Mental health is a state of emotional well-being and the ability to cope with life’s challenges. It includes the capacity to enjoy relationships, manage stress, deal with problems and make choices that lead to a fulfilling life.
Mental disorders prevent you from feeling like yourself or cause distress and may even make you think of hurting yourself or others. These include depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. They can also make you feel angry, irritable, frustrated or restless. People can experience mental health disorders regardless of who they are or where they live. It’s important to know when you need help.
Risks and protective factors for mental health can be found at different levels: in individual people, families and communities; at the level of whole societies (economies, disease outbreaks, humanitarian emergencies and forced displacement) and in global trends (global warming, changing patterns of migration and urbanization). But each single risk or protective factor has only limited predictive strength and many people who have not been exposed to a particular risk develop a mental disorder.
Talk therapy and medicines can treat mental health conditions. Your primary care physician can help you get started with these treatments and may refer you to a psychologist or psychiatrist. It’s important to follow your treatment plan, even if you feel better. If you have trouble sticking with your treatment, ask for support from family and friends. Consider joining a support group or writing about your feelings in a journal.