Impact of Mental Health Problems In Life

Mental health is the state of your psychological and emotional well-being. It is a necessary resource for living a healthy life and a main factor in overall health…. poor mental health can lead to mental and physical illness. Good mental health allows you to feel, think and act in ways that help you enjoy life and cope with its challenges

Government of Canada

With this definition in mind, it is fair to say that mental health problems can lead to any number of problems for an individual.

Some of the most common problems can include:

Impacts to physical health

• Elevated risk of heart attack and cardiovascular disease
• Elevated risk of unhealthy weight
• Physical pain

Impacts to relationships

• Withdrawing from others
• Frustration and irritability
• Loss of enjoyment of regular activities

Impacts to school and work

• Unsatisfactory performance at work and disciplinary action
• Loss of enjoyment or satisfaction of work
• Increase in time taken off for work, either due to mental health problems directly, or the resulting physical health effects

What is important to remember

An individual experiencing a mental health problem will develop ways to manage it themselves – many of these effects, and the outward signs we’ll learn later, are a direct result of this self-management.