We can all experience periods when our mental health is not as a good as it could be. There are lots of things that could lead to feeling mentally unwell and it's usually a combination of these things that impact our mental health. Some people are more affected by certain things than others, which is perhaps why experiencing a mental health condition often feels very personal and can sometimes be hard to understand or explain. The things that can affect our mental health include:
- lifestyle factors, e.g. poor diet, lack of sleep, low levels of physical activity
- long-term stress
- debt or other money worries
- the death of someone close
- the break down of a relationship
- having a long-term health condition
- unemployment or losing your job
- poor housing or homelessness
- loneliness
- drug or alcohol misuse
- adverse childhood experiences, such as neglect or abuse
- experiencing abuse as an adult
- being the victim of a violent crime
- experiencing trauma, such as being involved in a serious incident where you feared for your life
- physical causes, such as a head injury or a disease of the brain
When our mental health continues to be affected, it can lead to us experiencing a mental health condition. The most common are anxiety and depression, or a mix of the two. Having a mental health condition doesn't mean you will always be unwell. We can learn to understand and manage our mental health and although some conditions may be long-term, when managed well, we are less likely to experience periods of ill health.
Lancashire Mind are part of the Mind federation, a network of local Mind organisations and national Mind. There's lots of information and resources on the Mind website that can help you to learn more about mental health.