Money on the Mind
How much do you value your mental health?
We might not think about our state of mind as a tangible thing to put a price on, until we find ourselves holding off seeking help as though therapy is an indulgent expense for the rich and famous. Yet now is an opportune time for everyone to invest in their mental health as affordable and accessible online support becomes increasingly available.
Along with threats to physical, and psychological health, the coronavirus pandemic has brought dire socio-economic challenges with it. Patients infected by Covid-19 pan prime ministers to homeless people reminding us that neither wealth nor status provides protection from this virus.
Nobody’s mental or physical health is worth more than another’s, yet money worries caused by the economic crisis resulting from mass illness and lockdown measures are suffered most by those with less.
When anxieties over health, money, or anything else become overwhelming, paying for professional mental health support can be incredibly beneficial, and despite austere times, taking care of your mental wellbeing is worth it, because you’re worth it! And now it wont break the bank, and could even help you become more mindful of your finances.
Why Mind?
Investment in mental health might sound like an extravagance in austere times, but really, it is as essential as your water, bread and tea bags.
Here are a few reasons why it could be worth including treatment, such as booking a session with a psychotherapist, into your lockdown bunker budget:
- You can get advice on making good decisions about your health, lifestyle and finances.
- When you are mentally strong, you are more capable of being there for others in need (a lot of people won’t invest in therapy if they feel guilty about putting themselves first — sounds crazy but we all know it’s true!)
- With a sound mind, you may be more content without so much need for unnecessary expenses such as unhealthy snacks, booze, or new gadgets.
- With less excess anxiety and stress, you are more resourceful — you can make new clothes out of old ones, DIY your own house, make positives out of negatives!
- You can seek strategies to cope with a certain irritating housemate or neighbour’s yappy puppy in intensified limited living conditions.
- A positive mind can aid physical healing, and is good for the immune system!
- You may even start to enjoy just being with yourself…doing nothing.
Yes the last one is serious! A peaceful mind knows no bounds.
The NHS and beyond
It can seem demoralising to know that waiting lists for free mental health support, which have always been high on the NHS, are only growing as national health funds are desperately over-stretched, and have been even pre-pandemic.
To support patients as much as possible outside of treatment appointments, the NHS website provides a comprehensive list of recommendations including free helplines for urgent cases, and low cost therapies.
Thankfully, public awareness of the co-morbid “mental health pandemic” is spreading as quickly as the dis-ease itself, and so innovative independent companies and organisations have been developing an array of mental health support options accessible online to reach further and wider than ever before.
Low Cost High Quality Care
It doesn’t have to be expensive to access highly trained and experienced psychotherapists. The new app Evermind has harnessed the remarkable global connectivity that has risen out of this pandemic and created a fair-trade model linking psychotherapists with patients across the world. This means talking therapy will be available everywhere, at any time day or night, in multiple languages, and at a range of prices!
Such online mediums aren’t time stealing social media, or money stealing advertising that take advantage of an anxious scroll for satisfaction, safety, and escape during lockdown. Mental health is priceless, and therefore worth a little investment to help you thrive and not just survive the pandemic, and beyond.
