Mental health and why it's the most important thing in the world

I'm not really sure how to start this blog post. It's personal and it's overwhelmingly important. It's also severely under addressed in our society. Mental health.

It's something people toss around so frivolously as being this intangible concept that "needs to be good" and is "super important," but no one stops to think of what mental health actually is or about everything that truly affects it. To me, mental health is your wellbeing, your comfortability with yourself and your place in the world, happiness and satisfaction with your hobbies and daily routines, your social networking, but perhaps most importantly, your ability to be alone and be okay. Mental health and stability is so much about how you define yourself and how you feel about yourself.

I'm in college, clearly, so it's understood that life has it's ups and downs. I have felt minor stressors with school and work that come with a busy schedule and a type-A personality, and I have also experienced largely traumatic situations that have made me rethink who I am and what my purpose is. I'm just realizing something that I've never noticed before: EVERYONE has been here at some time in their lives. And even though it's difficult to overcome, there are resources out there to help.

I hate every time I turn on the news and see reports of another mass shooting, which was the case last night. The tragedies are overwhelming, and I don't understand why incidents like this are happening so frequently nowadays. But, maybe I do. Maybe it's partly related to this idea of mental health. Maybe we can help prevent things from escalating by opening our eyes earlier, looking around, and helping those who are suffering. If we start really understanding the importance of addressing mental health issues, I would hope that these tragedies would happen less often. And on a smaller scale, that peoples' feelings of anxiety and stress and poor self-image would hopefully also decrease.

On that note, here are some resources that can help you. Don't be afraid to use them. If you do, you are showing your strengths, not your weaknesses.

• National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255
• UF Counseling and Wellness Center: 352-392-1575
• NOTE: every campus should have a wellness center like this one! 
• Alachua County Crisis Hotline: 352-264-6789
• https://www.betterhelp.com/

Don't be afraid to research your options. These are just a few immediate resources to get you started.