What is mental health?

THIS week, the issue to discuss is mental health problems.
It starts with being worried with some experiences we face in our everyday life to serious long-term state of affairs.
Many people who experience mental health problems do get over them or learn to live with them, especially when they get help early on.
Mental health problems are usually defined to enable professionals to refer people for appropriate care and treatment.
As such, diagnoses remain the most common way of classifying symptoms into groups.
Most mental health symptoms have been grouped into either “neurotic” or “psychotic” symptoms.
Neurotic covers those symptoms which can be described as severe forms of ‘normal’ emotional experiences such as depression, anxiety or panic.
The less common conditions are psychotic symptoms, which muddle about with a person’s awareness of reality. It may include hallucinations such as seeing, hearing, smelling or feeling things that no one else can.
Mental health problems affect the way you think, feel and behave.
They are problems that can be diagnosed by a doctor, not personal weaknesses.
Anxiety and depression can be severe and long-lasting impact on people’s ability to get on with life.
In severe mental illness such as bi-polar disorder or schizophrenia, sufferers lose touch with reality.
People affected may hear voices, see things no one else sees, hold unusual or irrational beliefs, feel unrealistically powerful or read particular meanings into everyday events.
Please remember that no two people behave in exactly the same way when they are unwell.
Many people who live with a mental health problem or are developing one try to keep their feelings hidden because they are afraid of other people’s reactions.
In the next issue, I will touch on good mental health.
Please keep your letters coming to us so that we can help you to have a healthy and peaceful life.
If you have any queries, write to:

Principal adviser
Mental Health Services
c/o Beautiful Mind,
P O Box 8
Boroko
NCD