Emotional well-being is affected by a number of sociological, economic, and environmental factors. For instance, the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a decline in emotional well-being by 70% according to recent studies. A rise in the number of people diagnosed with depression (from 4% in the early ’90s to 6.1% in the early 2021’s), bipolar disorder (one-third of new cases in the Uk in the last decade), and alcohol abuse have also been linked to a decrease in emotional well being.
It is important to note that emotional wellbeing is related to both mental health and physical health; thus it is essential for all of us to maintain a positive mental health state. It is important for each of us to recognize and report any changes in our mood, thoughts, or feelings so that we may seek medical assistance if necessary. Emotional wellness includes aspects of self-awareness including awareness of your emotions and how they affect you, learning to manage your emotions, developing awareness of your thoughts and beliefs about yourself and others, developing your skills for stress management, developing your ability to listen constructively and understandingly, gaining insight from personal and life experiences, accepting and tolerating differences, developing self-esteem, maintaining a sense of humor, exercising to maintain flexibility and balance, maintaining friendships and romantic relationships, increasing physical activity, avoiding or reducing stress, resting when needed, and getting enough sleep.
If you are experiencing any changes in mood or physical sensations, talk to your doctor about potential medical causes. It could be that your lifestyle is interfering with your ability to maintain healthy emotional wellbeing. Emotional health has multiple components that are intertwined with one another. This means that a change in one of these components can lead to varying levels of emotional wellbeing. A lifestyle that is rich in activities and that has emotional appeal might benefit from the addition of some or all of these components, or a change in lifestyle that is lacking could lead to ongoing or recurring challenges that you need to address.
We as parents should cultivate in our kids the emotional awareness and the skills to recognize emotions they are experiencing, the ability to label them correctly and to know when to raise the flag. It is important that kids go prepared into the world with the right knowledge and skills, and teaching them about their emotions should be a priority for every parent. And given that there are so many toys like emotion cards and apps for that, it shouldn’t be difficult.
