Mental Health
It
is a state of between the individual and the surrounding world, a state of
harmony between oneself and others, a co-existence between the realities of the
self and that of other people and the environment.
Definition
Karl
Menninger (1947) defines mental health as an adjustment of human being to the
world and each other with a maximum of effectiveness and happiness.
The
American Psychiatric Association (APA
1980) defines mental health as Simultaneous success at working loving
and creating with the capacity for mature and flexible resolution of conflicts
between instincts, conscience, important other people and reality.
Thus
mental health would include not only the absence of diagnostic labels such as
schizophrenia and obsessive compulsive disorder, but also the ability to cope
with the stressor of daily living freedom from anxieties and generally a
positive outlook towards life’s vicissitudes and to cope with those.
Components of mental
health
The
components of mental health includes:
·
The ability to accept
self: A
mentally healthy individual feels comfortable about himself. He feels
reasonably secure and adequately accepts his shortcoming. In other words, he
has self-respect.
·
The capacity to feel
right towards others: An
individual who enjoys good mental health
is able to be sincerely interested in other’s welfare. He has friendship that
are satisfying and lasting. He is able to feel a part of group without being
submerged by it. He takes responsibility for neighbours and his fellow members.
·
The ability to fulfil
life’s tasks:
A mentally healthy person is able to think for himself, set reasonable goals
and take his own decision. He does something about the problems as they arise.
He shoulders his daily responsibilities, and is not bowled over by his own
emotions of fear, anger, love or guilt.
Indicators of mental
health:
Jahoda
(1958) has indentified six indicators of mental health which includes:
1. A
positive attitude towards self: This includes an objective view of self, including
knowledge and acceptance of strengths and limitations. The individual feels a
strong sense of personal identity and security within the environment.
2. Growth,
development and the ability for self actualization: This indicator correlates with
whether the individual successfully achieves the tasks associates with reach
level of development.
3. Integration:
Integration
includes the ability to adaptively respond to the environment and the
development of a philosophy of life, both of which help the individual maintain
anxiety at a management level in response to stressful situation.
4. Autonomy: It refers to the
individual’s ability to perform in an independents self-directed manner; the
individual makes choice and accepts responsibility for the outcomes.
5. Perception
of reality :
This includes perception of the
environment without distortion, as well as the capacity for empathy and social
sensitivity – a respect and concern for the wants and needs of others.
6. Environmental
mastery:
This indicator suggested that the individual has achieved a satisfactory role
within the group, society or environment. He is able to love and accept the
love of others.
Characteristics of a Mentally
Healthy Person:
·
He
has an ability to make adjustment.
·
He
has a sense of personal worth, feels worthless and important,
·
He
solves his problems largely by his own effort and makes hoe own decision.
·
He
has a sense of personal security and feels secure in a group, shows
understanding of other people problem and motives.
·
He
has a sense of responsibility.
·
He
can give and accept love.
·
He
lives in the world of reality rather than fantasy.
·
He
shows emotional maturity in his behaviour, and
develops a capacity to tolerate frustration and disappointment in his
daily life.
·
He
has developed a philosophy of life that gives meaning and purpose to his daily
activities.
·
He
has a variety of interests and generally lives a well –balanced life of work,
rest and recreation.
MENTAL ILLNESS
Mental illness is maladjustment in
living. It produces a disharmony in the person’s ability to meet human needs
comfortably or effectively and function within a culture.
A mentally ill person loses his
ability to responds according to the expectation he has responds according to
the expectation he has for himself and the demands that society has far him.
In general an individual may be
considered to be mentally ill if:
·
The
person’s behaviour is causing distress and suffering to self and /or others.
·
The
person’s behaviour is causing disturbance in this day-to day activities, job
and interpersonal relationship.
Definition :
·
Mental
and behavioural disorders are understood as clinically significant conditions
characterized by alteration in thinking, mood (emotion) or behaviour associated
with personal distress and/ or impaired functioning (WHO,2001).
Characteristics of
Mental Illness:
·
Changes
in one’s thinking, memory, perception, feelings and judgement resulting in
changes in talk and behaviour which appear to be deviant from previous
personality or from the norms of community.
·
These
changes in behaviour cause distress and suffering to the individual or others
of both.
·
Changes
and the consequent distress cause disturbance in day-to-day activities, work
and relationship with important others (social and vocational dysfunction).
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