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Mental Health Awareness – Information, Stats, and Sources

What is Mental Health and Why is It Important

As cdc.gov explains, mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being.

While mental and physical well-being is different, they are both equally important and can affect one another.

Mental illnesses come in different variations and are common in every country of the world.

Mental Health Awareness - Information, Stats, and Top Sources 2022 by Publer.io — Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

Mental health is affected by:

Genes (family history)
Stressful life situations (financial, losses, etc.)
Brain damages (accidents, past traumas, etc.)

According to namica.org, there are various signs of mental illness:

Feeling excessively sad or low;
Extreme mood changes;
The fear of weight gain or concern with appearance;
The fear of weight gain or concern with appearance; etc.

There are various mental disorders that multiple organizations take initiative for: depression, bipolar disorder, PTSD, personality disorder, etc.

When is the Mental Health Awareness Month

The global awareness month for Mental Health is in May.

According to purdue.edu, the 2022 theme is “Back to Basics”. It provides foundational knowledge about mental well-being and its conditions and information about what individuals can do if their mental health is a cause for concern.

Besides May, every month of the year has an awareness day or week dedicated to well-being.

PTSD Awareness Day on June 27th; National Recovery Month in September; National Stop Bullying Day on October 12th; Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in July, etc.

Here are a few options to show your support this month:

Add a green ribbon on your social media profile pics.
Organize online events where you/others share important news and information to stay safe.
Prepare social media posts where you educate your audience about the history, statistics, or helpful helpline numbers.

There is no good or bad day to talk about well-being. Everyone can help support themselves and others. Connect with family and friends, tell your story, etc.

How Does Social Media Affect Mental Health

Social Media is a key factor in affecting someone’s mental well-being.

We know how invested people are when it comes to social media. That’s one of the main reasons to sleep less or cultivate self-judgment.

People are addicted to social networks. For example, TikTok has been an undeniably part of almost everyone around the world. Especially during the Covid pandemic as it was a new and entertaining network to pass time.

Besides TikTok, many other socials like Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram advanced their eCommerce features to encourage online shopping, due to restrictions.

But all that caused what we call: FOMO – the Fear Of Missing Out. Social media turned out to be the ONLY source of information, shopping gate, and entertainment (as of all travel restrictions, as well), and connecting with others.

These are the initiatives social networks have taken towards Mental Health Awareness: Mind Your Wellness by Pinterest; Recognizing Mental Health by TikTok; You Are Not Alone by YouTube; etc.

WHO Initiative for 2019-2023

“The world is accepting the concept of universal health coverage. Mental health must be an integral part of UHC. Nobody should be denied access to mental health care because she or he is poor or lives in a remote place.” – claims Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization

The WHO has taken a Special Initiative for Mental Health (2019-2023). There are 2 strategic actions claimed for this initiative:

Advancing mental well-being policies, advocacy, and human rights
Scaling up interventions and services across community-based, general health, and specialist settings

Check out the entire pdf file shared by the WHO on how will the success of the WHO Special Initiative for Mental Health be measured; assumptions for the success of the WHO Special Initiative for Mental Health; what budget is needed to implement the WHO Special Initiative and how will it for the WHO Special Initiative for Mental Health be used. Click here to view it.

Powerful Quotes

“Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary.” – Fred Rogers

“There is hope, even when your brain tells you there isn’t.” – John Green

“ ‘Positive vibes only’ isn’t a thing. Humans have a wide range of emotions and that’s OK.” – Molly Bahr

“My dark days made me strong. Or maybe I already was strong, and they made me prove it.” — Emery Lord

Mental Health Facts and Stats You Need to Know in 2022

Disclaimer: All stats that you read and/or will read in this article have their respective source of information attached. None of the stats belong to Publer.

An estimated 26% of Americans ages 18 and older, suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year.
Anxiety is the most common mental illness in the world, affecting 284 million people.
Depression affects 264 million people.
The average age at onset for a first manic episode of bipolar disorder is during the early 20s. It affects approximately 2.6% of Americans age 18 and older in a given year.
Social phobia and OCD symptoms typically begin in childhood or adolescence.
Percent of People (ages 13+) in the US with PTSD (Lifetime prevalence): 5.7%
Depression and anxiety disorders cost the global economy $1 trillion in lost productivity each year.