Emotional Wellness Tips for Mental Health Awareness Month

Presence Medical Group Family Medicine Physician Offers Emotional Wellness Tips for Mental Health Awareness Month

Kirsten Hefele, MD, says, “Our mental health helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others and make life choices.”

Often one’s first reaction to physical pain – whether it’s a skinned knee or a more serious health condition – is to address it immediately, talk about it, and visit a doctor for relief. Why don’t we address emotional pain the same way? In our fast-paced, always-connected world, emotional and mental health issues are not uncommon. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), “One in five adults experience mental illness in a given year, and 20% of youth ages 13-18 live with a mental health condition.”

Family medicine physician Kirsten Hefele, who serves on staff at Presence Saint Joseph Hospital in Chicago, says, “Generalized anxiety disorder and depression are both prevalent in adults and children, and something we in primary care deal with on a daily basis.” According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADDA), “Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults age 18 and older (18.1% of the population) each year.” A good place to start when it comes to addressing mental health issues like depression or anxiety is to simply open the door to conversation.

Dr. Hefele says, “Mental health includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel and act.” Adding, “Our mental health helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others and make life choices.” She reports that signs of poor emotional health may include: eating or sleeping too much or too little; feeling hopeless, helpless, forgetful, angry or worried; and having low or no energy. It’s hard to not get worn down after a long day of work, commuting and family commitments, but with the right coping mechanisms, we can feel empowered to address mentally taxing situations with confidence.

Dr. Hefele provides the following insight on how to maintain a state of positive mental health:

• Emotions are directly connected to overall physical and mental health, so share how you are feeling with your primary care provider and talk through it.
• For busy families, it’s important to stay focused on each individual’s emotional, psychological and social wellbeing, and feel comfortable putting yourself first.
• When a negative situation arises, practice positivity by reframing the situation and looking at the glass half full.
• Maintain regular physical activity and get enough sleep to energize you throughout the day.
• Give back to others, as this will remind you that we all need help at some point or another.

To make an appointment with Dr. Hefele, please call 773.248.6913. To book an appointment online or read more about Presence Health physicians, please visit PresenceHealth.org/findadoc.

About Presence Medical Group

Presence Medical Group is a physician-led multispecialty group with over 80 locations and more than 300 health care providers throughout Illinois. Presence Medical Group is part of Presence Health.

About Presence Health

Presence Health is one of the largest Catholic health systems in Illinois, providing compassionate care to over 4 million people. With over 150 sites of care including 10 hospitals, over 15,000 associates, and more than 4,000 medical professionals, Presence Health has annual revenue of $2.6 billion.