Rosalie Crawford Webhealth www.webhealth.co.nz

I used to think being a fully complete and healthy person meant never needing to ask for help, that doing so was a sign of weakness.

In this superhuman state of mind, I missed the important aspect that being connected to others is similar to forming a large jigsaw puzzle. It's stronger if the pieces are not square but have interlocking strengths and weaknesses that connect people to form a bigger picture of a whole community.

We sometimes get tired or overwhelmed by how we feel or when things go wrong. We may function quite competently in some areas, but find we experience difficult feelings that can stop us getting on with life, affect our mood over several weeks, and have a big impact on the people around us.

As a significant proportion of visits to GPs are about mental health, it's timely during Mental Health Awareness Week to consider the theme for this year - ‘Flourishing for everyBODY'.

When someone is flourishing they experience a high level of interest and engagement with the world around them. They find more meaning and a focus on the more positive aspects of their lives. The community in which people live has healthy relationships which lead to an improvement in the individual's mental wellbeing.

There are over 100 health and social service community-based organisations in the Bay of Plenty and listed on Webhealth BOP that provide help around mental health. These focus on children, families, men, women, youth, the elderly and Kaupapa Maori, and provide home support, respite care, advocacy, counselling, stress management, life coaching, rehabilitation, and more, as well as helping those who care for others.

If a person's mental or emotional state changes or deteriorates quickly, this can be called a mental health emergency or mental health crisis. In this situation, it's important to get help quickly, and the Mental Health Crisis Team is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Mental health is about the way people think and feel and their ability to deal with ups and downs. It's important to experience a life that is flourishing and healthy. And it's OK to ask for help with that.

World Mental Health Day takes place on Sunday October 10. For more information and to find help visit www.webhealth.co.nz