Mental Health

According to the Mental Health charity, Mind, Mental illness is very common.  Mind says: “About one in four people in Britain has this diagnosis, but there is a great deal of controversy about what it is, what causes it, and how people can be helped to recover." To find out more about the symptoms of a mental illness, click here.

Jess is a young person who has suffered from a mental illness. Here are her tips on preventing a mental health issue:

• Be active- Get outside, Exercise, Go out with your friends, Join a school club, Find a new hobby, Chat to people you would not normally and make some new friends.
• Do something you enjoy once every day if possible.
• Be yourself, discover the wonderful person you are.
• Don’t bottle things up, even if you can’t talk, write things down just let your feelings out.
• Try not to be hard on yourself; all you can do is try your best.
• Focus on achievements, however small it’s still something to be proud of.
• Get the amount of sleep you need every night.
• Try not to compare yourself to others, we are all unique, embrace that.

Tips on staying strong when you have a mental health issue:

• Believe in yourself.
• Set some thing you can look forward to.
• Try and get out as much as possible.
• Treat yourself when you achieve some thing.
• Never be ashamed, no illness is a choice.
• Be proud of yourself just living is a big thing.
• Keep the people you love close to you.

Ask friends/family to write what they love about you, it helps to focus on the good points about yourself.

In this section you will find pages on different Mental Health problems that you may face. The pages contain helpful information about the conditions and advice sheets from other Young People.