Mental health is the overall wellness of how you think, feel and manage your emotions. It can be impacted by many factors, including:
You can help improve mental health when you know how to recognize and get treatment for symptoms that are getting worse or that interfere with your daily life activities. A good place to start is with your primary care physician who can refer you to a therapist or psychiatrist. It’s important to get a diagnosis because having a mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, a diagnosis can be a relief and give you more power to take action to get better.
A mental disorder is a medical condition that causes changes in your emotions, thinking or behavior and affects how you function in your daily life. It may also cause distress or interfere with your social, work and family activities. Some people may need to seek a mental health specialist to get a diagnosis, but most can treat their symptoms with therapy and medication.
*Mental illnesses are those that meet criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and cause distress or impairment in your everyday functioning. This includes disorders such as anxiety, depression and bipolar disorders.
Stigma is a significant barrier to seeking mental health care and can prevent you from receiving the help you need. It’s especially harmful when it’s based on your culture, race or socioeconomic status. This is why it’s important to use language that doesn’t perpetuate stigma when writing about mental health. For example, avoid using words like crazy, nuts, deranged and psycho, as they have been known to alienate readers.