I gave a talk to 1st Year Medicine students. There were slides. Those slides are attached. The world is again in balance.
On the 18th March, I got the opportunity to speak to 1st Year Medicine students on the topics of mental health, mental fitness, self-care and behaviour change.
I was building on a couple of lectures that psychologist Robert Skurray had already done on support services and self-care.
My presentation was held in the large seminar room on the 4th floor of FMC – a room I like talking in.
The slides for that presentation can be found here
Whilst the slides are most relevant to those in attendance, anyone wanting to explore these topics might find some value in them.
As a little experiment, I asked chatGPT to provide a summary of the slides.
Here is what it said (with some minor corrections from me)
The slides from the “MD1 Mental Fitness 2024” presentation cover a broad spectrum of topics related to mental health, mental fitness, self-care, and behaviour change, framed within a context of professional and personal development.
The presentation begins with an acknowledgment of the traditional custodians of the land, reflecting on the significance of this gesture and the presenter’s personal journey towards recognizing the interconnectedness of people with the land, water, animals, sky, and stars. It highlights the importance of caring for the country as part of being a responsible guest on Indigenous lands.
The main content focuses on the concept of mental health as a dynamic and multidimensional aspect of human life, emphasizing the role of the nervous system and the brain in determining our mental fitness and capacity for learning, reasoning, problem-solving, and emotional regulation. The presentation delves into strategies for maintaining and improving mental health through self-care, which includes managing physical health, psychological health, social connections, and well-being on a daily basis. It also explores the distinctions between mental health and mental illness, presenting mental health as an integrated well-being of both the brain and the mind, where cognitive processes, emotional regulation, and social interactions are optimally functioning.
The presentation suggests a comprehensive approach to mental health, incorporating aspects of mind health such as cognitive functions, emotional experiences, social and relational aspects, self-related processes, and behavioural patterns, as well as aspects of brain health like structural integrity, neurochemical balance, cognitive functioning, neuroplasticity, and vascular health. It concludes with actionable insights on self-assessment and improvement across various domains of mental health, stressing the importance of context in understanding and addressing mental health issues.
The slides propose a holistic view of mental health that encompasses the physiological wellness of the brain and the psychological and emotional well-being of an individual, suggesting that optimal mental health is achieved through a combination of protective and proactive measures that support both brain and mind health.
I think chatGPT’s description of the presentation makes it sound far more impressive that what I actually presented!
Regardless, I really enjoyed delivering the session and I hope those in attendance got some value out of it.
Take care
G
