Difference between physical, mental, emotional, and social health

There’s a difference between your physical, mental, emotional, and social health. They have some connections here,  and there. So, if one isn’t well-cared for, it can affect the others. 

If your emotional health is not in a good place, it can affect other parts of your health like your social health, and even physical health. 

When one is down, the others feel it. Sometimes you may not know why you’re not happy or feeling good, it’s probably because one or more of them are lacking attention, and care. 

It’s important that you understand each of them, and how they affect one another. Which can help you know figure out what the problem might be, and address it early, and  get the help you need.

Physical health 

Your physical health is basically how your body is fairing in total. Under your physical health, there’s nutrition, sleep, exercise, including illnesses or injuries. 

Right now, think about good you feel after a workout or a good night’s sleep, that’s your physical health. 

Mental health

Your mental health is mostly what goes on in your head, and mind, basically your psychological health. It’s how you feel, think, and pull-through situations in your life. It also includes your self-esteem, or confidence, how well you manage when you’re stressed. Or if you’re going through any mental issues like depression, and anxiety. 

If your mental health is in trouble, it can affect your physical health. For example, a person, who isn’t in the right frame of mind, may not be able to workout, eat well, get enough sleep.

Or even remember to shower. 

That’s how bad it can be, and also the difference between them. 

Emotional health 

Many people tend to confuse emotional health with mental health, although they have a connection, they’re still different. Emotional health is simply you knowing how to understand your emotions, and control them. 

It’s about knowing how you feel about yourself, people or things, and being able to express yourself— in a healthy way. Also, taking care of your emotional health, can help you manage difficult emotions. Such as a heart break, friendship breakups, fights with your parents, siblings, partners, and coworkers.

Including that rude cashier at the grocery store.

It can help you handle issues without spiraling or causing harm to yourself and others. 

Your emotional health is very important, it can even affect your physical health.  And it’s important to have healthy ways of coping with your emotions. It’s not by running to foods, or talking to people you normally wouldn’t tell things. 

But by being honest about your feelings, staying calm, and finding solutions to whatever problems may come.

Although, it’s not easy. Anyone who tells you this, doesn’t know how it works or feels. It takes a lot of practice to learn regularly remember the difference between all of them, and how to care for these areas of your life.

Taking care of your general health is quite a responsibility, but it’s about YOU. It’s better to keep working on yourself, than to start dealing with the results of NOT working on yourself. 

Social health

This one is all about how your relationships, and how you interact with other people is. Although, improving your social health doesn’t mean you have to talk to people you don’t want to talk to. Or  trying to be “nice” to everyone. It’s just about being a decent person. 

It entails how good you can communicate,  start nice conversations with people YOU want to talk to, feeling comfortable, and supported by others. 

It’s about being part of a healthy community, whether it’s your family, friends, neighbors, or even colleagues.

Also, being respected by those around you, and respecting other people. 

A person who causes a lot of problems in their community, doesn’t have a healthy social life. If they are always getting into fights with others, especially for reasons that don’t even matter, or disturb others peace of mind, it’s not a good sign. 

Issues may occur, maybe it’s that neighbor who seems to always get on your nerves, but being socially healthy would help you manage them much better than they ever could. 

Matching energy for energy, doesn’t necessarily help. It’s best to settle matters in a healthy way. 

And that’s how you can start improving your social health. 

There’s a difference between these parts of your health, but they all connect still. 

There’s a difference between your physical health, social, emotional, and mental health, but they still influence one another.

Look at this: Say you’re having trouble with your mental health, it can affect how you sleep (physical health), make you feel sad or down (emotional health), or cause you to isolate yourself from others or social activities (social health). 

Or if you’re not doing well physically, it can lead to stress (mental health), or make you feel very annoyed or irritable (emotional health), or limit your ability to socialize (social health).

And so on and so forth. 

Tips to taking care of yourself 

Now that you know the difference between these areas of your life, next is to take steps to take care of yourself.

• For your physical health: Start by asking yourself if you’re eating well, enough, and getting enough exercise. 
• Mental: Pay attention to how you feel, even right now. Ask important questions like: “I’m i stressed?” Or “overwhelmed?” 
• Emotional: Do you know how to understand what you’re feeling? And can you express your feelings, in a healthy way?
• Social health: Do you have health relationships with people? 
• The important thing is to pay attention to these areas of your life, make changes, no matter how small, and be consistent.