YOUR ”HEALTHY SELF” PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER[MENTAL HEALTH]

NOTE: Most of my articles are from the book[ THE COMPLETE CBT GUIDE FOR DEPRESSION AND LOW MOOD] , edited by .LEE BROSAN and DAVID WESTBROOK . I also wrote many articles from many different useful mental health books.

There is only so much time in our everyday lives for contemplating and reflecting on things, so what happens in the long time?

Earlier , we discussed the different self-states that people with bipolar disorder may have , such as ” the depressed self” , ” the manic self”, ” the irritable and worried self” and so on. When you are in any one of these self-states you may experience a range of different feelings.

The last stage is to consider which self-state you would like to experience more. Some people call this ” my healthy self” , ” my real self” or ” me on an even keel”. The name of this state is up to you , but it represents a state that you can see will help you manage day to day, and pursue the life goals that you identified .

When people are able to visualize their healthy self will contain elements of our other states , including a range of negative and positive emotions. It may also include being able to contemplate and weigh up your life. If we recognise the value of all our different self-states and feelings , it makes it easier to consider what kind of self-state we would like to have more of.

Some people find it easier than others to imagine their healthy self . You may have had times in your life when you have felt like ‘ the real you’ and so you can bring this image of yourself to mind quite easily.

On the other hand, it may need to be built up over time , starting with something quite vague and becoming gradually more vivid and defined In therapy , people often think of particular situations , such as being on holiday , or talking to certain people , when they feel closest to healthy self.