Mental health is our emotional, psychological and social well being. It adversely affects how we feel, act and think. It is crucial to maintain our mental health at every phase of our life, from youth to adulthood. How we feel about our mental health and well being can be influenced by various factors. We all have ups and downs, times when we feel great, and times when we feel we are struggling. Mental health is as important as physical health as mental illnesses like depression can cause many different physical health problems. Maintaining our mental health is incredibly essential. Our mental health has an immense influence on how we act.
Mental health is the basis of our collective and personal abilities because we have the ability to think, imitate, interact, earn a living and enjoy life. Based on this, the promotion, protection and rehabilitation of mental health can be seen as an important concern for individuals, communities and societies around the world.
Mental health promotion includes measures to improve mental well being. This involves creating an environment that supports mental health. An environment that respects and protects basic civil, political, socio-economic and cultural rights is fundamental to mental health. It is difficult to maintain a high level of mental health without the security and freedom these rights provide.
There are numerous ways to promote mental health in different places:
- Early childhood interventions (eg, providing a stable environment that addresses children’s health and nutritional needs with protection from threats, early learning opportunities and interactions that are engaging, emotionally supportive and developmental)
- Support for children (eg, life skills programmes, child and youth development programs)
- Socio-economic empowerment of women (eg, improving access to education and microcredit programs)
- Social support for seniors (eg, friendship initiatives, community and day centres for seniors); programmes for vulnerable people, including minorities, indigenous peoples, migrants, and those affected by conflict and disasters (eg, post-disaster psychosocial interventions)
- Measures to promote mental health in schools (eg, programmes to support environmental change in schools)
- Mental health measures in the workplace (eg, stress prevention programs)
Being physically and emotionally fit is the key to success in all areas of life. People must be aware of the consequences of mental illness and must take the utmost care to keep the mind healthy, just as the physical body remains healthy. Physical and mental health are inseparable.
– Misha Raval, 9H