Mental health is a person’s emotional, psychological and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act, and it also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood to adulthood, similar to physical health at any age or stage. It includes-:

Emotional well-being is the ability to identify, embrace, and manage one’s feelings in a healthy and balanced way. Emotional well-being means the capacity to feel the entire range of emotions, for example, joy, sadness, anger, or fear, and not to be overwhelmed by those emotions. And it is emotional well-being that allows you to handle the pressures of life and respond to situations as they are, without losing your resoluteness and staying calm.  

Psychological resilience is the ability to adapt to stress, challenge, or adversity; it does not mean someone never experiences difficulty (we cannot avoid hardship and challenge); it does mean coping with difficulty and learning from i,t and, over time, recovering. People who exhibit psychological resilience are those who can stay in more or less the same state of mind and with the same state of emotions in the face of hardship.

Social functioning describes how you interact and relate to others, including a variety of aspects, including communication, empathy, and trust. Good social functioning means you feel a support system in your community, which is crucial for your emotional well-being; it’s hard to feel good when you lack supportive relationships.

Finally, cognitive functioning describes how you think, process thoughts, focus, make decisions, and solve problems. When your cognitive functioning is functioning well, you can manage tasks, create goals, and respond to all the demands of life and time on a more regular basis, which aids in better mental health.

What is Struggling with Mental Health?

Struggling with mental health does not mean you have an emotional, psychological, or behavioral problem like thirteen reasons why faces through everyday living, feelings, thoughts, or relationships and does not always mean you have a diagnosed mental illness, struggling can just be strong enough that you are temporarily experiencing – at the low end stress, anxiety, or – and on the high end depression, anxiety dreams, complex PTSD etc. 

 Someone struggling with mental health or mental wellness may experience:

• Being overwhelmed with sadness, fear, and worry
• Difficulties sleeping, eating, and concentrating
• Withdrawn from friends/family

Triggers for these experiences can involve life experiences (trauma, loss, or stress), biological factors, or deeply ingrained habits of thinking and acting. Everybody has difficult episodes in their life; however, if you are finding that your feelings are chronic and/or escalating, it may indicate an underlying mental health issue.

Early signs are :

1. Chronic tiredness or low energy

If you are tired almost all of the time, even after your night’s sleep, there can be more to it than simply tiredness. Chronic fatigue can be common with depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. 

When your mind is stressed, it can pull your energy down along with it. You might see and know you have no energy to do the things you need to do routinely, you may feel overwhelmed trying to do the routine you have established. If you are unable to relieve any tiredness with rest, it may be time to open up about your mental health and wellbeing! 

What to notice: 

• You feel “burnt out”, for the most part, with no demands on you
• You sleep and feel raggedly worn out.”
• You have apathy related to daily tasks

2. Changes in Sleep Patterns

Mental health difficulties often interrupt your regular sleep patterns. You may find it suddenly difficult to fall asleep, remain sleeping, wake up early, or wake up early and find you cannot return to sleep. Inversely, you may find yourself sleeping more when waking up is replaced with an escape.

Sleep issues relate to anxiety and depression, and PTSD; further, poorer sleep quality makes mental health problems worse, and creates a cycle of negativity. 

What to look for:  

• Insomnia or restless sleep.  
• Waking up sweaty or being disrupted by dreams.  
• Sleeping far too much or being tired and/or sleepy all day.  

3. Withdrawing from Socializing. 

Withdrawing from friendships, family, or socialization can be an early sign of emotional distress. If you were purposefully benefiting from shared activity with others, to avoid contact now, something is likely happening.

Withdrawal from socializing typically ends up leading to isolation, loneliness, sadness, and feeling misunderstood—all signs or considerations are negatively affecting mental health. 

What to look for:  

• Avoiding phone calls/texting.  
• Making excuses not to socialize.  
• Being annoyed or drained from social contact.

4. Increased Irritability or Mood Swings

Have you found that you are continuing to go up and down a lot lately? If you are noticing that you are becoming easily irritated, crying, or possibly you are experiencing more rapid mood swings, you could be experiencing something in your mental health.

You may be feeling irritable or angry for small things, or feeling sensitive, or you are on an emotional roller coaster, possibly indicating that something is going on in your brain.

Things to notice: 

• Outbursts of anger or frustration.
• Being emotionally fragile or feeling overwhelmed.
• Managing stress, or feedback from others, is becoming difficult.

5. Difficulty with Concentrating or Making Decisions

Do you find it hard to concentrate at work or school? Are you finding it hard to even make simple decisions? If so, these may be classic signs of anxiety or could also potentially be depression.

Mental health issues can often cause fog or fogginess in your thinking. You may feel like your brain has slowed, been fogged, or you may find you are easily distracted. Mental health issues can affect your confidence, performance, and/or quality of life.

Things to notice: 

• Easily forgetting or losing information
• Difficulty achieving any/those tasks
• Second-guessing everything you do.

