Mental health awareness week runs from 15-21 May this year, with a main focus on Anxiety. Anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems that everyone can face – from small amounts to large amounts, everyone will deal with Anxiety one way or another in their lifetime.
By spreading awareness of anxiety this week, the Mental Health Foundation hopes that it will help people understand anxiety and learn how to deal with it so that it doesn’t become a bigger problem in everyday life.
But to understand it, you must first know what it is.
What is anxiety?…
Anxiety is a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear, that can be mild or severe.
www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/generalised-anxiety-disorder/overview
Anxiety disorders affect over 8 million people in the UK – that’s a little over 1 in 10 of us – and there are lots of different types. Sometimes people can just dismiss these feelings, or others will dismiss you when you speak up about it – but it’s time to stop that way of thinking and raise awareness of how badly it can affect someone. It is hoped that Mental Health Awareness week will help to stop the stigma around mental health, and anxiety specifically this year, to get people talking about it.
Of course, Mental Health Awareness week is not just for discussing anxiety – if you work in a care setting you are likely to need to understand all types of mental health problems, as 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem of some kind each year in England alone.
If you want to read more on statistics for mental health you can go to the following:
www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/statistics-and-facts-about-mental-health/how-common-are-mental-health-problems/#References
So, this week make sure that you try and raise awareness where possible and join with the Mental Health foundation who are trying to make sure that improving mental health is a key priority everyone.