“It’s okay to not be okay.

Respect, Diversity, Inclusion: Mental Health

Mental Health Stigma - a mark of disgrace
associated with a particular
2
circumstance, quality, or person.

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 In recent years, mental health has been considered as an important aspect of
people’s daily lives, as a result, the term mental health has gained significant
importance and there is great emphasis on people taking care of their mental
health as it is so associated with quality of life and success and meaning.
 Mental health refers to the state of a person’s mind and impacts one’s emotions
and feelings. The world health organisation (WHO) uses the term mental health to
avoid negative labelling and stigma as people may hold biased perceptions against
others when terms like psychological distress, mental disorder and mental issues
are used.
 Why do you think there is a stigma around mental health?
Mental Health vs Mental Illness – what is 3

the difference?

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 Like physical health, mental health is a state of well-being, and it can be positive or negative. As a result,
people can have good days or bad days because of their mental health. There are various factors that can
affect a person’s mental health negatively or positively, for example a person’s work or school
environment, life experiences and pressures, relationships, physical health, and the type of community
they live in. When people are mentally healthy, they can feel, think, and act in ways that help them cope
with any challenging situation they experience. However, poor mental health may result in people feeling
unhappy, sad, despondent and overwhelmed by challenging situations which may lead to stress and
anxiety. Most of us are able to bounce back or recover over time.
 A mental illness/disorder results in mental and behavioural patterns that affect a person’s ability to
function - this may be over a short or long period of time. Mental illness/disorder is not only about
feelings or emotions; therefore, it cannot be oversimplified to only include feelings of sadness,
unhappiness, or anxiety about stressful situations. However, personal events that occur in people’s lives
may contribute to their mental illness/disorder - these events can be, for example, the death of a loved
one.
 People who suffer from mental illness/disorder may experience situations where they feel/believe they do
not have control over their lives and, as a result, regularly feel distress. In other words, mental illness
impacts mental health, but poor mental health does not always result in a mental illness.
Mental Health vs Mental Illness – what is 4

the difference?

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 It is also believed that mental health is a dynamic state of internal equilibrium
which enables individuals to use their abilities in harmony with universal values
of society.
 Basic cognitive and social skills; ability to recognize, express and modulate one’s
own emotions, as well as empathize with others; flexibility and ability to cope
with adverse life events and function in social roles; and harmonious relationship
between body and mind represent important components of mental health which
contribute, to varying degrees, to the state of internal equilibrium.
 The universal values are: respect and care for oneself, and other living beings;
recognition of connectedness between people; respect for one’s own and other’s
freedom.
Mental Health vs Mental Illness – what is the 5
difference?

 The concept of “dynamic state of internal equilibrium” is meant

to reflect the fact that different life epochs require changes in
the achieved equilibrium: adolescent crises, marriage,
becoming a parent or retirement are good example of life
epochs requiring an active search for a new mental equilibrium.
 Basic cognitive and social skills are regarded as an important
component of mental health in the light of their impact on all
aspect of everyday life.
 Cognitive skills include the ability to pay attention, remember
and organize information, solve problems, and make decisions;
social skills involve the ability to use one’s own repertoire of
verbal/non-verbal abilities to communicate and interact with
others.

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

Mental Health vs Mental Illness – what is 6

the difference?

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 Empathy, i.e., the ability to experience and understand what others feel without
confusion between oneself and others, enables individuals to communicate and
interact in effective ways and to predict actions, intentions, and feelings of others.
 Flexibility refers to the ability revise a course of action in the face of unpredicted
difficulties or obstacles, change one’s own ideas in the light of new evidence, and
adapt to changes that different life epochs or contingent situations may require.
 The basic ability to function in social roles and to participate in meaningful social
interactions is an important aspect of mental health and particularly contributes to
resilience against distress.
Mental Health vs Mental Illness – 7
what is the difference?

The inclusion of harmonious relationship between

body and mind is based on the concept that mind,
brain, organism and environment are heavily
interconnected, and the overall experience of being
in the world cannot be separated from the way in
which one’s body feels in its environment.

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

List some mental health issues. 8
 Anxiety disorders, including panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and phobias
 Depression, bipolar disorder, and other mood disorders
 Eating disorders
 Personality disorders
 Post-traumatic stress disorder
 Psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia
 Self-harm
 Psychotic experiences
 Body dysmorphic disorder or poor physical health
 https://medlineplus.gov/mentaldisorders.html

 People with these disorders do not experience the world and situations the way that you do. Let
us look at some quotes from people who have mental illnesses. They prefer to remain
anonymous:
A person with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive 9
Disorder)

 “When I started feeling different and was

diagnosed with OCD (I was in Grade 11),
my whole life changed. I could no longer
cope with normal situations easily. I had to
work through therapy and take medication.
It also led to me being diagnosed with
anxiety. Situations that seem unimportant to
those without OCD are very important to
me. I kept hoping I would go back to
‘normal’. This is now my lifelong struggle.”

https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/what-does-an
Respect, Diversity and Inclusion -ocd-brain-look-like/
A person who has depression: 10

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

“Whenever I have a good few months and I think I’ve gotten over the worst on my depression,
it silently returns. This isn’t a battle I asked to fight. I’m tired of knowing it’s always coming
back.”

“When you’re depressed you don’t control your thoughts, your thoughts control you. I wish
people would understand this.”

“I am not using my depression as an excuse. Trust me, I’d give anything to function
“normally” on a day-to-day basis.”

“Depression has nothing to do with being happy or sad. It has nothing to do with your personal
circumstances. It is a feeling of hopelessness that no words or deeds can take away. It robs you
of your joy completely.”
 11
Class discussion

 Why do you think the people

preferred to remain anonymous?
 How can we reduce the stigma
around mental illness?

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

Scenario 1 12

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 Jack is a grade 9 pupil, his parents recently separated and as a result, his mother
has moved to a new city with him because she wants to start a new chapter with
Jack in a different environment. Jack has not had much communication with his
father ever since they moved. Jack has been enrolled in a new school and is
having difficulties settling in. Every time he must go to school, he complains of
tummy aches and says he does not want to attend school.
Scenario 2 13

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 Emily is a grade 8 pupil, she lives with her parents, who are both busy professionals. She
works hard and achieves good marks at school and has ambitions of becoming a scientist
one day. She has been teased recently by students in her grade about being overweight –
as a result, she has decided to go on a strict diet and eats very little. Within a space of
three months, she has lost a lot of weight and has made many friends including those
who teased her. She is pleased with her weight and eats very little because she does not
want to gain the weight back and lose her friends.
Scenario 3 14

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 Thabo is a grade 10 pupil and lives with his dad and stepmother. He has little
contact with his mom or younger siblings. Thabo has been going out a lot and
partying with different people. He prefers to spend time having fun and partying
with his new friends and live wild. His friends frequently use the slogan YOLO,
which stands for You Only Live Once.
 15
Questions for the scenarios:

1. What do you think might be

happening in each scenario?
2. What problem (s) do you think each
young person is experiencing -
justify your answer by providing an
explanation.
3. Do the young people in the scenarios
need help, if so, how would you help
them?
4. What do you think could happen if no
one steps up to support each of these
young people?

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

SADAG - South African Depression and 16

Anxiety Group

Respect, Diversity and Inclusion

 To Contact A Counsellor Between 8am-8pm Monday To Sunday,
 Call: 011 234 4837 / Fax Number: 011 234 8182

 For A Suicidal Emergency Contact Us On 0800 567 567

 24hr Helpline 0800 456 789

 For counselling queries e-mail: zane@sadag.org