Why you (actually) improve mental health

By Jordan Brown - Mental Health Newsletter Writer, Poet, Social Worker, and Advocate • Issue #275 • View online

Update: This is a new, shortened version of the newsletter you’ll be getting on Mondays and Wednesdays. Mental Health Update members will be getting detailed breakdowns of the previous days’ content on Tuesdays and Thursdays–and a special newsletter with exclusive content on Friday as well. Enough of that–on to today’s issue!

What’s the point of improving yourself?

Why try to develop yourself at all?

Is it just for the fun of it?

Or is there something deeper, more significant going on?

The reason you improve yourself is not what you think–it’s not about you.

Because that’s what you see on the surface.

Deep down, there is something else going on, something that will really surprise you.

Improving Your Mental Health

When I first started working on my mental health, I thought it was all about me, me me.

And it was…at first.

I was becoming happier. I needed to do this for myself. I wanted to sleep better. I wanted to feel stronger. I wanted to be less anxious.

I, like every waking moment of my life, was at the center of it all.

But the more I committed to working on my mental health, the more I realized that it wasn’t about me–that there was another very important benefit I was getting from the improvement process.

What (Actually) Happens When You Improve

Before I get into this, let me ask you something:

Why does anyone choose to set goals?

If you’re like me, your first guess is something like, Well, to accomplish them, of course!

It’s a good guess, but it’s not totally accurate.

Of course, you want to accomplish goals when you set them.

But what is the one why that gets to the heart of all why’s?

That particular why is this:

You set goals so that you become the kind of person to yourself–and to others–who can accomplish those goals.

Before you think I’m just blabbering on and talking in circles like a bad therapist, hear me out…

When you push yourself to accomplish more and more challenging goals, what you’re really doing is changing yourself as a person. It’s not about the goals. The feeling you get once you accomplish a goal is temporary. The more goals you accomplish, the more you realize it’s not about that feeling at all. It’s about becoming more enduring. It’s about building the capacity you have to withstand greater challenges, to be there for both yourself and the people around you.

This is exactly how it is with mental health.

When you choose to work on yourself, when you commit to improving your mental health, it’s not just about improving your mental health.

It’s about becoming a person who can improve your mental health. It’s about being that person for others. It’s about becoming stronger not just for yourself–but so that you can pass on what you have learned to other people. In the process, you lift yourself up, and you lift up the people around you.

Really, truly, think about that.

You don’t improve your mental health just to improve. You do it so that you become the kind of person who can improve your mental health.

It seems like a subtle difference, but it’s a much bigger deal than you think.

I hope you enjoyed this shorter issue. I’ll be experimenting with different kinds of shorter content. Please reply and let me know what you think. I love hearing from you.

Have a nice Monday, my friend,

Jordan

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By Jordan Brown - Mental Health Newsletter Writer, Poet, Social Worker, and Advocate

The Mental Health Update provides you with authentic mental health articles that make mental health issues like depression, anxiety, OCD meaningful AND accessible.

This is different from typical mental health newsletters and articles.

It's not just an Anxiety Email Newsletter or a Depression Email Newsletter - It's three weekly articles packed with timeless mental health wisdom and inspiration to start your day in a thoughtful, uplifting way.

I was tired of other newsletters blasting out generic lists of links and articles. And I was especially tired of them not focusing on the everyday reality of mental health issues.

So I decided to come up with something I wanted to read.

This health newsletter is like a caring friend that just wants you to feel better.

Mental health awareness articles don't need to be all doom and gloom and filled with jargon.

With The Mental Health Update, you'll get practical mental health information, tips, and new ways to view the world. Especially now, with people reeling from the effects of the COVID 19 pandemic, we need trusted voices telling it like it is.

We discuss topics like anxiety, depression, OCD, the mental health to mental illness spectrum, social and communication skills, and much, much more.

This is what a few subscribers had to say about The Mental Health Update:

"If you haven't yet subscribed to Jordan's mental health newsletter, you absolutely should. It's chock full of good stuff to read and will help make your day better. Not unlike a daily vitamin for your mental health and soul..." - JR

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"Jordan's mental health update is a welcomed email in my inbox. It often provides me with a chance to break from the mundane tasks of working in an office and take a moment for myself to hear his thoughtful and well put together thoughts on many aspects of mental health. As someone who works in the psychology field it's often a nice reminder and way of grounding myself to all the great work that's going on and the journey we all must take in supporting mental health. Thank you Jordan!" - Rob

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Why you (actually) improve mental health

The Mental Health Update provides you with authentic mental health articles that make mental health issues like depression, anxiety, OCD meaningful AND accessible.

This is what a few subscribers had to say about The Mental Health Update:

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