Anomahs

Yep, we’re going through a b*tch.

If you’re like me…

I am from the Caribbean where it seems taboo to admit you’re suffering mentally. 

Feelings are undermined, and there’s humiliation and discrimination where there should be help and support from neighbours and counterparts. That is the world we are living in.

Speaking up at the first glimpse of mental strains can save so many lives. Please realize.

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By: Shamona Rodney

What is Mental Health?

Mental health refers to cognitive, behavioral, and emotional well-being. It is all about how people think, feel, and behave. This will affect psychological and social well-being.

It may portray how we handle stress, affect how we relate to others, and make choices.

FUN FACT: 

The brain was not always regarded as the locus of the human mind.

In ancient Egypt, the soul and all mental functioning were thought to be located in the heart and some scholars assigned the role to the liver.

It was in the fourth century (B.C.) Greece, the brain was identified as “the interpreter of consciousness” and deduced that various madness can arise from an “unhealthy brain”.

Most scientists believe that mental illnesses result from problems with the communication between neurons in the brain (neurotransmission).

Increased and sustained reactivity in the amygdala (part of the emotional brain) is characteristic of depression and other mental health diagnoses.

Examples of mental health strains

• Anxiety Disorders include panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and phobias.
• Depression including bipolar disorder and other mood disorders 
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Psychotic Disorders like Schizophrenia 
• Eating Disorders
• Disruptive Behviour and Disscoial Disorders
• Neurodevelopmental Disorders (Intellectual development, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)
• Dementia 
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder

What causes Mental Strains or Illnesses 

Many risk and protective factors are influenced by changes in brain structure and/or function.

Exposure to adverse circumstances – including poverty, violence, disability, and inequality – are higher risk factors—also trauma and stress which may differ per individual.

Are Mental Illnesses Hereditary?

Many psychiatric disorders do run in families. These disorders include autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia. mental illnesses may be hereditary. 

Mental illnesses are diagnosable. Please if you do not know your status and feel you may be showing signs of any mental strain, please get checked!

Stay tuned for how mental health affects your physical health, daily life, and relationships and tips to overcome!