Observed each year on October 10, World Mental Health Day is a global day for mental health education, awareness as well as advocacy and was first celebrated in 1992 by the World Federation for Mental Health.
It calls attention to mental well being - which remains largely
disregarded in national policies and inaccessible to the masses.
The day initially did not have any specific theme and was observed with an aim
for advocacy and educating people. However, as the campaign gained
popularity World Mental Health Day in 1994 was observed with the theme of “Improving the Quality of Mental Health Services throughout the World.”
For over 70 years, the World Federation has been working to
make sure that mental health is treated on a par with physical health.
Mental health problems, ranging from depression to
loneliness, exist in our lives, families, workplaces and communities,
impacting everyone.Mental health has been an issue in society for a long time and the lack
of understanding and awareness about about it has played a part in this.It’s become obvious if anyone wasn’t already aware, that we do
live in a very unequal world, whether that’s access to vaccines or
conditions people are living in that have made them more vulnerable. The
pandemic has found those inequalities and exacerbated them.
In
relation to mental health, we know the effect of the pandemic has not
just been physical, there’s been a clear impact on mental health, as
people have struggled with the effects of grief, isolation and fear.
For this year’s theme, we are being encouraged to think
about how we can do as much as possible to prevent mental ill-health –
as individuals and as a society, from calling on national and local
governments to prioritise reducing known risk factors to creating the
conditions needed for people to thrive.
Mental health and wellbeing is not a ‘trend’ or a ‘fad’ – it is so important and the resources made available by the Mental Health Foundation will help you understand how to incorporate and adopt better mental health care, just like you would with your physical health.
With expert backed tips and challenges to partake in, plenty of resources can be found on their site.
This day is a prompt for us to reignite our efforts to protect and
improve our mental health. It is an opportunity to talk openly about how
we are feeling and a reminder to reach out if you are struggling.
Mental health is a human right, and a rights-based approach to mental disability means domesticating
treaties such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities. Using the framework of this convention and
others like it, it is possible to formulate an active plan of response
to the multiple inequalities and discrimination that exist in relation
to mental disability within our communities. While health care
professionals arguably have a role to play as advocates for equality,
non-discrimination, and justice, it is persons with mental disabilities
themselves who have the right to exercise agency in their own lives and
who, consequently, should be at the center of advocacy movements and the
setting of the advocacy agenda..
Quality, accessible primary
health care is the foundation for universal health coverage and is
urgently required as the world grapples with the current health
emergency. We therefore need to make mental health a reality for all – for everyone, everywhere.
Good mental health is not just about being free from a mental illness.
It involves the ability to better handle everything life throws at you
and fulfill one’s full potential. Mental illness is now recognised as one of the biggest causes of
individual distress and misery in our societies and cities, comparable
to poverty and unemployment.
At
least one in eight of us is affected by mental health issues. For
adolescents aged 10 to 19, this rises to one in seven; people with
mental health conditions often die prematurely
- as much as 20 years earlier than the average person - due to
preventable physical conditions, WHO figures show. In some countries,
they are also more likely to suffer human rights violations,
discrimination and stigma.
To combat this global issue, the United Nations’ Good Health and Well-being Sustainable Development Goal calls for 80% of nations to integrate mental health into primary healthcare by 2030.
While the uneven distribution of mental health resources both within and
between countries springs to mind there are many other inequalities
that I hope will be thought about on this day.
These include inequalities driven by race, sexuality, gender identity,
socio-economic status, access to technology and people living in challenged humanitarian
settings such as displaced people, refugees, and those living in
conflict/post-conflict situations are at greater risk of mental health
difficulties..Due to ongoing political and social
conflicts, the number of international refugees has been increasing.
Refugees are exposed to severe mental challenges and potentially subject
to traumatic experiences so the risk of psychiatric disorders is
increased.
Older people and immigrant groups are
both thought to be more likely to experience social isolation and
loneliness which can cause worse mental wellbeing. Societal discrimination is likely to have
an impact on mental health. Interventions that take into account the
specific mental health risks that marginalised communities face, and are
designed to meet the needs of these groups, are therefore needed.
Also due to Coronavirus we have all experienced isolation, and the move towards
working from home means many of us still spend time alone. We might
have had other health stresses or feel anxious about the current news
and climate.
