What is Mental Health?

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how we think, feel, and behave, impacting how we manage stress, connect with others, and make decisions. Mental health is crucial at all life stages, from childhood through adolescence to adulthood, and plays a key role in coping with anxiety, depression, and building resilience.

Not sure if you or someone you know is living with mental health problems? 

Experiencing one or more of the following feelings or behaviors can be an early warning sign of a problem: 
  • Eating or sleeping too much or too little 
  • Pulling away from people and usual activities 
  • Having low or no energy 
  • Feeling numb or like nothing matters 
  • Having unexplained aches and pains 
  • Feeling helpless or hopeless 
  • Smoking, drinking, or using drugs more than usual 
  • Feeling unusually confused, forgetful, on edge, angry, upset, worried, or scared 
  • Yelling or fighting with family and friends 
  • Experiencing severe mood swings that cause problems in relationships 
  • Having persistent thoughts and memories you can’t get out of your head 
  • Hearing voices or believing things that are not true 
  • Thinking of harming yourself or others 
  • Inability to perform daily tasks like taking care of your kids or getting to work or school 

Mental health challenges can affect anyone—even a person who appears to live in relatively ideal circumstances. 

What is Anxiety? 

Definition of Anxiety: 

  • Anxiety is excessive distress disproportionate to a situation, often accompanied by physical symptoms. It can manifest in various forms, with symptoms like nervousness, rapid heartbeat, and difficulty concentrating. While these reactions can feel overwhelming, they are normal expressions of common emotional responses. Individuals experiencing these symptoms may be showing signs of anxiety, a prevalent mental health condition that affects many people at different stages of life.
Symptoms of Anxiety: 
  • Crying, sadness, anger, explosiveness, frustration, hopelessness, embarrassment, hyper-activity, distraction, poor attention-span, forgetfulness, and memory loss. 
  • A need for repetitive reassurance; inconsolability; an inability to respond to logical reasoning. 
  • Headaches, stomachaches, or vague complaints of feeling sick, accompanied by regular requests to leave classroom, school, or activities. 
  • Anticipatory anxiety that involves worrying hours, days, weeks ahead of an event. 
  • Sleep disruption, difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, nightmares, difficulty sleeping alone. 
  • Perfectionism that leads to being very self-critical or having high standards for self and others to the point that nothing is ever good enough. 
  • Overly concerned with others opinions; an excessive need to people-please; constant worry that others are upset with him or her; unnecessary apologizing. 
  • Excessive avoidance or refusal to participate in expected activities, such as school, birthday parties, other extracurricular events. 
  • Disruption of family functioning such as, refusing to attend school, friend’s houses, religious activities, family gatherings, errands, or vacations. 
  • Excessive distress regarding everyday situations and normal activities such as doing homework, maintaining good hygiene, or eating regular meals. 

What is Depression? 

Depression, also known as major depressive disorder, is a common and serious condition that affects how you think, feel, and act. It can lead to sadness, a loss of interest in activities, and emotional and physical challenges, impacting daily life and work. Fortunately, depression is treatable, and understanding the symptoms is the first step toward seeking help and improving mental health.

Depression symptoms can vary from mild to severe and can include: 
  • Feeling sad or having a depressed mood 
  • Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed 
  • Changes in appetite — weight loss or gain unrelated to dieting 
  • Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much 
  • Loss of energy or increased fatigue 
  • Increase in purposeless physical activity (e.g., inability to sit still, pacing, handwringing) or slowed movements or speech (these actions must be severe enough to be observable by others) 
  • Feeling worthless or guilty 
  • Difficulty thinking, concentrating or making decisions 
  • Thoughts of death or suicide 

Depression affects an estimated one in 15 adults (6.7%) in any given year. And one in six people (16.6%) will experience depression at some time in their life. Depression can occur at any time, but on average, first appears during the late teens to mid-20s. 

Over the course of your life, mental health challenges can affect your thinking, emotions, and behavior. Whether it’s anxiety, depression, or other conditions, these issues can influence how you feel and act, and may impact your ability to function in daily life.

Many factors contribute to mental health problems, including: 

  • Biological factors, such as genes or brain chemistry 
  • Life experiences, such as trauma or abuse 
  • Family history of mental health problems 

Source: MentalHealth.gov (www.mentalhealth.gov)  

You’re not alone in facing mental health challenges, and help is available. Struggling with mental health is nothing to be ashamed of. We R H.O.P.E. offers affordable mental health coaching, support, and consulting services for schools and communities in need.

Learn how we can help