consistent with changes in their attitude and behaviors every day, and roughly 5% stop coming too soon and don’t benefit from this process.”
“Emotionally based inflammation is also why we get upset stomachs, bowel problems, clogged heart arteries, increased blood pressure, higher physical pain levels, and flare ups of autoimmune diseases like fibromyalgia.”
Dr. Laurel Kramer
Manifesting and setting achievable goals increase the likelihood of internalizing positive thoughts and forming new behaviors for managing stress. However, positive thinking alone may not be enough. Dr. Kramer recommends communicating negative feelings to others through counseling.
“It is important to tell someone how you are feeling,” Dr. Kramer says. “It is equally important to seek help from clergy, a counselor, the Compass Crisis Center, or the emergency room if you are struggling.”
Counseling provides support by helping individuals cope with emotional stressors, providing a safe place to decompress, and offering solutions to overwhelming problems. At SSM Health, Dr. Kramer and her fellow health professionals work to provide a variety of programs that are tailored to individual needs, including adult programs, inpatient and outpatient programs, senior programs, and bereavement support. They also offer assessments for determining risk factors for anxiety or depression, and they utilize treatment styles like group therapy and substance use treatment. Dr. Kramer says that individuals needing immediate support should call 9-1-1 or the national suicide prevention line at 9-8-8. People can also text HOME to 741741 in the event of an emergency.
Mental health is vitally important for everyone, and manifesting mental health allows people at all stages in their health journeys to unlock their infinite potential and improve their overall well-being.
Support Systems: Individuals needing immediate support should call 9-1-1 or the national suicide prevention line at 9-8-8. People can also text HOME to 741741 in the event of an emergency.