“MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN

MIDDLE AND LATE ADOLESCENCE.”

By: Astrade Oyao, Bam

Corales, Sheila Maulana,
Alexa Kim Orallo, Jona
Ecalla.
 OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this lesson/chapter, you are expected to:

 Interpret the concepts of mental health and psychological well-being in

everyday observations about mental health problems during
adolescence;

 Identify his or her own vulnerabilities;

 Make a mind map on ways of achieving psychological well-being; and

 Create a plan how to stay mentally healthy during adolecense

 QUESTION:

WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MENTAL

HEALTH?
 Concepts of Mental Health and Well-Being.

 In the previous chapters of the book, we have

discussed several important topics related to
adolescence, particularly how the development
of the brain and the body of adolescencts affect
their thinking, feeling and behaving. We also
discussed stress and how one’s physical health,
and the importance of coping as a strategy in
dealing with stress.
 According to the US National Institutes of
Health, "mental health includes our
emotional, psychological, and social well
being. It affects how we think, feel, and act
as we cope with life. It also help determine
how we handle stress, relate to others, and
make choices. Mental health is important in
every stage of life, from childhood
adolescence through adulthood".
 The 1999 US Surgeon General's Report on
Mental Health defined mental health as
"successful performance of mental function,
resulting in productive activities, fulfilling
relationships with other people, and ability to
change and to cope adversity" (knopf, Park,
and Muyle 2008).
The World Health Organization's (WHO) World Health
Report released in 2001 stated that "mental health is
defined differently by different experts from different
cultures. Concepts of mental health includes the
following:

1. Subjective Well-Being
2. Perceived Self-Efficacy;
3. Autonomy;
4. Competence;
5. Intergenerational Dependence; and
6. Self actualizational of one’s intellectual and emotional
potential, among others.
 For purposes of exploration, we will use the WHO concept of
mental health and the six areas that constitute it:

1. Subjective well-being

This may be defined as one's

personal (subjective) thoughts
and feelings about one's
overall state of being. Mental
health denotes positive and
healthy interpretations of a
person’s self concept, and
how a person feels about
himself. Good mental health is
tied to individual’s self-
concept and emotions about
him.
2. Perceived Self-Efficacy

 Self-Efficacy is One’s Perception of

one’s value and worth, effectiveness,
and ability in performing a task or
activity.
 A person with low self-esteem may
exhibit types of behavior that are self-
destructive or self-sabotaging.
 On the other hand, a person with a
healthy self-concept will move toward
self fulfillment and self-actualization,
have healthy relationships, and live
happier fulfilling lives.
3. Autonomy
 Autonomy is the capacity to for self-
direction and having a clearly defined role
identity. It is crucial to have autonomy
since this defines how a person interacts
with other people and environment.

 Lack of autonomy on the other hand, can

lead to co-dependence among those
who cannot define themselves as
separate entities from people they
depend on either emotionally, physically,
sociality, spritualy or even financially.
This can also lead to relational conflicts
as some people stay away from overly
dependent “clingy, needy” individual.
4. Competence

 Competence is related to
self-esteem and self-
identity. An individual who
is competent will always
assume full responsibility
for the actions and results
of his behavior.
5. Intergenerational independence  Today’s technology has
 Intergenerational independence refers to helped intergenerational
relationships between individuals who
belong to different generations but may independence thrive as it
be living separately as independent,
autonomous persons during a specific
closes the gap of time
period of time. An example of which is
very common among Filipinos is the
and space so that even
relationship between parents and their physically separated
grown up children. When the children
have all grown up, are pursuing their own family members can still
dreams, and performing their own
“nests”, their parents who may already be be in touch easily.
retired by then, are usually left at home
this phenomenon is Reffered to as the
“empty nest”.
6. Self-Actualization of one’s
intellectual and Emotional Potential
 Maslow’s pyramid of human hierarchy of
needs places self-actualization at the
peak. This means that once a person
fulfills his or her physiological needs,
security and safety needs, emotional and
social needs, and self-esteem needs.
 Self-Actualization is about fulfilling one’s
perceive potentials, becoming the person
that one has always aspired for.
 Maslow identified the key charcteristics of
self-actualized individuals: they have
acceptance of their reality, and have
compassion to help solve problems of
other people and society in general.
Another example of mental health and well-being model we can look into
is the one developed in 1991 by Witner and Sweeney.

