Health

Do you discuss your mental health? No, why not?

By ALICE O’BRIEN

Churchview Psychotherapy, Millstreet

Would you tell people if you were feeling down? If you didn’t have the motivation to do your daily routine? Would you admit to others that you avoid situations due to anxiety? In other words, would you be open and honest about your mental health, or would you cover it up? Might you opt for another excuse- maybe something related to your physical health instead- vomiting bug perhaps or the flu? To be honest, most of us would cover it up, we suffer mental illhealth in silence, which confirms our false belief that we are the only ones who feel like this, we might even believe that we are weak or flawed because our thinking is not always perfect. Funny how we never expect our physical health to be perfect at all times. We don’t mind if we get the flu or an occasional joint pain or sprain- that’s OK! But it is not OK to feel sad, to feel depressed or to be nervous or anxious at times? When you do talk to others, it is amazing how many amateur therapists there are around and how much advice you might get. Things like- read a book, go for a walk, take a bath, try to think

differently. People want to tell you what they did, how their cousin swears by yoga or sea-swimming or whatever is in fashion at the moment. But, before you suffer under the cold shower because your neighbour says it cured her brother’s depression think about this; the only expert on you is you. You know what is right for you. You know what you are feeling because you know what is normal for you- and if it feels wrong for you then you deserve to be looked after. So, attend you GP and tell them what is on your mind. They will never judge you or think negatively of you. Seek help, attend therapy if you need to and talk to a professional. Get some research based advice and follow it if it feels right. Trust yourself and your feelings and never suffer in silence. Free Yourself From PMS

By MAIREAD O’KEEFFE

New Leaf Health Store

One in four women experience severe PMS every month. Common premenstrual symptoms include emotional irritability, anxiousness or feeling down. Combine these with headaches, extreme bloating, constipation or diarrhoea and understandably women are dreading this time. Susan Sheehan, Women’s Health Practitioner, shared with me her own experience and expertise in enabling women to heal. She says it is normal to feel tired in the days before your period but women do not need to suffer the way they are. And as Susan reminded me, we have around 450 periods and cycles in your life. So that is a lot of days to be in pain! We need to understand our whole monthly cycle, Susan shares. The term Menstrual Cycle has become much more widely known, many of us grew up only knowing about our period or ovulation. As women we have a whole cycle of different physical energy levels and emotions throughout the month. We have a rhythm where we feel lighter after our period, more hopeful, then moving into the next phase of living fully and feeling incredibly extroverted at ovulation and as we slide, or slam, into the days before our period we want to be alone and hibernate. And all of this is normal, and happens every month. If we make our whole monthly cycle a companion rather than an unwanted friend, the angst and pain will begin to ease. Some practical tips include slowing down in the few days before your cycle. If you struggle with cramps - have warming soups and stews or curries rather than dry foods. Headaches and migraines are caused by too much energy going up into the head so you need to reduce running around and stress where you can, even by 10-15%. Within two months of being aware of what your own patterns are, and making small changes, Susan has guided many women to live freely from PMS. Susan Sheehan is based at New Leaf in Charleville every Wednesday, and can be found at www.susansheehan.com or 087 0641086.

Susan Sheehan