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hwiencek's picture

In class Aybala and I broke

In class Aybala and I broke health up into two categories: physical and mental.  But, we said that the two were deeply connected.  When I think of the word health, the first thing that comes to mind is the medical view--whether a person's immune system is working to its fullest.  However, I believe an extremely important part, maybe the most important part, is mental health.  I would define mental health as a person's psychological ability to cope with everyday stresses.  I think because I know that there are medicines and treatments out there for many diseases and bacteria I fear physical ailments less, but I deeply fear mental health ailments because I (for some reason) see them as being without cures, and thus I am helpless.  Also, the physical consequences of bad mental health seem unavoidable.  Thus, I put more stress (no pun intended) on maintaining mental health.  And, because of this, I see health as subjective/individual.  Only you can know when you are feeling your best (especially emotionally, as opposed to doctors/tests/machines which can tell you if you are at your best physically).  So then what does it mean to be well?  I think that it's up to you.  But, to me, it is when I feel best about myself, rather than when I am least ill.

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