Emotional Health of the Inhabitants of Mars

Why is this dimension of health and wellness important?

Emotional health is important because it means you can identify and manage your emotions in a healthy way. Good emotional health helps you become more resilient, self-aware, and content.

Why would this dimension of health and wellness be important on mars?

You would need to be emotionally healthy on mars because mars is a lot different than the earth, and going to a totally new planet and there would be a lot of new changes and challenges. It’s very likely that if you went to mars it would take a toll on you emotionally you would likely be isolated, stressed and you will have a bunch of new norms that you will have to get used to. If you don’t know how to identify your emotions and manage them in a healthy way, your emotional and mental health will deteriorate and you may start to develop a mental illness like depression.

What body systems does it involve and how? (circulatory, respiratory, digestive, excretory, nervous and endocrine, immune, integumentary, skeletal, muscle and reproductive)

Nervous-Includes the limbic and ANS. The limbic system is part of our brain and mostly responsible for our emotional life. It regulates the pulse, blood pressure, breathing, etc in emotional situations. The ANS also involves emotions because its in charge of the flight or fight response.

Endocrine- The endocrine system produces hormones. A lot of emotional problems have to do with hormones and your body having too much or not enough. For example, some of the endocrine organs have been linked to depression like the thyroid and adrenal glands.

What type of professionals cares for this dimension? (medical doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists, counselors, dieticians, personal trainers, teachers, pastors, etc.)

Social workers(help protect and support families and children), psychologists(Help diagnose and treat psychological issues), counselors(gives advice on psychological problems), therapists(help try to improve patients psychological and emotional health), psychiatrists(diagnose & treat disorders), psychiatric RN(nurse that specializes in mental health.).

Name and explain three problems or concerns that can occur in this dimension. (Examples include: depression, diabetes, anxiety, lung disease, heart disease, cancer, etc.)

Depression- A mental illness that affects how a person thinks, feels and behaves negatively. Someone with depression will feel sad and will lose interest in most activities. They may have a loss of energy, sleep a lot more or less than usual, and may have suicidal thoughts. It could be a temporary illness, or it could be lifelong but the symptoms must last up to 2 weeks to be diagnosed as depression.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)- a mental disorder that causes repetitive unwanted thoughts, urges and/or behavior. They could have an excessive fear of germs, unwanted thoughts toward themselves or others, organizing things in a precise way, repetitive check and counting, etc. They cannot control their thoughts and behaviors, they do them to get a brief relief of anxiety.

Bulimia Nervosa- An eating disorder where the person has a period of binge-eating, then purging. They purge by using laxatives, puking, over-exercising or fasting. They have an obsession with their weight and body, they will judge them selfs harshly. Emotional issues could cause this like depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, traumatic events, etc.

What steps can people take to be healthy in this dimension of health?

1. Stay positive- How you think can affect how you feel so if you think positive thoughts, you likely to do good in things.
2. Express how you feel to others-If you talk about how your feelings people can help you cope and will help you trust people which is good for your emotional health.
3. Take care of your body (exercise, eat well, etc.)- taking care of your body by exercising, eating good and sleeping help by releasing more endorphins, increasing serotonin and decreasing sleep deprivation which has a negative effect on mood.
4. Take breaks- Taking breaks is a good way to refresh and make sure you don’t stress too much or overwork yourself.
5. Accept yourself- sometimes people try really hard to be like other people and compare themselves to others because they don’t think they’re good enough. It is way healthier and saves you a lot of stress to love yourself for who you are.

Provide at least three resources where your classmates can get more information about this dimension of health. One must be an app.

Whats up-app-It uses cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT). it also has things like a positive and negative habit tracker, coping strategies, forums, mental health info, and so many other things.

psychcentral-website-It has resources like blogs, support groups, general information on mental health, quizzes, etc.

National alliance of mental illness(NAMI)-organization- They have basic mental health information on their website along with resources for everyone from law enforcement to the LGBTQ+ community. They also hold walks, events, and conventions.