MENTAL HEALTH UNTANGLED

Hey there! Welcome back to Youth Convo. If this is your first time here don’t worry, click here to read our introductory post. Last week we introduced Youth Convo to the world and we highlighted how Mental Health is the centre of everything we do. Before we dwell into the nitty-gritty of the journey to Mental Wellness for all young people, we might as well get to understand what Mental Health is but first:

What is health?

“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO)

What then is mental health?

“A state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” It is more than just the absence of mental disorders, but “is the foundation for well-being and effective functioning for an individual and for a community” (WHO 2018)

Mental health is the foundation for emotions, thinking, communication, learning, resilience and self-esteem. It is the key to relationships, personal and emotional well-being and contributing to community or society.

Whether we are happy or sad; motivated or demotivated; productive or unproductive etc. it all comes down to our mental health state. We all seek to be happy and productive and so it is important to know about our mental health. This is why we are here. Youth Convo is the place where we can get to explore and learn even more about mental health without any fear of judgement. It gets better; we are here to support you throughout your journey to mental wellness. Do not hesitate to send us an email or a DM on any of our social media platforms. We are here for you. If it’s bothering you; let’s talk about it.

Now that we’re here, we might as well go a little deeper:

What is mental illness?

A wide range of conditions that affect mood, thinking and behaviour.

Examples of mental illnesses are depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar mood disorder, personality disorders, trauma and eating disorders.

Depression and anxiety are the most common. Depression is a serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Anxiety is intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. I am hoping you can tell from the definitions that these are things anyone can experience; yourself included.

Some have even coined our generation ‘The Age of Anxiety’ which only makes sense considering the pressure we experience everyday especially through social media. Social media has contributed greatly to mental health problems in our generation. This on its own is a very big topic for discussion and it will be looked at even further in the coming weeks. (I will let you in on a little secret: we are planning an attack on social media. A lot of young people have had their self-esteem scaled down, self-image tarnished, hope destroyed and mental health affected because of social media. We are going to use the very same tool that destroyed us to rejuvenate our generation. So yes; remember to look out for Youth Convo on all social media platforms.)

There are a lot of misconceptions around mental health. Here are some:

1. Mental health problems are uncommon

Many people suffer with mental illness. One in four people will experience a mental health problem in any given year, so there is no need to feel isolated if you are going through tough times.

2. People with Mental Illnesses are violent

People who are experiencing mental illness are no more likely to be violent than those who are not. Research has actually shown that they are more likely to be the victims rather than the perpetrators of violence.

3. Mental health problems are a sign of weakness

Perhaps the biggest misconception for mental health is that those suffering with mental illness are weak. This is just as ridiculous as saying a broken leg is a sign of weakness. This type of stigma does a lot of harm and it forces many people not to open up about their mental health problems.

4. Men don’t suffer mental illness

This is another major concern that has found a lot of men suffering in silence. Regardless of being physically stronger, men are not spared when it comes to mental illness. Men’s mental health matters!!

5. You’re Either Insane or You’re Fine

Health exists on a spectrum. Think about it in terms of physical health. You may not have any serious medical conditions but can get a headache at some point. There are many different factors that can affect someone’s mental health and these can vary greatly in the severity of the impact these have on a person’s overall state of mental health. It is not a simple case of being either mentally ill or mentally healthy, we all have good and bad days.

Mental illnesses are nothing to be ashamed of and are in fact more common that we think.

Major causes of mental illness:

These include among others, severe brain damage, inheritance, chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, severe/ long term stress, financial problems, childhood abuse, trauma or neglect, loneliness and drug or alcohol abuse

The list is inexhaustible but I hope you can see that any one of us could have mental health problems regardless of who we are or where we are from.

Signs and Symptoms

A lot of the signs and symptoms are similar across different diagnoses, but there are certain things that we can look for. The following are signs you can pick from yourself and your friends.

· Suicidal ideation (big issue)

· Social withdrawal

· Sleep disturbances

· Weight and diet changes

· Poor concentration

· Mood changes

· Tiredness

· Hyperactiveness/hypoactiveness;

· Constipation

· Detachment from reality

· Anhedonia (inability to feel pleasure)

· You could lose interest in the things that could excite you

Suicide is in the top five of causes of death among the youth and this is a cause for concern. It speaks to the importance of having the youth know about mental health and how to maintain it. This is also something we will talk more about as we go through the journey. We will walk together on this journey and look at how we can cope with a lot of these negative feelings as the youth.

We are hoping by now you have an idea of what mental health is. It's always a pleasure to have you here. Stay tuned for more enlightening content. We love you. Take care!!