Local View: Those living with mental illness are 'more than enough'

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time to highlight the importance of striving for good mental health.

Our head is connected to the rest of our body, so when our physical health isn’t great, it impacts our mental health, and when our mental health isn’t great, it impacts our physical health. It is evidenced by the fact that people with diabetes, heart disease, and even COVID have higher rates of depression.

A mental illness or poor mental health symptoms can include stomach aches, a pounding heart, and muscle pain.

If we want to be healthy, we must also focus on our mental health.

Striving for good mental health means focusing on nutrition, moving or exercising, and staying connected to others. It also helps to do things like meditation, mindfulness activities, yoga, and simply getting outdoors. Even if you live with a mental illness, doing these things can help you feel better.

This year’s Mental Health Awareness Month theme is “More Than Enough,” to let people living with a mental illness know they are “more than enough.” Mental illness doesn’t define people; they are more than their illness. People with mental illnesses are inherently worthy of life, love, and healing — no matter what they look like, where they are in their journeys, or what they are or aren’t able to do.

To make that theme reality, our communities must learn more about mental health and mental illnesses. We need to ensure that people are connected with resources, receive services, and have hope for the future.

During May, NAMI Minnesota is offering several free virtual classes to provide education, support, and hope. Topics include suicide prevention, Tardive Dyskinesia, self-care, mindfulness, youth resources, and more. Visit namimn.org to register and learn more.

You can also join our NAMI Connection Support Group in Duluth for adults living with a mental illness. It meets every Thursday from 6-7:30 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 1108 E. Eighth St.

Sue Abderholden is executive director of NAMI Minnesota (namimn.org), a St. Paul-based nonprofit that works to improve the lives of children and adults with mental illnesses and their families through education, support, and advocacy.