Mental health is one of the most talked-about topics right now and the reasons are not far-fetched. People are becoming more stressed lately due to activities that occupy our daily lives.

An average person who reads the previous statement might query the relationship between physical activities and mental health. Whatever lifestyle an individual chooses to adopt, it always has lasting effects on an individual’s mental state.

Mental wellness refers to a general state of well-being in an individual. In this state, an individual understands how their abilities work. They can manage the stress they encounter every day, achieve productivity at work, and contribute their quota to society. 

There is no longer a big gap between ailments that affect the body and those of the mental state. Whatever affects the body can affect the mind too and vice-versa.

To understand how everything works and how to improve your mental health, you can look into how health coaching works and this will form a good foundation to get started.

As an experienced personal trainer, and owner of PTPioneer.com, I believe that health coaching can have tremendous benefits on most people’s mental health. If you’re keen on learning more about improving mental health, you can always take up health coaching programmes that are available online and in-person.

The general perception of health coaches is that they help clients adopt a healthy lifestyle. It is why people always employ the services of health coaches when they want to lose weight, manage stress, alleviate chronic medical conditions, achieve better nutrition, stop addictions, and engage in exercises.

For those who have opted for health coaching, they examine the complexities of their attitudes and actions. These examinations only underline an individual’s personality and behavioural patterns. 

To get a better understanding of why we should take mental health seriously, we shall analyse the dangers of neglecting mental health. Also, you can learn how touch deprivation affects our mental health.

Increase in anxiety levels

With all the activities people undergo every day, it is common for their anxiety levels to increase. There are never-ending deadlines to meet and work objectives to achieve. Worse still, many people still have to shuttle between work and their personal lives. Nursing mothers still have to go home and cater for their children. 

With these flurry of activities, such individuals must take proper care of their mental health. When they do so, their increased anxiety is nipped in the bud.

Scattered thought process

When you’re stressed, it is almost impossible to gather your thoughts together. Your concentration level drops drastically, and your thoughts are all over the place. Due to the state of your mind, you’re unable to focus on your thoughts.

Mood swings

When your mental state isn’t in the best of places, you can suffer mood swings. You might feel angry, unhappy, uninterested, cranky, and the likes.

Low self-esteem

When you suffer a bad mental state, you’ll lack confidence in yourself, feel awkward, not loved, unable to handle tasks, etc. You’ll have low opinions of yourself, and you can be easily hurt by others.

Worse still, you’ll sense rejection and disapproval even when it doesn’t happen. You’ll always be apprehensive of making mistakes.

Depression

When you start suffering a mood disorder, sadness, anger, or lack of willpower to engage in activities, they’re signs that you’re depressed. It’s normal for humans to feel down at some point. However, if it becomes regular, it is a sign of depression.

In the worst scenarios, patients suffering from depression can end their lives.

In light of these conditions, you need a health coach.

Many benefits come with mental coaching, and we shall examine some of them. You should not mistake coaching for therapy. Therapy refers to proffering solutions to problems.

However, mental coaching is therapeutic, especially when an individual has started developing symptoms of the mental conditions we mentioned earlier.

Lately, health coaches have included physical activities in improving mental health. Researchers have found that the best form of improving mental health is preventing adverse medical conditions, and they have identified exercise as a preventive measure.

Benefits of health coaching on mental health

• Enhanced memory. There aren’t many things more beneficial to individuals than enhanced memory. For most activities, cognitive ability is necessary. Memorising and remembering details are quite important for growth and development.
• Reduction in anxiety. Productive health coaching will ensure that your anxiety levels reduce. You’ll feel less anxious than you used to, and it’ll bring relative calm to your body.
• Improved moods. With a health coach, your moods are likely to improve. You’ll be devoid of all the mood swings you used to experience. You’ll feel happy instead of angry, your activity rate will increase, and you’ll put up a cheerful look.
• Increase in self-esteem. A health coach will help you increase your self-esteem. You’ll cease to see yourself as a failure, not many people will be able to hurt you, and you’ll deal with rejection and disapproval effectively. Overall, you won’t be afraid to take up challenges.
• Better rest. People with mental conditions usually suffer from restlessness. Their mental distortion prevents them from getting the required rest they deserve. However, with the help of a health coach, you’ll enjoy better rest. You won’t be deprived of sleep, and your body will always be in a relaxed state.

Prevention and management of depression

For individuals who are resolute on preventing themselves from falling into a state of depression, health coaching is recommended for them. A health coach will devise many effective strategies to ensure they do not seep into depression.

For those who are depressed, a health coach will set up working plans and sessions to ensure they overcome depression.

Strategies health coaches employ

For health coaches to achieve the best results, there are different strategies they employ. Here are some of them:

• Constant communication. A health coach understands that effective communication with clients is the best way to keep track of their progress. It can be done in person or online.
• Counselling. Health coaches offer profound counselling to clients depending on the need. They are knowledgeable about different aspects and can provide quality information on subjects.
• Exercise. Since it has been established that exercise can improve mental health, health coaches set up different exercise regimens for their clients to undergo. We must keep in mind that exercise has been shown to have a positive impact not only on physical health but also mental health. It should be taken very seriously as a means to combat mental health issues.

Tyler Read is the owner of PTPioneer, a platform dedicated to helping people get started in the personal training industry.