Mental Health IS Health

Mental Health IS Health

If it’s possible to take your mental health pulse, I’ve definitely been doing that lately. Have you?

Business paperwork. Family commitments. Community activities. Planning for upcoming responsibilities. Stress!

To my security guards out there, how about you? How are you doing?

It’s easy to get overwhelmed, especially if you’re new to the job. You may be getting assignments where you’re around more people than you have been since the start of the pandemic. Working a concert or a conference would be challenging for any new person, but it may be even harder now.

I know you’re already thinking about being in good physical shape to do your job, but you need to be in good mental shape, too. May is Mental Health Month, but we can start new mental health practices any time. For example:

  • Don’t go right to work after an argument at home. Take a few minutes to cool off. That may mean leaving home earlier than you planned, but drive slowly. Try a new route to work, which is always good to have. Notice the scenery.
  • Get into a different head space. Find a few minutes of quiet time when you can sit still. Just breathe and enjoy a happy memory, a big dream, prayer, or meditation. Do you have to go to bed a few minutes early for this? Great! You could probably use a little more sleep, too. Sleep comes up more than once in my book Rent-A-Cop Reboot.
  • Get help getting into a different head space. Have CDs or apps of uplifting music, sermons, talks/speeches, or audiobooks you can listen to on the way to, or from, the job. BUT, make sure you can still hear what’s going on around you. Whenever you can, take a few extra minutes to sit alone before, or after, your shift to enjoy whatever you’re listening to.
  • When times get tough, talk. Talk about how you’re feeling with someone you trust. You can also be part of community conversations about the importance of mental health, like Chris Hubbard of the Cleveland Browns.

If you can flex big biceps but often feel sad and angry, you’re robbing yourself of the full benefits of a healthy life. Decide today to take your mental health pulse regularly. That’s definitely a decision that will affect your tomorrows, and possibly the tomorrow of everyone around you.

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Join me Wednesday, March 23rd, 1:00pm ET when I’ll be part of a live, virtual panel marking Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month during the Petersburg (VA) Wellness Consortium’s meeting. The meeting link is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84525297235

Our Leumas Publishing YouTube Channel has videos on a variety of security and self-care issues. Check it out and subscribe!


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