What is the Difference Between Mental and Physical Health?

The answer is both simple and complex. 

Physical health relates to your organs, muscles, and body systems you can see or measure. 

On the other hand, your mental health is connected to your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. All of these shape how you live each day.

However, physical and mental health are not two separate things. They are constantly influencing others. 

In fact, Hippocrates suggested over 2000 years ago that the changes in your body could impact your mood and behavior. 

Athletes like Michael Phelps have also talked about how physical strength cannot make up for poor mental health. 

If you’d like to explore how faith can support emotional well-being, join our Faith and Mental Health webinar.

That’s why World Mental Health Day on October 10th matters. It’s not just about raising awareness of mental health. 

It is also about recognizing that your body and mind are intertwined. 

In this blog, we explore exactly how.

 

What is Mental Health?

Mental health is related to how you think, feel, and behave.

It also:

• Shapes how you deal with stress
• How you make decisions
•  How you connect with others

You can liken it to your heart keeping your body alive. Your mental health helps you thrive in your emotional and social environments. 

What counts as a mental health challenge?

When thoughts, feelings, or behaviors cause ongoing distress, or make it hard to get through daily life, that’s when they may be considered mental health challenges.

Some of the most common include:

Depression

Depression is more than just feeling sad. It can drain your energy, make simple tasks hard, and take joy from things you once loved.

Anxiety disorders

Have you ever had racing thoughts that won’t stop? Or panic that hits out of nowhere? Or even a constant knot in your stomach?

That is anxiety. It can trick you into believing you’re in danger when you’re not, making daily life harder than it should be.

Bipolar disorder

This is when your life starts feeling like a rollercoaster. One day you are ‘high’ and happy with a lot of energy. The next you are so ‘low’ where that the smallest tasks feel impossible. 

Schizophrenia and related conditions

These conditions affect how you see and experience reality. You might hear voices, feel confused in your thinking, or struggle to connect with others.

Eating disorders

This is when everything related to food and eating becomes a battle. You could be worried about not eating enough, or eating too much, or you become constantly worried about your weight. For others, even the sight of food can become sickening.

Post-traumatic stress (PTSD)

If you have suffered from trauma of any kind, its effects can linger long after the event is over. It can lead to flashbacks, nightmares, or even the feeling that you can never truly relax.

 

The Connection Between Physical and Mental Health 

As we already mentioned, the body and mind are not separate. They are deeply connected. 

What happens in your body affects how you feel emotionally. And the state of your mind can shape your physical health in many  ways.

Chronic illness 

Living with a long-term condition like diabetes, heart disease, or chronic pain affects more than just your body. The daily stress of appointments, medications, or flare-ups can leave you feeling anxious or drained. Over time, that stress can trigger changes in your brain chemistry, raising your risk of depression or anxiety.

The connection also works the other way. When you’re struggling with mental health, it can become harder to manage your illness. 

You may start skipping medication, neglecting diet, or avoiding exercise. That, in turn, makes the physical condition worse.

Your lifestyle choices

Your daily habits create a two-way link between body and mind. Take sleep, for example. When you’re sleep-deprived, your brain struggles to regulate mood and stress. You may feel irritable, anxious, or unfocused. 

On the flip side, chronic stress or depression can interfere with sleep, trapping you in a cycle of fatigue and low resilience.

The same is true for food and exercise. A diet poor in nutrition can worsen your fatigue and affect brain chemistry linked to mood. 

Regular movement, on the other hand, stimulates endorphins. These are your natural mood lifters. 

But when your mental health dips, you may lose motivation to cook, eat well, or stay active, which then hurts your physical health.

Your choices matter not just for your body but also for your state of mind.

Stress and the your body

Stress is the clearest example of the mind-body connection. When you feel under pressure, your brain triggers the release of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. In small bursts, that’s useful—it helps you react quickly.

But when stress lingers, those hormones keep your body on “high alert.”

Chronic stress can contribute to conditions like heart disease or digestive disorders, while also deepening anxiety or depression.

 

Getting Help for Your Mental Health 

1 in 4 people in the U.S. are already navigating poor mental health. So, you are not alone. And help is available in many forms. 

You can start by talking to your primary care doctor. You can also find therapists and counselors who offer professional support that is tailored to your needs. Then, there are support groups available where you can connect 

At IMANA, we recognize how vital this support is. That’s why we launched a free Muslim mental health professionals directory and resource list. 

We are also focused on education and advocacy to help break down the barriers that surround mental health. 

If you or someone you know is struggling, you can check out these resources. 

And if you would like to support us, you can volunteer, donate, or simply help spread the message that mental and physical health deserve equal care