Mental Health 101

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MENTAL
HEALTH 101
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What Is Mental Health?
The World Health Organization defines mental
health as a state of wellbeing in which a
person realizes his/her own abilities, can cope
with the normal stresses of life, can work
productively and fruitfully, and can contribute
to his/her community. In simple words, it can be
understood as the emotional, psychological, and
social state of your mind, which affects your
ability to think, feel, act, handle stress, and
make decisions. It is an important part of ones
life, just as physical health is. It affects your
relationships, career, work, and even physical
fitness. Just as your body needs care when you
catch a cold, your mental health needs attention
too. Your brain is like a machine, it works day
and night continuously, but it gets exhausted,
unlike a machine. This stress results in ruining
your mood, decreasing your concentration,
affecting memory, creating anger, fear, and
confusion, and you start feeling exhausted. It
can also become the reason for mental illness.
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What Are Mental Illnesses?
Most people struggle with their mental health
from time to time, whether it is stress from
work, social or personal relationships, or
financial issues. It should be noted that a
person can experience poor mental health and not
be diagnosed with any mental illness. Still, it
becomes important to pay attention to these
issues because it takes no time for anxiety to
turn into anxiety disorders. Thus, we need to
understand what mental illness is. Mental
illness, also known as a mental health disorder,
is a mental health condition that negatively
affects how an individual feels, thinks, and
behaves. Grief and stressful interludes dont
necessarily mean mental illness, but you might
want to check in for some symptoms. It is
characterized by, but not limited to -Loss of
appetite -Sleep pattern changes -Extreme mood
swings -Chronic depression -Hallucinations or
delusions -Unhealthy coping mechanisms -Unusual
emotional outbursts It can be miserable and cause
problems in the day-to-day life of people. It can
be a result of stress or work. Sometimes, it can
even appear as physical problems like a troubled
stomach, headache, backaches, or other
unexplained aches.
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Types of Mental Illnesses
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Anxiety Disorders
Feeling anxious or nervous before an interview or
an important meeting is normal. Still, if it
persists for a long time and severely affects
your brains ability to function, it can be
called anxiety disorder. Panic, phobias,
generalized anxiety disorders (GAD), etc., are
some kinds of anxiety disorders.
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Depression
Over a long period, it is the excessive feeling
of irritability, sadness, hopelessness, insomnia,
frequent or recurrent thoughts of suicide,
death, etc. It is also known as a depressive
disorder. It is a serious issue and should be
immediately treated, as it can get worse if
untreated.
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Eating Disorder
It is a compulsive disorder characterized by
severe and persistent behaviors associated with
physical disorders, like weight gain or
restrictive food intake. It may seem similar to
an addiction and often results in fatal
complications.
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Schizophrenia
It is a disorder that affects a persons ability
to think, behave or speak clearly. The affected
persons thoughts and actions appear to be
abnormal and disillusioned. It involves
psychosis, a condition where a person cannot
differentiate between real and imaginary.
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Dissociative Disorder
It is also known as a multiple personality
disorder. Overwhelming traumatic events and
accidents are associated with stress, perception
problems, breakdown of memory, and detachment
from the surroundings. People with this disorder
tend to escape reality by using unhealthy
ways. While there may not be a way to prevent
mental illnesses, you can be mindful of the
factors that are responsible for causing mental
illnesses -Genetic or inherited
traits -Brain-chemistry -Prolonged and unresolved
trauma -Childhood experiences -Losing a loved
one -Excessive use of drugs or alcohol
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Is Mental Health related to Physical Fitness?
We often think that our mind and body are
separate, but they are remarkably interconnected
in reality. As mentioned above, poor mental
health is a risk factor for chronic physical
conditions. If you dont take care of your
mental health, it will definitely affect your
body. Research shows that people with serious
mental conditions are prone to many physical
problems.
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What Are Some Good Mental Health Practices?
Get Moving Take Plenty Of Water Take Proper Rest
Take A Break Reach Out If You Feel Like You Need
Help
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Eating Disorder
It is a compulsive disorder characterized by
severe and persistent behaviors associated with
physical disorders, like weight gain or
restrictive food intake. It may seem similar to
an addiction and often results in fatal
complications.
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Eating Disorder
It is a compulsive disorder characterized by
severe and persistent behaviors associated with
physical disorders, like weight gain or
restrictive food intake. It may seem similar to
an addiction and often results in fatal
complications.
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Thank You

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