Mental health was one of the most overlooked aspects before. But as time goes by, it has become among the most focused ones today. Now, there are already many groups that raise mental health awareness, as well as individuals who are advocates of mental health. Last October 10, the planet celebrated World Mental Health Day — which is an annual commemoration of raising the awareness of mental health problems all across the globe and supporting those who are diagnosed with mental health disorders or illnesses.
Unfortunately, mental health awareness is still being taught to the public until now; because, there are still those who don’t believe in it and treat these disorders as nonexistent. Moreover, the awareness of this particular health was being widened, especially after the pandemic outbreak. The stress levels, suicide rates, anxieties, and other aspects have been heightened due to the multiple alterations on people’s daily routine to be safe from the virus, plus the sad news about the growing cases and death toll.
But the real question is what could really be the root of mental health disorders and issues that some individuals are experiencing today? Here are the common factors that significantly impact an individual’s mental health.
Dysfunctional family
This refers to a family where either or both of the parents are constantly fighting, misbehaving, and neglecting or abusing their kids, which influence the witnesses to follow the same acts. Kids who are raised in that particular environment mistook the situations as normal. Dysfunctional families are typically a product of two problematic people. One can become too violent or abusive while the other is very codependent. Addiction to alcohol, drugs, and other substances and an uncured mental disorder can also be the characteristics of the parents. A concrete example is the author Steve Ross dysfunctional relationships, which really contributed to the burden that Ross carries and eventually became the root of his mental disorder.
Childhood trauma
Childhood trauma pertains to the horrors that a person has experienced when he was a child. The intensity of a certain memory might have been too great that has impacted his current mental state. It is frequently defined as ACEs or adverse childhood experiences. Kids may undergo a series of experience that are being categorized as psychological trauma. These said experiences include but are not limited to child neglect, sexual assault, domestic abuse, violence, and abandonment. Moreover, the incidents mentioned may create a strong psychological, behavioral, and sociological impact and can make some adverse and prolonged effects on one’s well-being.
Loss of a beloved
Losing a loved one is among the most difficult events in life. The effects of it can go from average to an extreme. When people are stricken by grief after the death of a beloved, they go through the levels of it, but the real deal is if they could handle it well. Grief is defined as a deep and strong emotional distress that is the product of a passing of a loved one. The basic stages of grief are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. However, there are some that cannot overcome the depression, which led to them diagnosed with clinical depression or other mental health illnesses. Moreover, depression is not just about being sad because it is also about appetite loss, inactiveness, isolation, hopelessness, oversleeping, and even having suicidal tendencies.
Bullying and/or discrimination
Bullying refers to the unequal treatment of a vulnerable individual by someone who is more dominant, especially in physical aspects. Discrimination, on the other hand, pertains to the act of judging people based on their distinguishing aspects, such as race, religion, and more. These two might be different, but they share something in common — which is the act of maltreating others who did nothing. Individuals who are victims of bullying, discrimination, or both tend to lose their confidence, get more insecurities and withdraw themselves from the eyes of the public. Even if there is completely nothing wrong with them, they will start to feel less significant than others and began to wonder where they went wrong. These effects can lead to many mental health issues, such as depression, substance abuse, PTSD, anxiety, and more. What makes it worse is that these victims may experiences these disorders or illnesses for a long period of time.
Alex Writes 