Bachelor of Elementary Education (BEED)

LEARNING MODULE

Module No. 4 Your Mental and Emotional Health, What is Mental Health, Your Needs

Your Personality, Understanding and Handling Emotions in Healthful Ways.

Subject Code : 
Subject Description : Teaching PE & Health

Term : 2nd Semester

I. Learning Objectives: 

• Understand information and experiences in contrast emotional health involves.

• Ability to manage and expresss the emotions that arise from what you have learned and
experience.

II. Learning Outcomes:

•  recognize the value of an evolutionary perspective in understanding emotions and emotional

disorders.
• specify brain pathways involved in the perception and processing of emotions
• describe the rationale of approaches used in the diagnosis of emotional disorders

III. Learning Resources:

1. Required Learning Resources

• laptop, Textbook, Print out activities, module.

2. Additional Learning Resources

• www.mentalhealth.gov

IV. Tasks to Complete: 

● reading PE & Health book

● home activities
● module
● quizzes & exam.
 V. Content Items:

Lesson 1 : Mental and Emotional Health

Mental Health & Emotional Health?

You may have heard the terms mental health and emotional health used interchangeably. You may have even used
them as synonyms yourself. However, mental and emotional health have very different meanings.

Many people become interested in how to take better care of your general well-being, and others may want to
learn more about mental health issues and behavioral health treatment options.  In trying to learn more, it
becomes important to differentiate mental health from emotional health.

What Is Mental Health? 

The phrase “mental health” is used every day, from being the subject of news reports to coming up in casual
conversation. However, do you know what mental health actually means?

Mental health influences your thoughts and actions, and it covers three main types of well-being:

 Psychological
 Social
 Emotional

The status of your mental health can affect many different areas of your life, from your ability to manage stress to
how well you maintain your relationships with others. There are a wide range of symptoms associated with mental
health problems, including severe changes in mood, feeling a lack of energy, overeating or under-eating, insomnia,
excessive sleeping, and increased use of drugs and alcohol.

What Is Emotional Health? 

Like mental health, the phrase emotional health can easily be used in conversation, even if no one is quite sure
about the term’s meaning. Emotional health is having both an awareness of your emotions and the ability to
manage and express those feelings in an age-appropriate manner.

There are no instant fixes for bettering your emotional health; however, there are many steps you can take to
improve it. For instance, try to identify the positive in situations and work on developing your strengths instead of
focusing on any perceived weaknesses.

► Depression, anxiety, stress, poor body image, grief, loss, a major change in your life such as becoming a
new parent can all affect your mental and emotional health and day to day living. Sometimes it is hard to know
if what you are experiencing is depression or sadness, worry or anxiety.

Sadness and anxiety are normal emotions that help alert us to, protect us from, and cause us to act. This
is healthy! What is unhealthy is when these feelings become excessive, irrational, ongoing, distressing or
interfere with daily life. Depression, anxiety, stress, grief can be managed using interventions and
strategies such as cognitive behaviour therapy, relaxation, mindfulness and 'talk' therapy. If you are
aware you are not functioning as you normally do, you know something is worrying you, this is the time
to learn more about what is happening to you and perhaps seek help.
 Understanding good mental health

Your mental health influences how you think, feel, and behave in daily life. It also affects your ability to
cope with stress, overcome challenges, build relationships, and recover from life’s setbacks and
hardships.

Strong mental health isn’t just the absence of mental health problems. Being mentally or emotionally
healthy is much more than being free of depression, anxiety, or other psychological issues. Rather than
the absence of mental illness, mental health refers to the presence of positive characteristics.

People who are mentally healthy have:

 A sense of contentment.

 A zest for living and the ability to laugh and have fun.

 The ability to deal with stress and bounce back from adversity.

 A sense of meaning and purpose, in both their activities and their relationships.

 The flexibility to learn new skills and adapt to change.

 A balance between work and play, rest and activity, etc.

 The ability to build and maintain fulfilling relationships.

 Self-confidence and high self-esteem.

The relationship between resilience and mental health

Having solid mental health doesn’t mean that you never go through bad times or experience
emotional problems. We all go through disappointments, loss, and change. And while these are
normal parts of life, they can still cause sadness, anxiety, and stress. But just as physically
healthy people are better able to bounce back from illness or injury, people with strong mental
health are better able to bounce back from adversity, trauma, and stress. This ability is
called resilience.

