#8- Dr. Francine MacInnis

The obvious golden nugget that i’ve taken away from my conversation with Francine was the idea that mental health has many parallels to physical health. She calls this Emotional Fitness. One could mistakenly be convinced that they're physically healthy if they simply don’t have any symptoms of illness or injury in the present moment. But the absence of symptoms is not the same as thriving. There could be some underlying weaknesses that can cause problems in the future because one is not optimally fit. This is how you tear ligaments when running or get hurt when you fall. 

 

A great way to put this into perspective is asking if a “professional" such as a physiotherapist sees this person as physically healthy. They’d likely see room for improvement and prevention. The therapist, equipped with knowledge on what makes people thrive long-term, could prescribe exercises that would better equip you for any future problems. 

 

Our mental health is the exact same. Not having any symptoms of mental illness is not a strong case to a mental health professional that practicing healthy habits “isn’t for you." Practice whether it be getting the right amount of sleep, exercise, meditation or journaling can better prepare you for any situation that life may throw at you. 

 

When looking at mental health through the lens of physical health, a couple of principles come to mind. One being that you can’t just put the handwork necessary to get fit and then be done with it. You’re never “done." It takes CONSTANT practice. Another being that there’s ALWAYS ROOM for improvement. and THAT is what the 6AM mindset is all about.