Climate change, war and the pandemic have all combined to create a
global crisis for mental health. Disrupted health services, rising
poverty,the rising cost of living crises and crony capitalism together have waged a war
against global mental health.
The rich have time, resources and access to these resources to address
their mental illnesses. As a result, they disproportionately affect the
poorer populations.
There are also significant mental health
related inequalities for the UK Black community as people from Black
African and Caribbean backgrounds are four times more likely to be
detained under the Mental Health Act, and experience poorer treatment
and recovery outcomes in comparison to other ethnic groups.
Nothing
comes easy for historically-marginalised communities — not even
healthcare. For instance, a study found that the Black community and
other people of colour are far more likely to experience socioeconomic
disparities such as exclusion from health, educational and economic
resources.
“Stigma
and discrimination continue to be a barrier to social inclusion and
access to the right care; importantly, we can all play our part in
increasing awareness about which preventive mental health interventions
work and World Mental Health Day is an opportunity to do that
collectively,” WHO noted.
An ill-informed and damaging attitude
among some people exists
around mental health that can make it difficult for some to seek help.
It is estimated that only about a quarter of people with a mental health
problem in the UK receive ongoing treatment, leaving the majority of
people grappling with mental health issues on their own, seeking help or
information, and dependent on the informal support of family, friends
or colleagues.
We need to break the silence around mental health. These are issues that all of us should have some basic exposure to. The proportion of the population that will experience an episode of acute emotional distress is extremely high. Those
of us who have never been depressed probably know and love several
people who have.It should be no more shameful to say that one is
suffering from mental illness , than to announce that one is asthmatic
or has breast cancer. Talking about these issues is part of the solution.
Breaking
the silence can be liberating. Mental health care should be part of
what we demand when we think about solutions to the economic crisis, and we
should keep fighting for the best mental health care to be the natural
right of all designed to meet human needs. Until then, engaging in the
struggle toward a fairer more equal society can be a source of hope. That is a world surely worth fighting for.
Mental health matters
but what people suffering truly need at the end of day is well-funded
good quality services that actually respond to each individual's needs,
and that can be accessed immediately, and in an equal world this would
actually be happening. Sadly in Britain at the moment mental services
are seriously inadequate and letting many down badly, this is the harsh
and bitter reality.
There is an urgent need to close the huge gap in access to care for
people with mental health problems and psychosocial disabilities around
the world, and aims to raise awareness of the inequality in access to mental health
care, both locally and globally, for marginalised people, particularly
for people living in poverty.The
day serves to remind us that access to mental health services remains
unequal with between 75% to 95 % of people with mental disorders in low
and middle income countries unable to access mental health services at
all and access in high income countries not much better. Lack of
investment in mental health disproportonate to the overall health
budget contribute to the mental health treatment gap.
As the winter nears and the days get shorter, our regular routines
can be disrupted, so it’s a great time to remind ourselves of the
basics. On World Mental Health Day we are encouraged to take an hour out to
reflect on our lives, and where we might implement some positive
habits.This isn’t just for those already affected, prevention is just as important as a cure.
The charity Mind has outlined 5 steps we can take today to begin making positive changes or creating healthy habits:
1.Connect with other people
2.Be physically active
3.Practice mindfulness
4.Learn a new skill
5.Give to others
If you are at all impacted by mental health issues remember that you are not alone, and
there is no shame in reaching out for support to get through it. If you
need to talk to someone, the NHS mental health helpline page includes organisations you can call for help, such as Mind, Anxiety UK https://www.anxietyuk.org.uk/ and Bipolar UK.https://www.bipolaruk.org/ or call The Samaritans
on 116 123.Call your GP and ask for an emergency appointment. Call NHS
111 (England) or NHS Direct (Wales) for out-of-hours to help .Contact
your mental health crisis team, if that is you have one.
On World Mental Health Day let's continue to fight for an NHS that guarantees universal mental health support.
Let's also fight against conditions of poverty and precarity that engender stress, anxiety and depression, raise awareness of mental health and engage in conversations to break the stigmas surrounding mental health and wellbeing. Don't judge those impacted by mental health problems, recognise that urgent action is needed to prevent these people from experiencing
the potentially serious consequences of stigma and discrimination, and re-affirm our commitment to a compassionate and caring society.