The model includes what is referred to as the five life tasks:

1. Essence or spirituality
2. Work and leisure
3. Friendship
4. Love
5. Self-direction
Related to this five tasks are twelve sub-tasks as major components of wellness or well-
being that comprise the Wheel of wellness espoused by Myers, Witmer, and Sweeney in
2000. These are:

1. sense of worth
2. sense of control
3. realistic beliefs
4. emotional awareness and coping
5. problem solving and creativity
6. sense of humor
7. nutrition
8 physical exercise
9. self-care
10. stress management
11. gender identity
12. cultural identy (Note: This may or may not
apply to every Filipino, but we do have cultural
regional differences that need to be understood and
accepted.)
Healthy Self-concept at the Core of Mental Health
and Well-being.
 We have read in the previous chapters how important it is to have a healthy self-
concept and how much of our self-identity and self-esteem are anchored on it.
Having a positive regard for oneself means looking at oneself as someone who is
worth loving and worth caring for.
 Having positive one regard for oneself is also about seeing one’s strengths,
challenges, and successes, as well as the stumbling blocks that come along the
way in one’s search for meaning and happiness.
 Having a wonderful self-concept is about having a spirituality that provides
philosophical and essential meaning to one’s life, and about one’s relationship
with his perceived supreme being. Having a healthy self-concept is also about
embracing meaningful universal human values that define who you are, and how
these values from your set of healthy attitudes about other people, situations, and
thins.
Good Physical Health is Good for Mental Health

 The World Health Organization clearly noted that poor mental health plays
significant role in diminished immune functioning and the development of certain
illnesses, and eventually premature death.

 One’s physical health is also important factor to good mental health. Sleep and
nutrition, for example, should be given importance and properly observed by an
adolescent whose tendency is to take these things for granted. An individual is
deprived of sleep, for example, will be cranky, will have a short temper, will
sometimes become emotionally sensitive, and will develop skin rashes or acne,
have dark circles around the eyes, and may develop bad posture because of
feeling weak or sluggish and having low energy.
Healthy Self-Concept + Healthy Mind and Body =
Good Mental Health and Well-Being.

 A healthy self-concept plus a healthy mind and body are one’s guarantee to good
mental health. When all of these elements are in balance, then general well-being
is experienced. Well-being is a state of wellness where every aspect of a person
is in balance. Being well and feeling well means that there is a general sense of
contentment, happiness, calmness, and peace within.
 Developing one’s good mental health and well-being is very important to the
adolescent because this serves as a strong foundation toward a happy and
healthy adulthood.
 Challenges to Mental Health and Well-being
Among Adolescents
 A mental health problem is a short term and temporary change in a person’s
thoughts, feelings, or behavior that upsets one’s well-being, interpersonal
relationships, and productivity. Mental illness, on the other hand, refers to
diagnosable mental disorders characterized by changes in one’s thinking, feeling,
and is usually distress or impaired functioning during mental illness.

 Roughly 20% of a country’s total population falls under the 10 to 19 years of age
category or the adolescence category. The WHO estimates that there are around
one billion adolescents around the world today. This is the reason why the World
Health Organization has mandated every member-nation to provide special health
services to the adolescent segment of their population.
 Support for Mental Health and Well-
being

Adolescence who face the challenges brought about by their situation have options to maintain good
mental health and well being. In addition to what have been discussed, enhancing one’s social; skills,
problem solving skills, and self-confidence can also help prevent mental health problems
Finally, there are popular steps to improve mental health and well-being propositioned
around the world borrowing from the National Health Service of the united kingdom, the
five steps are:
1. Connect – with the people around you: your family, friends, classmates, schoolmates
and neighbors. Spend time developing this relationships.
2. Be active – physical activity generates positive sense of wellness. Engage in some
sports or physical activitiy like playing basketball, badminton, bowling, biking, or
swimming. Take a walk if you do not have enough time for some sports. It is important to
find an activity for you can enjoy and integrate in your daily life.
3. Keep learning – learning new skills or obtaining new knowledge can give you a sense of
achievement and new confidence. Some recommend doing something new everyday. It
can be short program in cooking, baking, joining an acting or writing workshop, learning to
play a musical instrument, or fixing a car problem.
4. Give to others – giving to others is not limited to money or other material things. A smile
or a warm and sincere greeting or thank you can brighten up day for both the giver and
receiver. Social involvement such as volunteering during disasters or helping out in your
communities is also good
5. Take Notice – be in there and now, be in the present moment, be aware of what is
happening around you, your own thoughts and feelings, and the physical sensations that
you experience. This awareness is referred to as “mindfulness”, and being mindful can
positively change the way you feel about life and how you approach challenges.

THE END