Like good physical health, good mental
health contributes to good learning performance. There are many ways you can
improve and maintain your overall mental health. Some examples include:
Take time out. Take time out from a busy schedule occasionally. There are many
ways to do this. Start a hobby, go for a walk, get some exercise, spend time
with friends, take up art, singing, or music, keep a journal, or paint the
fence. These kinds of activities can give your brain a welcome mental break and
help preserve good mental health.
Make positive choices. Two people may react to an event in two different ways. Let’s take
an example of changing jobs. One person may see this change as a time of
excitement and opportunity. The other may see it as a negative and stressful
experience. This choice has a significant physical effect on the brain. In the
one who makes the positive choice to see the change as an exciting opportunity,
the brain releases more neurotransmitters that support that good mood (such as
dopamine). In the one who sees the change as stressful, the brain releases
more cortisol, a stress hormone. Cortisol damages the brain. The only difference
between these two outcomes (one keeping the brain healthy, one killing brain
cells) is the mental choice that each of these individuals made.
You always have a choice in
how you react to the events that life presents you. Reacting to events in a
negative way is still a choice in itself. Believing you have no choice is just
mental laziness.
Good mental health also needs the absence
(or control) of a wide range of possible mental illnesses. These can include disorders such as anxiety disorders, Attention
Deficit disorders, Borderline Personality Disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive
disorders, Panic Disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders, Schizophrenia, and
Phobias. The two most prevalent mental health issues in the western world today
though are excessive stress and depression. These are the two I talk about
here.
Seven of the top ten causes of death in
the USA associate stress as a primary contributor. This includes heart disease,
the top killer. Depression is the top ranked disability in the world for those
aged fifteen to forty-four years old. Both of these health issues negatively
affect learning and memory:
Stress. Both
mental and physical stress causes the body to release cortisol. Cortisol has both an immediate and a long-term negative effect on memory and
cognitive performance. Long-term excessive stress can irreparably damage how
the body regulates cortisol levels. This can lead to shrinkage in the
hippocampus, resulting in irreversible memory performance decline. Stress can
also increase the occurrence of depression in those more susceptible to the
illness.
Depression. Researchers
link long-term depression to lower levels of serotonin, a key neurotransmitter needed for learning. Depression also
negatively affects energy levels, attention and concentration. Both of these side-effects of depression result in decreased
learning performance.
If you suffer from either of these two
issues, or any of the others listed above, you should seek assistance from a
suitable medical practitioner. These are serious illnesses.
