World Mental Health Day is observed annually on October 10th. It was first celebrated in 1992 as an initiative of the World Federation for Mental Health, a global organization that works towards promoting mental health and well-being, preventing mental health conditions, and improving access to mental health care around the world.
The goal of World Mental Health Day is to raise awareness about mental health issues, to reduce the social stigma associated with mental health challenges, and to promote the importance of good mental health for individuals, families, and communities.
The theme for World Mental Health Day varies every year. In previous years, themes have included mental health and older adults, suicide prevention, and the role of mental health in promoting overall health and well-being.
Psychiatric Hegemony
Psychiatric hegemony refers to a situation where the psychiatric profession has gained significant control and influence over definitions, discourse, and practices related to mental health and illness. This control and influence can manifest in different ways, such as through the medicalization of non-medical issues, the imposition of narrowly defined diagnostic criteria, and the promotion of specific biomedical treatments.
The concept of psychiatric hegemony arises from critical perspectives on mental health, which argue that the psychiatric profession operates as a form of social control that reinforces prevailing power relations. These critiques maintain that psychiatric discourse often reinforces dominant social values and beliefs, while marginalizing or pathologizing those who do not fit into normative categories.
Critics of psychiatric hegemony argue that the narrow focus on biological determinants of mental illness, such as genetics and neurochemistry, can lead to the neglect of other important factors such as social and cultural influences. This can result in a limited understanding of the complex causes of mental health issues, and a narrow range of treatment options being offered to patients.
Personality And Mental Health
Personality plays an important role in shaping mental health outcomes. Different personality traits can influence the development, progression, and management of mental health conditions.
Here are some ways in which personality may affect mental health:
Resilience: Individuals with positive personality traits like resilience may have better mental health outcomes. Resilience refers to the ability to adapt and recover from adverse life events. Resilient individuals are better equipped to cope with stress and may be less likely to develop mental health conditions like anxiety and depression.
Coping mechanisms: Different individuals have different coping strategies that they use when faced with stressors. Effective coping strategies can be helpful in preventing or managing mental health conditions. Individuals with positive personality traits such as optimism, self-efficacy, and a sense of purpose may be more likely to use adaptive coping strategies, while those with negative personality traits such as neuroticism and passive-aggressiveness may be less likely to use adaptive coping strategies and may be at higher risk for developing anxiety and depression.
Risk-taking: Individuals who are prone to risk-taking behavior may be at higher risk of developing substance abuse and addictive disorders.
Social support: Personality types that are outgoing and social may have better mental health outcomes due to having greater access to social support networks. Social support can protect against negative mental health outcomes like depression, anxiety and stress.
Organic Mental Health
Organic mental health refers to mental health conditions that are caused by underlying physical or organic factors. These factors can include injury or damage to the brain from head injuries or strokes, changes in brain chemistry due to hormonal imbalances or substance abuse, or illnesses affecting the central nervous system.
Organic mental health disorders can affect multiple cognitive and emotional functions, resulting in a range of symptoms and behaviors. These can include changes in mood, memory loss, reduced concentration, lack of motivation, confusion, impulsivity, and personality changes.
Examples of organic mental health disorders include delirium, dementia, traumatic brain injury, and amnesia. These disorders can happen to anyone at any age, though they are more common in older adults.
Nonorganic Psychosis
Historically, the term “nonorganic psychosis” or “functional psychosis” was used to describe a range of mental health conditions that did not appear to have an underlying organic or physical cause, such as schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, where no clear structural or biochemical abnormalities had been identified in the brain or body of the affected individual.
However, it is now recognized that many mental health conditions, including psychoses, have a complex interplay between biological and environmental factors, and that biological abnormalities and changes in brain structure and function can occur in individuals with mental health conditions. This recognition has led to the more appropriate term “psychosis” or “psychotic disorder” being used to describe these conditions, regardless of the presumed cause.
Worse Mental Disorder
Some mental health conditions can be particularly severe and may require more intensive and specialized care. For example, severe mood disorders like bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder can significantly impact an individual’s mood, thinking, behavior, and quality of life. Other conditions such as schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders can cause significant disruptions in an individual’s thought processes, affect, and behavior, leading to challenges in functioning in daily life.
Conclusion
I hope you gathered enough info from this post to understand a little bit about mental illness. It’s not the end of the world (although sometimes it feels like it). You can learn to live with mental illness, it just takes a lot of practice, patients and finally time. Get a really good doctor and therapist who are on the same page as you, and you’re good to go. I have had several doctors and therapists that weren’t very good at their job, so I left! You have to be your own self advocate, use it often. Thanks for your eyes (reading this) and until next time…
Articles
-NIMH – Caring For Your Mental Health
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/caring-for-your-mental-health
-What Is Mental Health?
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/154543
-Home-NAMI
Have a Good One,
Cindee Murphy, One Voice – Unstoppable
“You’re not alone!”
Leave a Reply