For this initial discussion board post, I would like you to respond to one of two different approaches to wellness. In the podcast episode “Brene on Anxiety, Calm + Over/Under-Functioning,” https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-on-anxiety-calm-over-under-functioning/  Brene Brown explores what it means to “over/under-function,” how anxiety can be spread between people, and how calm can be approached in one’s life. Likewise, in “There’s No Shame in Taking Care of Your Mental Health,” Sangu Delle addresses stigma connected to mental health in multiple West African societies.  https://www.ted.com/talks/sangu_delle_there_s_no_shame_in_taking_care_of_your_mental_health?language=en

Option One: Think of a time in which you “over-functioned” as Brown illustrates in the narrative surrounding her mother’s surgery (approximately 8:45 – 20:00). Offer some detail about what was going on at the time to cause anxiety (for Brown, her mother was going to have surgery to install a pacemaker). How did you discover that you were over-functioning? (For Brown, her two sisters confronted her and informed her that they could help plan for their mother’s surgery.) Once you realized that you were over-functioning at that time, how did you react to this realization? (for Brown, she states that she lost control of her body, collapsed in a chair, and cried uncontrollably.) As you reflect on this personal experience, how would you characterize your preparedness to manage future situations in which you might over-function?

Option Two: Delle shares a personal narrative in which a high school nurse inquired about his mental health after learning about the death of several of Delle’s family members. Delle reveals that he questioned the mental wellness of this nurse and subsequently explained that “We as Africans often respond to mental health with distance, ignorance, guilt, fear, and anger.” Provide your own assessment of how your own culture, community, or society responds to questions about mental health. Offer examples from your own observations and other relevant sources to illustrate your response. Toward the end of the TED Talk, Delle makes the following claim: “We need to see mental health as important as physical health.” Why do you think that your culture, community, or society (in general) dedicates more attention to physical wellness than mental health? And, what do these reasons suggest about the struggles your culture, community, or society will have to overcome to treat physical health and mental wellness as equally important?

Now that both options have been established, please select one and compose a written response to it. Your responses will be visible to all class members, so choose an option to which you are comfortable responding. Also know that later this week other class members will respond to what you compose here (so that we can engage in additional layers/levels of discussion).

In total, aim for 250 – 300 words for your response.