Mental health is a much talked about subject since the time pandemic has hit the world and people have been cooped up in the house. Drinking too much, getting angry often, staying upset most of the time crying all the time or any other significant change in the person’s behaviour, emotions, thoughts or feelings are tell-take signs of mental illness.
More often than not mental health is a combination of issues faced by a person. And it’s imperative that we understand these signs of mental illness in order to be able to help a friend, family member or any one of your loved one. In order to make it easier for you to understand these signs of mental illness, we have drawn up a list of key signs of mental illness to look out for.
Top 8 signs of mental illness
- Feeling unhappy- Unhappiness for a prolonged time is one of the signs of stress, depression and mental illness. Despite having all things good around you, when a person still feels unhappy then it does raise an alarm. It’s good to try and figure out the cause of unhappiness
- Getting anxious- Anxiety is one of the major signs of depression and mental illness. If a person has constant worry, anxiety and if it interferes all the time with the day-to-day activities then it’s a warning bell. The person with anxiety may also have other symptoms like fast heartbeat, palpitations, shortness of breath, headache, trembling, sweating, feeling dizzy or is restless in general.
- Insomnia-Insomnia is one of the signs of anxiety and depression. If there is a constant change in sleep patterns it could be a serious sign of mental illness. Sleeping too much or too little could indicate depression or a sleeping disorder.
- Emotional outburst- Mood swings are common in all of us. However, sudden and dramatic changes in the mood from being happy to being an emotional wreck or showing distress or severe anger is some of the signs of mental illness to look out for.
- Weight and dietary changes– For some people suffering from mental illness can show warning signs of sudden weight loss or weight gain. Eating too much or eating too little are also things to notice.
- Withdrawn behaviour- Withdrawal from life especially when there is a major change that you notice indicates mental health issues. Refusing to join in social activities or gatherings with family or friends is a sign of mental issues.
- Substance abuse- Using illegal or unwanted things to overcome the situations such as alcohol or drugs also contributes to mental illness.
- Feeling worthless- Thoughts like I am worthless, I am a failure, it’s my fault also indicates that the person has very low self-esteem about himself. Your friend or loved one may need help if they’re frequently criticizing or blaming themselves. When severe, a person may express a feeling to hurt or kill themselves. This feeling could mean the person is suicidal and urgent help is needed.
These are some of the major signs of mental illness and if you see any of these at moderate to severe levels it’s indeed important to seek expert medical help. Mental health is not a disease it’s just a condition that needs a lot of care and support from friends and family. Do not feel ashamed of seeking help and talking it out. At times what matters the most is speaking your heart out to someone whom you can trust.
To help you better sharing the website link of a well-known foundation LiveLoveLaugh by Deepika Padukone that has got various organizations/NGO’s listed that help with mental health issues and guidance. https://www.thelivelovelaughfoundation.org/helpline
#YouAreNotAlone #WeAreInThisTogether #Mentalhealthmatters
This post is a part of #CauseAChatter and #blogchatterhalfmarathon @blogchatter
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I agree Rakhi, mental illness is not to be ignored and the signs and symptoms have to watch, glad you have shared all this with so ease.
Ever since pandemic has started Mental illness – this term is coming into picture more often. Most of the times, these signs goes unnoticed and it becomes a serious issue later. But if we are feeling something unusual then we should not ignore it.
Mental health is one of the most important things which we usually ignore but I am happy that you have shared these signs here, it is going to help a lot of us to understand better.
Post delivery I had the anxiety issues. Thanks to few people that had helped me out my way from it. yes feeling now something is ok. but if it occures more then help is needed.
[…] Read on to know the signs of mental illness […]
This is such an informative post dear. many time people fail to recognize the sign and symptoms of mental illnesses as these symptoms may be a part of other physical illness. in recent stressful time of pandemic it is important that we keep a check on our mental health too and should get professional help, if needed.
This is so informative. These are the key signs of mental illness and need to be taken care of by the person him/herself and the family around.
We see so many are going through mental illness coz of stress and other stuff… It’s really important to treat on time.. Amazing topic you have put light on.
Very well written. As we all know mental health is very critical as not many people are comfortable talking about it and accepting that they are going through some mental health issues is still a big taboo. But the more we write and make people aware about it the more acceptance it will have in the society.
You are bang on girl and many of us fail to identify these early symptoms and let the condition worsen. The earlier we get diagnosed the better it is.
Subtle hints like change in weight and insomnia don’t ring the bell but they’re stress-related and signs of mental illness. You’ve raised some important points to consider.
We often take mental health for granted and ignore each sign of stress. I am so glad you have picked this topic and covered it so brilliantly on the blog, Rakhi. I am also planning to write a few detailed posts on Mental Health this time.
This is a very important topic which should be discussed openly. Earlier people scare to share about mental illness but from the last few years, I have seen people are talking about this, which is a good sign that they are taking help from others to get out of mental illness.
these key signs of mental illness should never be ignored in a person if he/she is going through mental turmoil. Glad u shared these, helpful post
These signs of mental illness must be caught early on to avoid any future repercussions. Since I run a room on mental health on Clubhouse, personally I know of a lot of people who are going through some mental health issues. I try to listen and offer a safe space for them to discuss how they feel. At times, seeking medical help might not be such a bad idea.
I am glad to see that you have put up this thing, in these difficult times many are going through this issue, and the signs and symptoms relating to this should never be ignored.
Mental illness can be underlying and could cause serious problems when discovered at later stages. It is always better to check out the signs at the earliest and get it treated.
Mental illness can not be ignored by any means. The signs and symptoms should be observed carefully. This post was so insightful
Mental illness should not be ignored as it becomes problematic with time . Glad you have mentioned all the signs and explained so beautifully.
Great post indeed,. Mental unhappiness is prevalent in India but only a few people talk about it or get it treated. the pointers mentioned by you also raise an alarm for me as well.