Hey guys! Maddy here again. This is going to be the last collating your responses post for a little while, but if you enjoyed the series, please let me know!
This week I’ve been thinking about relationships and mental health. I know that when my mental health takes a dip I change my social behaviours. I tend to withdraw from social activities or put on a front to pretend that I’m feeling better than I am. I know that I am lucky enough to have a strong support system around me, but when I need them the most, I definitely don’t reach out enough.
I asked the Mind Waves followers a couple of questions about mental health and social relationships to see the response.
First of all I did the poll: When your mental health is bad, do your relationships with others change?
100% of the votes said yes and there were 31 votes.
Then I asked you to tell me more.
Every response mentioned that bad mental health brings a feeling of disconnect with those closest to them. One response mentioned that a mental health dip causes them to struggle to keep in contact with those closest to them: “I get bad at texting for any length of time. I feel like a bad friend! I never make plans.”
Another response mentioned that when they were feeling down: “I don’t want to talk to anyone which inevitably makes it worse.”
Someone else wrote: “My self worth plummets when unwell… My energy levels are so low that I can only focus on one or maybe two close relationships for short bursts of time and that can take everything I have.”
This feeling of detachment from others and an inability to reach out is something I understand. Mental health problems can be so isolating and they can also cloud our ability to see things clearly. It makes us believe that we have nobody around us- even when that isn’t true. I hope this data can show you that you truly aren’t alone if you’re struggling, and if you have people in your life with mental health issues; I hope this sheds some light on one of the huge difficulties that accompanies them.
I am planning to finish off the series properly with a final post next week sharing some insights about the blog posts and having a chat about the data collection aspects of the posts. I have found this style of blog post really interesting to research and it’s definitely made me feel closer to all of you. Thank you for sending in your thoughts, you are all helpful, articulate brain-boxes!
No comments yet.