MENTAL ILLNESS IS NOT A JOKE

Every human is fragile. Health is a significant aspect of one’s life. Having a healthy lifestyle

means taking care of your physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental health. Every health aspect

is a vital role in enhancing one’s lifestyle. In this generation and in the world we live in, mental

health problems are rampant, especially in children and teenagers.

The pandemic gave a big impact on the mental and emotional health of the children and

teenagers. Anxiety and psychological distress are present for those who are living in a

challenging environment, lack of social and financial support, or children whose families are

facing poverty. According to World Health Organization, 2017, about 3.3 million Filipinos are

facing depressive symptoms based on the 2015 population estimate by the Philippine Statistics

Authority. Moreover, Philippines is listed as the third highest country that has the highest rate of

mental disorders in Western Pacific (Martinez et al., 2020).

Mental health disorders refer to wide-ranging variety of diseases and disorders which

affects a person’s moods, capacity to comprehend, capacity to communicate, change in habits,

and such. Mental disorders include anxiety, depression, eating disorders, schizophrenia, and

many more. These disorders may be caused by inherited traits, environmental exposures before

and after birth, and brain chemistry (Mayo clinic, 2019).

Inherited traits refer to your parents genes that are passed to your gene composition. If

one of your relatives or parents has a mental illness, there is a probability that you have a mental

disorder too. You may be asymptomatic but mental disorders can be triggered by your living

situation and status.

 Environmental exposures before birth refer to your mother’s lifestyle when carrying you

inside her womb. Diseases, toxins, alcohol and drug intake affect a fetus’ or a baby’s condition

inside the womb. These actions may develop mental illness to the mother’s child. Meanwhile,

environmental exposures after birth refer to the person’s experiences in his/her lie. This may

include environmental stressors, financial problems, academic problems, peer problems, and

many more. These factors may trigger and flourish mental illness.

These mental illnesses is not just a mere illness. It takes lives. People with mental illness

usually ends up being depressed. Without medical attention and family support, it will eventually

result to suicide. According to Statista Research Department, 2014, in 100,000 Filipinos, around

3.2% Filipinos have committed suicide due to depression and mental illness.

We must be vigilant. Mental illness is a serious disease that destroys a human’s ability to

have hope and see positive thoughts in life. We must always check on ourselves and in our

family members and friends. One factor in saving one’s life, is being someone they can lean on.

Communicate with everyone and always ask them if they are okay. A simple statement can save

someone’s life. Mental illness is not a joke.