People who are emotionally and mentally resilient have the tools for coping with difficult
situations and maintaining a positive outlook. They remain focused, flexible, and productive, in
bad times as well as good. Their resilience also makes them less afraid of new experiences or
an uncertain future. Even when they don’t immediately know how a problem will get resolved,
they are hopeful that a solution will eventually be found.

Whether you’re looking to cope with a specific mental health problem, handle your emotions
better, or simply to feel more positive and energetic, there are plenty of ways to take control of
your mental health—starting today.

► What are examples of mental and emotional health?

Mental & emotional wellbeing

 Anxiety.
 Body image.
 Confidence.
 Depression.
 Depression, anxiety & illness.
 Family & friends.
 Grief & loss.
 Healthy living.
 ► Characteristics of Mental Health

 They feel good about themselves.

 They do not become overwhelmed by emotions, such as fear, anger, love, jealousy, guilt, or anxiety.
 They have lasting and satisfying personal relationships.
 They feel comfortable with other people.
 They can laugh at themselves and with others.

► They can lead to feelings of isolation and, in severe situations, result in people self-harming or having

suicidal thoughts. they forget the emotional impact.” The impact of a mental health problem can be as
important as a physical health condition.

► Emotional health is about how we think and feel. It is about our sense of wellbeing, our ability to
cope with life events and how we acknowledge our own emotions as well as those of others. It
doesn't mean being happy all of the time.

► The Characteristics of Good Mental/Emotional Health

 Positive self-esteem.
 Sense of belonging.
 Sense of purpose.
 Positive outlook.
 Autonomy.

► Signs of Emotional Wellness and Mental Health

 Having the ability to talk with someone about your emotional concerns and share your feelings with
others.
 Saying "no" when you need to without feeling guilty.
 Feeling content most of the time.

► Value yourself: Treat yourself with kindness and respect, and avoid self-criticism. ...

1. Take care of your body: Taking care of yourself physically can improve your mental health. ...
2. Surround yourself with good people: ...
3. Give yourself: ...
4. Learn how to deal with stress: ...
5. Quiet your mind: ...
6. Set realistic goals: ...
7. Break up the monotony

Lesson 2: Your Needs Your Personality

Abraham Maslow’s Humanism

As a leader of humanistic psychology, Abraham Maslow approached the study of personality psychology
by focusing on subjective experiences and free will. He was mainly concerned with an individual’s innate
drive toward self-actualization—a state of fulfillment in which a person is achieving at his or her highest
level of capability. Maslow positioned his work as a vital complement to that of Freud, saying: “It is as if
Freud supplied us the sick half of psychology and we must now fill it out with the healthy half.”

In his research, Maslow studied the personalities of people who he considered to be healthy, creative,
and productive, including Albert Einstein, Eleanor Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and
others. He found that such people share similar characteristics, such as being open, creative, loving,
spontaneous, compassionate, concerned for others, and accepting of themselves.

Personality and the Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow is perhaps most well-known for his hierarchy of needs theory, in which he proposes that human
beings have certain needs in common and that these needs must be met in a certain order. These needs
range from the most basic physiological needs for survival to higher-level self-actualization and
transcendence needs. Maslow’s hierarchy is most often presented visually as a pyramid, with the largest,
most fundamental physiological needs at the bottom and the smallest, most advanced self-actualization
needs at the top. Each layer of the pyramid must be fulfilled before moving up the pyramid to higher
needs, and this process is continued throughout the lifespan.

Maslow believed that successful fulfillment of each layer of needs was vital in the development of
personality. The highest need for self-actualization represents the achievement of our fullest potential,
and those individuals who finally achieved self-actualization were said to represent optimal psychological
health and functioning. Maslow stretched the field of psychological study to include fully-functional
individuals instead of only those with psychoses, and he shed a more positive light on personality
psychology.

Characteristics of Self-Actualizers

Maslow viewed self-actualizers as the supreme achievers in the human race. He studied stand-out
individuals in order to better understand what characteristics they possessed that allowed them to
achieve self-actualization. In his research, he found that many of these people shared certain personality
traits.

Most self-actualizers had a great sense of awareness, maintaining a near-constant enjoyment and awe of
life. They often described peak experiences during which they felt such an intense degree of satisfaction
that they seemed to transcend themselves. They actively engaged in activities that would bring about this
feeling of unity and meaningfulness. Despite this fact, most of these individuals seemed deeply rooted in
reality and were active problem-seekers and solvers. They developed a level of acceptance for what could
not be changed and a level of spontaneity and resilience to tackle what could be changed. Most of these
people had healthy relationships with a small group with which they interacted frequently. According to
Maslow, self-actualized people indicate a coherent personality syndrome  and represent optimal
psychological health and functioning.

