Your Mental and Emotional Health Mental/Emotional Health – the ability to accept yourself and others, adapt to and manage emotions, and deal with the demands and challenges you meet in life

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Ranked list of those needs essential to human growth and development, presented in ascending order, starting with basic needs and building toward the need for reaching your highest potential. Level 1 – Physical Need to satisfy basic needs of hunger, thirst, sleep and shelter Level 2 – Safety Need to be secure from danger Level 3 – Belonging Need to love and be loved, need to belong Level 4 – Feeling Recognized Need to achieve, need to be recognized Level 5 – Reaching Potential Need for self-actualization

Level 1 – Physical Needs  Survival needs –Food –Water –Sleep –Shelter

Level 2 – Need for Safety  Safeguarding yourself from physical harm  Sense of security – safety of familiar places and people

Level 3 – Need to be loved and belong  Need to give love and feel loved  We are social – we need to interact with others  Want to belong –A community –Family –Friends –Social group (team or school club)

Need to be Valued and Recognized  Need to be appreciated  Valued by family, friends, and peers  You can meet this need by participating in productive activities

Level 5 – Need to reach your potential  Self-actualization – striving to become the best you can be  Having goals that motivate and inspire you

Meeting your needs  Meeting your needs affect your mental and emotional health  Some people choose risky ways to meet their needs –Joining a gang –Sexual activity  What are some ways to meet your needs in a healthy way?

Understanding your personality  Personality – a complex set of characteristics that makes you unique  Personality is an important factor in how you choose to meet your needs

Influences on your personality  Heredity –Plays a role in determining a person’s basic intellectual abilities and temperament –May also influence risk-taking behaviors and talents  Environment –Everything that surrounds you in your day-to-day life  Every person, place, object, event, or activity in your life –Role models  Modeling – observing and learning from the behaviors of those around you

Influences on your Personality  Personal Behavior is an Aspect of your personality you have the most control over –How you make decisions –What decisions you make –Recognizing consequences –Actions you take

Your Personal Identity  A sense of who you are –Your interests –Your likes and dislikes –Your talents and abilities –Your values and beliefs –Your goals

Your Developmental Assets External Assets  Support –Family support, positive family communication, caring neighborhood, parental involvement  Empowerment –Serving a purpose by having a role in the community, being valued by adults in the community  Boundaries and Expectations –Clear rules and consequences, adult role models, high expectations  Constructive Use of Time –Creative activities, youth programs, time at home, sports Internal Assets  Commitment to Learning –Being motivated to achieve, being involved at school, doing homework, reading  Positive Values –Compassion, equality and social justice, integrity, honesty, responsibility, self-control  Social Competencies –Planning and decision making, interpersonal communication, tolerance of different cultures, peaceful conflict resolution skills  Positive Identity –Personal power, self-esteem, sense of purpose, positive view of personal future The building blocks of development that help young people grow up as healthy, caring and responsible individuals

Working Toward a Healthy Identity  Recognize your strengths and weaknesses –Accept and take pride in your strengths –Asses your weaknesses and set goals for improvement  Don’t be overly self-critical  Demonstrate positive value –Make sure your behavior reflects your personal values and standards  Develop a purpose in your life –A framework for your mental health as you grow –Establish goals and working to achieve them

Working Toward a Healthy Identity  Form meaningful relationships –Enable you to express yourself and share experiences –Give you a support system  Contribute to the community –Your community is an extended support system for your family –Provides services and resources to meet many of your needs  Avoid unhealthful risk behaviors

Self-Esteem  A healthy identity will increase self-esteem and give you a higher level of mental/emotional health  Comes from understanding you are a unique and valuable person

People with high self-esteem…  Take responsibility for their behavior  Generally have a positive outlook on life  Like and accept who they are overall  Try to learn from their successes as well as from their mistakes  Build and maintain healthy relationships

Ways to improve your self-esteem  Focus on the positive things not the negative  Think of appropriate way to share your positive attributes  Engage in behaviors that will promote your health

A Positive Outlook  People with a positive outlook live longer and are healthier (mentally and physically)  Remind yourself that no matter what happens, there is always hope  Make plans to address problems  Look at challenges as opportunities for growth and learning

Self-talk  Replace negative messages with constructive criticism  Remember everyone makes mistakes  Encourage yourself