6. Changes in Appetite or Weight

Mental health and eating habits are affected by one another. Some people lose their appetite when they’re stressed out, while others overeat, especially comfort food. No matter the case, a change (positive or negative) in weight could be both an indicator and a cause. Eating too much or too little is typically an attempt to distract from or cope with feelings of emotional pain. 

What to look for: 

• Eating more than you normally do
• Eating less than you normally do
• Using food to deal with your emotions
• Undue, unexplained weight loss or gain

7. Loss of Interest in Things You Used to Enjoy

Anhedonia is a common and easily identifiable early warning sign of depression. Anhedonia is when a person cannot find pleasure in the things they once found pleasurable. If you are no longer excited to engage in hobbies, interests, or pleasures introduced to you, this is a red flag. It may be something you are practicing, or rather, you no longer find pleasure at all. You may even believe you do these things out of habit, not from any interest at all. You may simply be numb to it all. This numbness may be something deeper than disinterest and may be a sign of something more disorderly in your emotions. 

What to look for:

• Quitting hobbies/interests you enjoyed before
• Feelings of emotional flatness or complete emotional numbness
• No excitement for life events in relation to your life (weddings, anniversaries, holidays)

8. Negative Self-Talk or Low Self-Esteem 

How you speak to yourself is important. If you are constantly critiquing yourself, feeling down, or worse, hating yourself, then you are likely struggling with poor health. 

People who have had trauma in their past, bullying experiences, or long-term stress often will develop low self-esteem, and it can take all your energy, cause it to get worse, and potentially lead you to self-destructive thoughts or behaviors. 

Things to look for: 

• Thinking “I am not good enough,” or “I always mess up…”; 
• Blaming everything on yourself; 
• Thinking you are worthless or unlovable, or that there is no hope.

9. Physical Aches and Pains Unexplained

Sometimes, when you are struggling with your mental health, you may have physical manifestations of your struggles. For example, you might be getting constant headaches, muscle aches, stomach issues, or a racing heart, without having any physical medical cause. 

This is called somatization, where your emotional distress is triggered in your body. If a medical provider can’t find anything physically wrong, it might be a mental health disorder,  and asking for help. 

Things to look for: 

• Headaches all the time or migraines; 
• Nausea, stomach upset, and digestive issues; 
• Tightness in chest/fatigue/tightness in muscles;

10. Thoughts of Self-Harm or Suicide

This sign is the most serious and should never be missed. If you or someone you know has thoughts of self-harm and/or suicide, please seek help right away.

Thoughts of self-harm and suicide usually emerge from feelings of hopelessness, feeling overwhelmed, or unbearable emotional pain. With appropriate help, there is hope for improvement, even if it does not feel that way in the moment.

Signs to look for:

• talking about feeling trapped or feeling like a burden
• expressing a desire to escape life
• giving away possessions or saying goodbye.

When to seek help?

You do not have to wait until you are at breaking point with the symptoms of poor mental health. If you have been feeling low for a consistent two weeks or have been feeling symptoms of anxiety or exhaustion for any period of time, or have felt disconnected for a consistent period of time, please reach out for help. You do not have to suffer any longer, and you certainly do not have to hang in there.

Seeking help at the very start of a downward spiral can assist in preventing the downward movement into further turmoil, and can allow you to begin recovering as soon as possible, and more radically.

1. Therapist or counselor

A therapist or counselor in good standing offers their service as a licensed professional and also offers the support of talk therapy (also known as psychotherapy). After they are properly licensed and trained, a therapist may help you explore your feelings, connect the dots and develop healthier coping skills. Therapists create a safe space and provide an environment for you to openly express yourself so that you can begin to process your stress, trauma, anxiety, depression, etc.

2. Primary care doctor

You may also want to consider your primary care doctor as a potential starting point. Your doctor can evaluate your general health, rule out any physical cause of your symptoms, and may even be able to refer you to a mental health professional. Many medical doctors receive training and education on how to recognize some common mental health disorders and may even have the ability to prescribe medications, refer you or at least provide you with initial support.

3. Mental Health Hotline

A mental health hotline is another option you can explore. Hotlines are a great way to confidentially and immediately talk to someone. Hotlines are particularly helpful if you are in crisis. In most cases, a trained mental health professional or a volunteer will provide a suffering person with an opportunity to be listened to and supported.  In some cases, they will assist you in connecting with resources and other supports. Hotlines are particularly helpful if you are feeling confused about what to do next, are unsafe, or are feeling overwhelmed.

4. Being with loved one

A loved one or a trustworthy friend can offer a listening ear, compassion, and motivation. Sometimes just talking with someone who cares can help relieve burdens and make you feel less alone. They may not have the answers, but they can help you take the first step in seeking professional help and will be there to support you throughout your recovery.

Conclusion

Mental health can be treated, and help is available to you. If you are dealing with mild stress or experiencing emotional pain, seeking help sooner rather than later will provide you with the best chance to heal and work to live a more balanced and fulfilling life. You do not have to do this alone, help is just a conversation away.