Mental health is so important nowadays that is often ignored, everyone must know the old saying that "health is wealth", then why is it so ignored by people? What are the reasons for this ignorance? There are a lot of questions that need to be answered in terms of mental health. Mental health is not an easy topic and is often seen as a sign of weakness when someone shows that they have anxiety, depression, or even when they are making themselves detached from the real world. This shows that there is a lot of stigma surrounding mental health, this is because if you can't deal with your emotions then it is assumed that there is something wrong with you and it needs to be fixed quickly, but what the community needs to understand is that right now there is the pressure of studies as well as family issues which cannot be solved right away. Then why can't we start accepting that mental health is not a sign of weakness but instead a sign of strength, of how hard you might be working in your life, and that you need to rest and have a day dedicated to self-care?
What needs to be done about mental health?
There are various solutions for approaching someone's mental health. Firstly, the whole community needs to accept that mental health doesn't mean you are weak and instead raise awareness about mental illness both in schools and also at the workplace. According to the NHS, there are a few ways in which an individual can overcome mental illnesses. The first one is to have good relationships, whether it's with a family member or friends, and then take the time every day to sit down and talk about any issues that there might be in their life and how it is affecting their well-being. Then, individuals can try to be physically active in order to alleviate mental stress but also have the satisfaction of setting goals and then achieving them, as a result, raising their self-esteem. Not only this but the most important one is to practice mindfulness. Only 5 minutes of mindfulness a day can a massive change to an individual's mental health, not only does it make you feel calmer but it also helps with understanding emotions better, therefore, coping with difficult thoughts with much more control. I personally think mindfulness needs to be made mandatory in all schools, this is because teenagers will get to practice it every day and then manage their emotions in a much better way as well as help them cope with it.
Conclusion
To conclude this lovely topic, I would say that there still need to be measures in place to raise awareness about mental health and ways to overcome it. There are articles on the internet but there isn't enough openly advertised where an individual can seek help. However, recently there have been campaigns about mental health, for example, then one in the UK is called "Every mind matters" which is run by the NHS but there is also the Mental Health Foundation and last year they hosted a campaign about loneliness, and it lasted 2 weeks in May whereas, for this year specifically, the theme is gonna be about anxiety which is really vital seeing how many students have anxiety that can get out of control. The campaign this year will run from the 15th of May till the 21st, this will help loads of students but also adults in understanding what causes anxiety and how to prevent it in the long term and therefore improve mental health but recently anxiety is caused by personal finances given the cost of living crisis. Lastly, speaking from my own anxiety experience as a mental health issue, I would say to always take time for yourself, have a day out of the week where you do some self-care, and perform hobbies that you personally enjoy, whether it be watching a Netflix series or reading a book. In addition, don't overwork yourself, often that is the cause of anxiety and feeling overwhelmed which leads to feeling weak as at that precise moment the mind isn't in the healthiest state. Finally, please seek help when signs if anxiety shows up if not taken care of as soon as possible it can lead to possible depression, therefore make sure you do ask for help from someone you trust.