May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and this year’s theme is “Where to Start: Mental Health in a Changing World.” With the constant changes in the world, it can be overwhelming to manage everything happening around you while taking care of your own well-being.
If you’re unsure where to begin in managing stress, difficult emotions, and challenging situations, building your coping toolbox is a crucial first step. To support mental health in a changing world, the Johns Hopkins Employee Assistance Program (JHEAP) has developed a toolkit of resources that can provide support throughout May and beyond.
Here are five things you can do for your mental health right now:
1. Take a Mental Health Screening Test: Online screening is one of the quickest and easiest ways to identify symptoms of a mental health condition.
2. Start a Conversation About Mental Health: Simply connecting can make a difference in the life of someone who is struggling. It doesn’t have to be uncomfortable.
3. Practice an Attitude of Gratitude: This is one of the most powerful ways to rewire your brain for more joy and less stress.
4. Set Limits on Your News and Social Media Time: Checking in occasionally is a great way to stay informed, but checking nonstop can quickly become doom-scrolling and can cause feelings of depression and anxiety.
5. Leverage JHEAP: The Johns Hopkins Employee Assistance Program offers free, confidential support and resources to enhance emotional well-being and work-life balance for you and your household members.
Upcoming Webinars
Showing ourselves the same compassion we show others isn’t always easy, but research has found that self-compassion helps us be less self-critical, resulting in decreased stress, increased resiliency, and improved life satisfaction. In this session, participants will learn the components of self-compassion and gain tools for turning their inner critic into an inner friend.
