A healthy mind is just as important as a healthy body, so we must take care of both the mind and the body equally. Most people are aware of their physical health and will seek help when needed, however not many people look at their mental wellbeing in the same way. I recently came across this inspiring Ted talk by Guy Winch on “Why we all need to practice emotional first aid”. In his speech, Winch discusses the importance of taking care of our emotions and minds. He encourages people to care for our mental health in the same way we would our physical health. Guy Winch discusses this topic in a light-hearted, humorous way. This Ted talk really makes you think about why we don’t educate people more on how to take care of their psychological health. One thing that stood out for me in this speech was that chronic loneliness could pose the same risks to our health as smoking cigarettes.
Watching this video reminded me about why I joined this club and how important it is that we spread awareness of mental health. I believe that in order to destigmatize mental illness we need to educate people. As Winch mentions in his speech, we teach kids to clean their wounds when they’re cut but for the most part we fail to teach them about their emotional hygiene. By educating people and spreading the word, hopefully we can one day be able to discuss mental health without stigma or negative stereotypes and treat it as we treat our physical well-being.
If you’d like to check out this eye-opening Ted talk, you can watch it below:
Written by Amanda Chao