Self-Care Optimizing Mental Health Throughout Life's Journey
As we seek to be well and function optimally from a biopsychosocial-spiritual perspective, we can employ practices, introspection, and an array of supports and interventions to optimize our mental health. We journey through life endeavoring to care for our physical body through health promotion practices such as nutrient dense foods and physical exercise, similarly we can approach our mental health as an ever-evolving understanding of self and the self-related functioning in our home, family, work, community, and world. On a recent podcast hosted by Dr. Andrew Huberman, an associate professor of neurobiology at Stanford University School of Medicine, Dr. Huberman spoke with “Stanford and Harvard-trained psychiatrist Dr. Paul Conti, M.D. and Dr. Conti explained what true self-care is and how our mental health benefits from specific self-care and introspection practices — much in the same way that our physical health benefits from certain exercise and nutrition habits.”
We spend our life reflecting, learning, healing, and growing using mental health tools and practices that will aid us as we move through the inevitable difficulties, pain, and loss that is one part of a life well-lived. In this magnificent podcast, Dr. Conti explains how attention to our mental health, “can be done either on our own, through journaling, meditation, and structured thought, or in therapy with the help of a licensed professional. He also explains how unprocessed trauma can short-circuit the process and how to prevent that, and the role of friendships and other relational support systems in the journey of self-exploration for mental health.”
We are so fortunate to have the privilege and capability to be educated and supported by such world renowned, gracious, and insightful scientists who go to great lengths to share the breadth and depth of their knowledge regarding mental health and optimizing the quality of our life throughout the lifespan.
Here is the link for the podcast https://youtu.be/yOJvm_ri_hk, or you can search for Huberman Lab podcast Guest Series, Dr. Paul Conti: Tools and Protocols for Mental Health episode 4 of 4.