Checkup from the Neck Up

By Mark Loehrke
Appears in the May 2025 issue.

Mental Health Awareness Month is a good opportunity to do a little spring cleaning of the mind

Thanks to improved visibility and acceptance, mental health continues to shed its stigma and take the spotlight. As a result, many people now realize that issues like anxiety, depression, and substance abuse disorders can impact anyone.

Mental Health Awareness Month serves as a good reminder that, like other key aspects of our overall wellness picture, mental health is nothing to take for granted. And that is a message that Cynthia Hays—a clinical psychologist with Rush Copley Medical Center in Aurora—is particularly pleased to see continuing to gain momentum. Here are a few of her observations and recommendations to keep in mind this month (and beyond):

You don’t need a “problem” to address your mental health
“Historically, people have felt that mental health services were for those who were having mental health disorder or problem,” Hays says. “But these days more people are seeking out these services in pursuit of things like self-actualization or just to improve their life skills. Maybe they want mentoring or coaching or just someone with whom they can talk things through. We call these mental health services, but really there’s a wide variety of things that almost anyone can benefit from.”

Move from awareness to action
“Nobody escapes this world without going through something—that’s just life,” she says. “And that’s why this month is a good time to do a little check-in to see how things are going, both with yourself and with others. I think we’ve made some really nice progress over the years in reducing the stigma surrounding mental health and having these conversations. And I would really like to see that continue—for people to continue that dialogue and to be open to seeking out resources if they need help.”

A perk of the pandemic
“One good thing that came out of the pandemic is virtual appointments, which have helped make it so much more accessible for people to stay on top of their mental health,” Hays says. “With so much more online these days to get people connected to services, it just removes one more barrier to people getting the help they need.”

Spin the Wellness Wheel

Where am I right now? What do I need? What am I struggling with? Encouraging people to confront these types of questions is something clinical psychologist Cynthia Hays does regularly with an exercise called the “wellness wheel,” which asks participants to examine different wellness areas of their lives, such as mental health, emotional health, physical health, social health, financial health, and occupational health. The idea is to take the time to look for gaps in these areas and reflect on what to do about them—something most people don’t always find time to do in their busy lives. “Taking a step back and being a little more objective about these things is a great way to gauge where things stand,” she explains, “and from there it becomes easier to talk to other people in our lives about the same types of things.”

Illustrations: iStock