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12 October 2020
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Story Dr Cindé Greyling
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Photo Supplied
Exercise and nutrition can work wonders for your mental health – you don’t even have to ‘feel like’ or ‘enjoy’ moving around and eating well for it to work – it does its thing anyway.
Nowadays, people talk about mental health like it is the common cold – which is good! But do you know what it really means? Being mentally healthy does not only refer to the absence of a mental illness but includes your emotional and social well-being. One would almost want to add physical well-being too, since a healthy body does indeed support a healthy mind. However, since so many people consider themselves ‘mental health experts’, some myths have been sold as truths.
Myth #1 – You are doomed.
Nope. Never. You are never doomed. There is always help. Mental-health therapies range from self-help, talk therapy, medication, to hospitalisation in some cases. Somewhere on this spectrum of treatments, there will be something that works for you. But you must be willing to get the help and do the work. For starters, exercise and nutrition can work wonders – you do not even have to ‘feel like’ or ‘enjoy’ moving around and eating well for it to work – it does its thing anyway.
Myth #2 – It won’t affect you.
It may. Research suggests that one in five people may suffer from a mental illness at some point in their lives. Being well now does not mean that it will stay that way. Biological and environmental factors both impact your mental health. Hopefully not, but at some point, you may experience an event that affects your mental health.
To remain integrated in a community is always beneficial
for anyone suffering from a mental or physical condition.
Myth #3 – Someone struggling with mental health must be left alone.
Hardly! To remain integrated in a community is always beneficial for anyone suffering from a mental or physical condition. You do not need to fix them, but to remain a friend. Continue to invite them, even if they decline. Do not judge, and do not try to understand. Just stay around.
Go and be kind to yourself, and to those around you.
NBC tells Wayde’s story
2015-11-02
 The film crew from NBC Olympics
filming Wayde van Niekerk (centre, in grey clothes)
during a practice session at Pellies Park on the
Bloemfontein Campus of the UFS.
On the left is Ans Botha, Van Niekerk’s coach.
Photo: Charl Devenish |
The Kovsie star Wayde van Niekerk stands an excellent chance of shining at the 2016 Olympics and has a remarkable story behind his success.
This is why NBC Olympics, a division of the American broadcasting network NBC, selected the athlete from the University of the Free State (UFS) to do a special insert for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
A film crew from NBC visited the City of Roses and the Bloemfontein Campus of the UFS on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 October 2015 to film the insert. The feature will be screened on NBC Olympics’ platforms during and leading up to the Olympics next year.
One of four stars
Van Niekerk was one of four athletes used by the crew to film inserts on. The others were the South African swimmer Chad le Clos, the Kenyan 800 m athlete David Rudisha, and Ethiopian middle- and long-distance athlete Genzebe Dibaba.
The crew interviewed Van Niekerk and his coach Ans Botha, and also paid a visit to Pellies Park during one of his training sessions.
According to Tom Davidson, feature producer at NBC Olympics, the piece about Van Niekerk will be about three minutes long.
“We do a pretty good job of picking good stories, but it is up to the athletes to get there,” Davidson said.
“We think Wayde has a good shot at being in the finals of the 400 m at the Olympics.”
Van Niekerk won a gold medal in a time of 43.48 s at the World Championships in Beijing during August 2015 and set a new South African record for a third time and a new African record for a second time this year in the process.
Beijing success propels Wayde onto NBC radar
“Wayde’s performance in Beijing certainly propelled him onto our radar,” said Davidson.
“He beat former World and Olympic champions like Kirani James and LaShawn Merritt.”
He feels that Van Niekerk is also very young and still at university.
And Botha makes his story even more interesting.
“It is not every day that you see a 74-year old great-grandmother coaching a world champion.”