Language is a key element in recognizing when we are practicing mental health and resilience (or not). To learn more about how language can predict mental health challenges, browse through this recent study from Yale University on how language sentiment can predict changes in depression symptoms.
Mental and physical health practices are key tools for career and academic success. As we swing into the semester, full speed ahead, we may find that balancing academic, career development, and family and social responsibilities may leave us feeling overwhelmed from time to time. Learning about, and mindfully applying strategies to navigate overwhelm, implement action plans, and get work done is a core skill that we get to practice in graduate school. Professional development activities and academic learning is #work, requiring intense amounts of emotional and cognitive energy. The brain (and the entire body) is, in the end, a machine, and like any machine, operates optimally under optimal conditions, and sub-optimally under sub-optimal conditions.
How we talk to ourselves matters. As self-aware cognitive beings, we have the capacity, as a first step, to remain vigilant in our self-talk and track our thoughts and feelings which, in turn, impact our behavior and choices. A key tool in mental health practice that enables us to pursue career success in a well-planned, methodical way is by recognizing unfair, harsh, criticism-based talk in self (and others) and putting in the repeated practice to replace them with quality, affirming, encouraging language that enables us to plan and meet goals in a more efficient — and healthier — way.
