Mental health is responsible for every man’s emotional, social and psychological well-being. It influences how we think, act and feel. If we want to enjoy our lives, and the environment, and also live in peace with the people around us, then we should maintain a positive mental status and avoid any activity that would affect our mental health negatively. In this article, you will learn about the 5 top mental health issues affecting man, their symptoms and the cure for each.

What is a Mental Health Issue?

A mental health issue is any significant deviation from the mental state of health that is considered medically normal.

Mental issues cover a wide spectrum of mental health conditions that affect human behaviour, moods and thinking. It includes depression, anxiety, eating disorders, personality disorders, schizophrenia and addictive behaviours.

Mental issues are also called mental illnesses or mental health disorders.

Causes of Mental Issues

The several mental health issues that exist are often caused by the following:

• Loneliness or social isolation
• Childhood abuse and trauma
• Discrimination and stigma
• Social inability in the instance of poverty, unemployment and debt
• Domestic violence
• Addiction to drugs and alcohol
• Long-term physical health deviation
• Physical causes like injury
• Lifestyle examples work patterns, diet, drugs, inadequate sleep
• Gene – in the case of schizophrenia, etc

Symptoms of Mental Health Issues

The symptoms of Mental health issues vary with the kind of mental disorder.

However, the general symptoms of mental health issues include;

• Sadness
• Confusion and reduced concentration on activities
• Extreme fears, worries and guilt
• Isolation from friends and withdrawal from human relations activities
• Sleeping problems
• Extreme fatigue
• Experience paranoia and hallucinations
• Inability to cope with real activities
• Changes in eating
• Drugs and alcohol addiction
• Excessive anger, hostility and inclination to violence
• Suicidal thoughts

Sometimes physical aches ranging from headaches, stomach aches, back pains and other related body aches can be also be symptoms of a mental health condition.

What are the 5 top Mental health issues?

According to the 2022 (last quarter) World Health Organization report, about 1 in every 8 people living in the world experiences a mental health issue or disorder. This goes to say that the “1” could be anyone including ourselves.

The 5 top mental health issues affecting the WHO stated ‘1’ persons are:

Anxiety Disorders

The number of people living with anxiety disorders according to a 2019 WHO research was 301 million, with 58 million being adolescents and children. People with anxiety disorder are plagued by excessive fear, worry and other negative behavioural changes. The symptoms experienced are in most cases severe enough to cause distress and functioning impairments.

Mild cases of anxiety disorders heal within a couple of days but stronger cases require psychological treatment and oftentimes medication.

Depression

Depression is one of the top mental health disorders that is experienced by over 280 million people and it is deeper than the usual mood changes and short-lived emotional responses to daily challenges. Depression is accompanied by extremely feeling sad, empty and irritable, also usually followed by disinterest in activities, low self-esteem, trouble concentrating in activities, feelings of guilt, appetite changes, suicidal thoughts etc.

About 80% of suicides committed are due to depression. However, individuals suffering from depression can get psychological treatment or medication to get better.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Also known as PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental health issue that is faced by people living in a conflicted setting. Sometimes PTSD is caused by an experience of life-threatening and horrific events. The symptoms are characterized by memories, nightmares or flashbacks of the traumatic events, refusal to acknowledge the occurrence of the trauma, the avoidance of every activity similar to the trauma event and lastly, the constant feeling of being threatened. PTSD can be treated by psychological therapy.

Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder is known to cause the usual depression-related symptoms but this time with increased energy, increased self-esteem, hyperactive thoughts, heightened irritability, reduced sleep pattern and increased impulsive behaviours that are considered reckless. People living with bipolar disorder have increased exposure to suicidal thoughts and in many cases suicide.

Bipolar disorder can be effectively treated with quality psychoeducation, medication, stress reduction and increased participation in social activities.

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a behavioural and perception impairment mental health disorder affecting about 24 million people in the world. It is also a genetic disorder that can be transferred from parent to offspring. Schizophrenia symptoms include delusions, erratic behaviour, and an extreme feeling of agitation. Treatment of schizophrenia ranges from medication, family interventions, psycho-education and psycho-social rehabilitation.

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Conclusion

Having good mental health is important for us to live a normal life, achieve our goals and get fulfilment in our endeavours. Bad mental health can severely affect the way we live and limit our potential, so we should give premium attention to the state of our mental health.