Mental Health: What's The Big Deal Anyway?

The term Mental Health is often thrown around in conversation in order to attribute someone’s behaviour, thoughts or feelings to an illness and therefore in my opinion make them easier to understand for the public and those around them.

Mental Health is a blanket term used to describe a variety of different illnesses all linked by the effect that they have on the mind. What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder? Surely those with Bipolar disorder are just sad and happy at different times just like the rest of us?

It feels like the awareness IS being raised of mental health problems and illnesses but just simply that they exist but not of the devastating effect that they have on people’s lives. Mental Health is not just about the people who suffer but their families and carers too. This week SUSU are running Mental Health awareness week which is aimed at raising Mental Health awareness across campus (funnily enough). The week consists of a variety of events with hope of educating as many students as possible about mental health problems. The organiser Laur Evans, SUSU’s Mental Health Officer, has this to say:

University is a vulnerable time for many students with a changing environment, increased academic pressure and loss of many support structures. This can compound preexisting mental health problems, and trigger previously absent mental disorders (with some reaching a diagnostic threshold). The significant thing is that some students aren’t getting the support they deserve. We hope to achieve this by empowering students take better care of their mental wellbeing, publicising the support available to them, and tackling stigma. This is why we are dedicating an entire week to talking about mental health, at SUSU.

If you would like to know more about Mental Health Awareness Week, join one of the Facebook events here.

Did you know?

• Statistically 10% of people with borderline personality disorder will commit suicide
• About half of mental health disorders will begin before the age of 14.
• Around 20% of the worlds children and teenagers are estimated to have mental health problems.
• Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide.
• Anorexia can be diagnosed when the sufferer is still at a healthy weight
• Opening the curtains each day helps fight depression
• People with serious mental health problems die on average 10 years younger than those without serious mental health problems
• 70% of people with a mental health illness say they have experienced discrimination at some point
• Only four in ten employees would consider employing someone with a long-term mental health problem. This is compared to the six in ten would consider employing someone with physical disability.
• By 2030 it is predicted that mental health care will be as recognized and understood in society as physical health problems
• About one in a hundred suffer an acute onset of psychosis at some point in their lives and this can be caused by something as simple as pregnancy.