Page 24 - Cornice Grade 8

Mental Health

What is Mental health?

Find the names of six characters of Animal Farm l Samanata Shrestha l

Ever since the first few months of 2020, our We’ve all heard that a lot of times, even though
ventures outside have been limited. While peo- we know we aren’t able to turn off our emotions
ple have remained in isolation for their own or change them. That is why it is important to
and others’ safety, isolation is as damaging to always be empathetic to others. If someone we
your mental health as it is physically. In some know is feeling upset for seemingly no reason,
ways, the Coronavirus has taught students how we should try to treat them with warmth.
to manage their emotions, such as loneliness,
sadness, anxiety, etc. Nevertheless, it has also Many of our sleep schedules have been ruined.
been crippling to their mental health. The ef- For a long time, students haven’t had anyone to
fects of social isolation can affect people of all make sure they follow their routine. Electron-
ages, especially teenagers and preteens. ics, games, chatting - we’ve been given a free
reign of the time on our hands. Without proper
Many students feel a lack of motivation, and time management, we don’t get enough sleep.
don’t even have the energy to do things they A sleep-deprived student is more likely to de-
are interested in. Some things we might have velop other health conditions. They lose focus
been doing lately, consciously or unconscious- in class, and they cannot pay attention to their
ly, are: work.

• Sleeping restlessly There are ways to cope with the loneliness that
• Not caring for ourselves isolation brings. Most of them involve spending
• Behaving aggressively time with others, which most of us have man-
• Difficulty articulating our emotions aged to do via online platforms. Even though
• Inability to concentrate isolation feels like heaven for introverts, we
all get lonely after some time. Still, we have a
It’s not easy to tell if someone is feeling low limited time online. Either we need to give up
- they’re always able to hide it with a smile. talking to friends or have limitless screen time,
When someone does tell us that they feel upset, thereby ruining our health further. I’m certain
we should react with warmth, not toxic posi- most of us found the second option easier. It is
tivity. Toxic positivity is the belief that no mat- important to stay connected in times like these,
ter how difficult things are, one should keep a but there is a limit to everything.
positive mindset. While this kind of positiv-
ity often stems from good intentions, it is ulti- Loneliness gets better if we spend time on the
mately harmful to the receiver. It gives people things we are interested in. We can spend more
the message that their emotions (especially if time on our hobbies. Reaching out to others is
someone has anxiety or depression) are wrong. helpful both to them and ourselves. Sometimes
Even if keeping a positive mindset seems to be the air feels heavy around us. Sometimes we
the right thing to do in trying times, people are feel sad for no reason. All emotions are human,
allowed to have their own natural reactions. and though some mental health issues may
Saying things like “Why are you sad? You have never get better, it’s alright to face our struggles
nothing to be sad about,” or “Don’t be sad.” and take the time we need.