Criticism of Maslow’s Theories

Maslow’s ideas have been criticized for their lack of scientific rigor. As with all early psychological studies,
questions have been raised about the lack of empirical evidence used in his research. Because of the
subjective nature of the study, the holistic approach allows for a great deal of variation but does not
identify enough constant variables in order to be researched with true accuracy. Psychologists also worry
that such an extreme focus on the subjective experience of the individual does little to explain or
appreciate the impact of society on personality development. Furthermore, the hierarchy of needs has
been accused of cultural bias—mainly reflecting Western values and ideologies. Critics argue that this
concept is considered relative to each culture and society and cannot be universally applied.

► Your mental health affects who you are, or your personality. Personality is a combination of how you
think, believe, and behave to define how you are a unique individual.
► There are three main factors that influence your personality:
1. Heredity
2. Environment
3. Behavior
► Heredity is all the traits and characteristics that are passed along biologically from both parents to a
child. Therefore, part of the way you think, believe, and behave is inherited from your parents. This can
include your temperament, coping techniques, or emotional tendencies.

► Environment is all of the influences from the world that surrounds you. This includes your family,
friends, where you live, when you were born, experiences you have been exposed to, etc. These
environmental influences can help shape your personality from a very young age.

► Behavior is the set of actions that an individual participates in. You have the most control over your
personal behavior. Your behavior influences not only your personality, but also your quality of life.

► To understand the differences in personality, professionals have studied personality traits and the
influence of heredity, environment, and behavior in depth. Between 1943 and 1954, Abraham Maslow
developed a model of personality based on an individual’s needs .

► Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a pyramid model. It describes that for human growth and
development an individual must have certain basic needs met before they can achieve the most
satisfying needs.
These needs include:
• Physical needs
• Emotional needs
• Aesthetic needs
• Self-fulfilling needs

► Physical needs are the foundation of the pyramid, as they are the most basic needs. They include the
need to satisfy hunger and thirst, to sleep, etc. Physical needs also include the need to be secure, safe,
and out of danger.

► Emotional needs include our need to feel that we belong, that we are loved, and that we are valued
and recognized.

► Aesthetic needs refer to our need to know, to explore, and to understand not just scholastic areas,
but all the beauty in the world that surrounds us.

► Self-fulfilling need is the drive to achieve one’s full potential as a person. This has been coined self-
actualization, which is to maximize one’s ability or, simply put, to be the best you can possibly become.

► Why is it important to understand and manage your emotions?

 Recognising your emotions and learning to manage them is one of the most important skills you can
have. In fact people who are good at noticing how they feel and can calm themselves down or
adjust their behaviour are more likely to do well in life, have healthy relationships and manage difficulties
and set backs.

► Why is it important to express emotion in a health way?

Visualizing and localizing your emotions is essential: You are in charge of managing your
own emotions and feelings, without repressing them or hiding them. You need to express them in order
to be able to relieve and ease yourself and your mind, and so that they themselves can be understood

► Why is it important to control your emotions when you lose?

Emotions are powerful. Your mood determines how you interact with people, how much
money you spend, how you deal with challenges, and how you spend your time.
Gaining control over your emotions will help you become mentally stronger. Fortunately, anyone can
become better at regulating their emotions.

► What happens if you hold in your emotions?

“Suppressing your emotions, whether it's anger, sadness, grief or frustration, can lead to physical stress
on your body. ... And avoiding emotions can also “lead to problems with memory, aggression, anxiety
and depression”.

VI. Summary: 

► What is mental health? 

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel,

and act as we cope with life. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make
choices.

Listing your traits can help you define your personality.

1. For example, you might write that you are sensitive, caring, stubborn, determined, ambitious, hard-
working, and dependable.
2. Use words that describe how you think, behave, and feel in general.

VII. Review Questions:

1. What are examples of mental and emotional health?

2. What are four signs of good mental and emotional health?

3. How can mental health affect emotional health?

4. What does emotional health mean?

5. What are three characteristics of someone who is mentally and emotionally healthy?
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VIII. Assessments: 

1. What are three characteristics of someone who is mentally and emotionally healthy?
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 2. What are some good signs of emotional health?
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3. How can I improve my mental and emotional health?

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4. How can you tell if someone is emotionally unhealthy?

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5. What are the 5 signs of mental illness?

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6. What are examples of emotional health?

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 7. What are the 4 types of mental illness?
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