MENTAL HEALTH AND THE COMMUNITY

Source

Source

MENTAL HEALTH AND THE COMMUNITY
A community can be defined as a group of people sharing a common understanding, and often the same language, law, manners, and tradition. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices.

Source

The importance of maintaining good mental health amongst a community cannot be overemphasized. Unaddressed mental health problems can have a negative influence on homelessness, poverty, employment, safety, and the local economy. They may impact the productivity of local businesses and health care costs, impede the ability of children and youth to succeed in school, and lead to family and community disruption. A community is also important for mental health because we are naturally social beings, and we are not meant to live in isolation. Community is critical for us to thrive, especially for someone with mental illness who is already experiencing the common symptoms of loneliness and isolation.

Mental health normally places a burden on both individuals and families. It disrupts daily routines, creates conflicts in relationships, and often isolates people from the support and help that they need, having great impacts on the efficiency of the community. The effects of parental depression on children can be particularly profound. For example, the children could now be stuck taking care of the parents, which would most likely reduce their performance in school if they are even able to still go to school. It could consume resources that the community was barely trying to manage. There is also an emotional burden it places on people who care about them.

The needs of the community regarding this topic include the provision of crisis support, protected housing, and sheltered employment in addition to the management of disorders to address the multiple needs of individuals. Community-based services can lead to early intervention and limit the stigma of treatment. Regular awareness about mental health and mental illnesses is also important to optimize the mental health of the community and help eliminate the stigmatization of those living with mental illnesses.

Steps to improving mental health care among a community include building community mental health services, developing mental health services in general hospitals, integrating mental health services into primary health care. Informal community mental health services such as social groups can also help the mentally ill to feel less alone and gather the collective strength to fight their illness. Lastly, promote self-care amongst the community members.

In conclusion, mental illness is like any other chronic illness and people should be taught to accept that and not discriminate against those living with the illness. This should be followed by proactive steps to improve the mental health of the community. All this should be done with the best interests of the community at heart.

Source

Source