Mental health issues can be caused by a wide range of conditions that affect mood, thinking, and behavior. This is a broad term that encompasses mental disorders, psychosocial disabilities, and other mental states associated with distress, impaired functioning, or the risk of self-harm. It's important to remember that a person's mental health can fluctuate over time due to various factors. Even someone diagnosed with a mental illness may experience periods of physical, mental, and social well-being. For instance, if someone is working long hours, caring for a family member, or struggling financially, their mental health may suffer.
However, if you have a mental illness, taking steps to manage stress, build resilience, and boost self-esteem can help keep symptoms under control. Mental illnesses, also known as mental health disorders, refer to a wide range of conditions that affect mood, thinking, and behavior. A mental disorder is characterized by a clinically significant alteration in an individual's cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior. In addition, certain brain defects or injuries have been linked to some mental conditions. Mental disorders (or mental illnesses) are conditions that affect thinking, feelings, mood, and behavior.
If you notice signs of mental illness in your loved one, it's important to talk openly and honestly with them about your concerns. Although the terms are often used interchangeably, poor mental health and mental illness are not the same thing. Fortunately, there are effective prevention and treatment options available for those with mental disorders. However, many people don't have access to these resources. Mental illness can make life difficult and cause problems in daily life such as at school, work or in relationships.
At any given time, a variety of individual, family, community and structural factors can either protect or undermine mental health.