Mental Health Foundations
This characteristic allows a mentally healthy adult to recognize personal strengths and limitations without excessive self-criticism.
A realistic and accepting view on oneself
Looking beyond a client’s diagnosis and considering physical, emotional, social, cultural, and spiritual needs applies this principle.
Accepting the client as a whole person
What a client notices and how the client interprets an event represent this component of behavior.
Perceptions
The primary purpose of crisis intervention is to accomplish this before attempting long-term problem solving.
Ensuring safety and restoring stability
Telling a client, “You may be angry, but you may not threaten others,” demonstrates this consistency-building skill.
Setting a clear limit
A mentally healthy adult demonstrates this ability by adjusting constructively to ordinary pressures and changes.
The ability to cope with daily stress
Keeping promises, maintaining confidentiality, and being honest help establish this essential foundation of therapeutic care.
Developing mutual trust
The internal statements and beliefs a client has about a situation represent this behavior component.
Thoughts
Remaining with a highly distressed client, removing dangerous objects, and obtaining assistance are examples of this first crisis priority.
Providing immediate care
When reasonable risk results in an unsuccessful outcome, examining what happened can help develop this deeper understanding.
Insight
Forming satisfying relationships while maintaining an individual identity demonstrates this characteristic of mental health.
The ability to relate appropriately to others
Asking, “What were you thinking and feeling before you struck the wall?” applies this principle.
Exploring behaviors and emotions
Fear, anger, sadness, happiness, and guilt belong to this component of behavior.
Emotions
Reducing stimulation, speaking calmly, and organizing staff responses help accomplish this crisis guideline.
Controlling the situation
Consulting colleagues, using supervision, sharing responsibilities, and maintaining professional boundaries help prevent these two relationship problems.
Overinvolvement and codependency
This phrase requires caregivers to avoid actions, words, relationships, or treatments that could worsen a client’s condition.
"Do no harm"
Allowing a capable client to choose between two appropriate coping activities supports this principle.
Encouraging responsibility or independence
Yelling, withdrawing, pacing, talking, or using a coping skill belong to this observable component.
Actions
Evaluating suicidal thoughts, violent intent, mental status, coping resources, and support systems is this crisis-intervention step.
Assessing the client
Keeping promises to clients, coworkers, oneself, and the profession demonstrates the importance of these.
Personal and professional commitments
A nurse notices that a client’s mental status changes as new stressors arise. This reflects the principle that mental health is this rather than fixed.
A changing or dynamic state
A nurse recognizes appropriate coping and calmly reinforces it instead of focusing only on problems. This applies the principle of promoting this.
Positive change or growth
A client sees two staff members whispering, thinks they are discussing him, feels threatened, and begins shouting. These four parts illustrate this behavioral sequence.
Perception, thought, emotion, and action
Deciding the appropriate level of care, connecting the client with services, and checking progress incorporate these final crisis guidelines.
Determining disposition, making referrals, and providing follow-up care
Recognizing negative thinking, replacing it with realistic self-talk, visualizing success, and focusing on constructive possibilities are techniques for developing this.
Positive mental attitude